Guisseppi says his piece at the wedding of Richard 'Shrimpy' Clarke.
IT SEEMS the Stanley Couch Gym on East Queen Street in Kingston has been hardest hit by the death of boxing trainer Fitzroy Guisseppi, who it is believed suffered a heart attack during the seven-fight card in Portmore on Saturday night.
Boxers there are still reeling from the shock of the trainer's sudden passing and have vowed that for him, if for no one else, they will continue to fight.
Ricardo Planter, who has been under Guisseppi's guidance for the last four years said: "I felt like everything was unreal. I saw when he fell but I never expected anything serious to happen to him. I'm really going to miss him.
"I'll probably join another gym if we don't get another trainer here but I'm going to continue fighting. Now that this has happened, I feel like I want to do even better because Mr Guisseppi would have wanted nothing but the best from me."
Welterweight Courtney Harvey was on his way into the ring to challenge Ryan Graham of the Jamaica Defence Force when he got the news that the Trinidad-born trainer had died.
He immediately unwrapped his gloved fists and as a mark or respect decided he was not going to fight.
"I can't fight now. Yow star! The big man dead. Ah nuh nutten still me a go continue fi fight because him wouldn't want mi fi stop," he said.
CAME TO JAMAICA IN 1968
Guisseppi came to Jamaica in 1968 as a boxer and never left, except to accompany local teams to regional competitions, including the Caribbean Amateur Boxing Association Championships.
Said Felix Smith, who brought a then young Guisseppi here in 1968 Mr Deschampes Due to civil unrest in Haiti at that time, Guisseppi settled
Among the local fighters he has trained who rose to prominence are former world flyweight contender Richard 'Shrimpy' Clarke.
"We're in a state of shock," said Jamaica Boxing Board of Control president Leroy Brown on Guisseppi's death.
"We were hoping that he would have been okay once he got to the hospital but unfortunately he didn't make it and we mourn his passing. Mr Guisseppi's death is a huge blow to the boxing fraternity," he added.
- Charmaine Austin
