By Ken Reed
By all accounts, Maxim Dadashev was a terrific young man. Now he’s dead. At 28. Because of a boxing match.
Dadashev died late last month after taking a beating during a boxing match in Oxon Hill, Md. He collapsed shortly after leaving the ring and was rushed to a nearby hospital. But it was too late. The fatal damage had already been done — all while participating in a “sport.”
It was a completely senseless death. The result of a sport whose sole purpose is to damage the brain of one’s opponent. To cause a concussion. To “knock out” the human being in the ring with you.
To some, this sport seemed silly and barbaric 20 years ago. But given all we know today about concussions, repetitive sub-concussive blows to the brain and CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy), how can it possibly still be legal in this country to stage and promote boxing matches?
In the past decade, about a dozen boxers have died during a match, or shortly thereafter, due to injuries suffered during their fights.
Enough.
States should no longer be in the business of sanctioning boxing matches.
— Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans
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