Olympic Boxer Found Dead at 27
September 16, 2009 by Jeanne Dupuis
Filed under Sports
An Olympic boxer who took home the bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games was found dead in his home of apparent suicide.
Manager, Frank Maloney, went to 27-year-old Darren Sutherland’s home and found him hanging just after 3pm yesterday. The discovery was so shocking that Maloney had to be rushed to the hospital after showing signs of shock and tests revealed that the man had had a heart attack. He will remain in hospital for several days.
image: Zuma Press
Sutherland represented Ireland at the Olympics and was defeated by Briton James DeGale in Beijing. DeGale had the following to say about the tragedy: “He had an Olympic bronze medal and his whole life to look forward to. He had a great future and my heart goes out to everyone who knew him.”
Former world featherweight champion Barry McGuigan, who was born in Ireland, also shared his thought about the sad news:
“I am deeply shocked and deeply saddened by this news and my heart goes out to Darren’s family. It is an absolute tragedy. I would describe Darren as a phenomenal talent. He represented his country with pride as an amateur and I believe he would have become a world champion in the professional ranks one day.”
Sutherland was unmarried and had no history of known problems. His next fight was scheduled for October 16, 2009.
