Menstuff® has compiled the following information about Boxing.
The main story was reported as major news. In it, it
mentions that three competitors have died in the last nine months and
as many as 9 since the contest began. The reason they didn't make
main news is that, chances are, they were all men. Secondly, people
seemed shocked that someone could get hurt, much less get a brain
concussion and much less die. What are people thinking. Boxing is
about hitting people in the head and "knocking them out!" It's
not a game of tag. And, it has been reported that 86% of professional
boxers suffer brain damage. Of course, that's not very well known
because most boxers, again, are men, so it doesn't make the
headlines. Boxing is no picnic. Stop thinking that it is.
Woman Dies after Amateur Fight
"We are trying to determine the criminality of it,'' police spokesman Jay Frank said.
Stacy Young suffered swelling and bleeding in the brain during Saturday night's Toughman bout.
She was disconnected from life support Tuesday afternoon after being declared brain dead Monday night at Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg, hospital spokesman Bill Hervey said. Hospital representatives at one point Tuesday prematurely reported her death when she was still on life support.
Chuck Young said his wife, a mother of two, decided on the spur of the moment to compete after learning that the only woman who had signed up needed an opponent.
"It's supposed to be fun," said Chuck Young, who also got in the ring but who lasted only 29 seconds in his bout. "They tell us nobody's going to get hurt. The worst that could happen was to get a broken nose."
There were no cash prizes for the bouts in the publicly owned Robarts Arena, at the Sarasota County fairgrounds. In Florida, prize money for boxing is legal only in tightly regulated professional bouts.
At 240 pounds, Young outweighed her opponent by about 60 pounds. But in the first 30 seconds of the bout, family members knew it was an uneven match, said her sister Jodie Meyers.
Young nearly lasted all three rounds before falling the final time, Meyers said, adding that doctors told her any one of the many blows could have damaged Young's brain.
The Toughman contest was started by businessman and boxing promoter Art Dore in Michigan in 1979. Men and women pay a $50 entry fee and compete for cash or trophies.
At least three competitors have died in the past nine months, and some say the total number of deaths in the circuit's 24-year history is as high as nine. Several states have banned Toughman contests.
Dore said in a statement he was "devastated" by the death. He said that Toughman bouts have "the best safety record among all forms of boxing," and that all safety precautions were taken before the event.
Joelle English, head of public relations for AdoreAble Promotions,
the event's parent company, said participants sign waivers releasing
promoters from liability, and their heart rate and blood pressure are
checked by a doctor. 
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