Boxing lost one of its revered elder statesmen when former welterweight champ Tony DeMarco died at 89 on Oct. 11.
However, DeMarco wasn’t the oldest living boxer in the International Boxing Hall of Fame at the time of his passing. That distinction belongs to women’s pioneer Barbara Buttrick, who turns 92 on Dec. 3.
The next oldest living boxers in the Hall are Eder Jofre and Carlo Ortiz, both of whom are 85.
Buttrick (30-1-1) was in the inaugural class of the Women’s Trailblazer Category, which was instituted last year. She was elected with fellow pioneers Jackie Tonawanda and Marian Trimiar.
The Londoner, all 4-foot-11 and 98 pounds of her, began training at 18 and fought in exhibitions in Europe as part of a traveling boxing troupe, according to the IBHOF. Women’s professional boxing was banned in the U.K. at the time.
“The Mighty Atom of the Ring” was recognized as the world flyweight champion when she and her husband-trainer Len Smith traveled to the United States. She boxed throughout North America, winning the bantamweight title by outpointing Phyillis Kugler in 1957 in the process.
Buttrick trained at the famous 5th Street Gym in Miami and ended up settling in Florida. She retired in 1961 but remained a licensed manager and trainer.
Eder Jofre (7-2-4, 50 KOs) is a former two-division champion in the 1960s and ’70s who is considered one of the greatest boxers of all time. Ortiz (61-7-1, 30 KOs) was a highly respected – and probably underappreciated – lightweight titleholder in the 1960s.
Journalist and author Jerry Izenberg, 91, is the oldest living non-boxer in the Hall. The next oldest is journalist and broadcaster Larry Merchant, who is 90.