He left Belize in 1978 after an impressive string of victories in professional boxing at Birds Isle, and after thirty-four years in the U.S., Henry Gill returned home in August of 2011, and has been quietly making some rounds and getting re-acquainted with the boxing scene in Belize; and he says he is not happy with what he has seen. Not an intellectual type, Henry, who was expelled from St. Mary’s in Standard Six for punching a notorious street character, and then turned to boxing, believes that much more can be done to provide for the many youngsters in troubled situations who can get themselves back on a positive path in life by applying their energy to the sport of boxing.
Henry is presently employed as a security guard and lives in the Lake Independence area. “Belize has grown and changed a whole lot since I left in 1978,” he says, “and it is sad to see so many youths going astray, because there is nothing there for them.” He applauds the work being done with youths by some individuals in other sports like football and basketball. But, sadly, very little is happening in Belize City to push boxing among our youth. “Like with myself,” said Henry, “boxing is a sport especially suited to help youths in troubled situations, who need a way to get their life back on track, and there is a lot of that in some parts of Belize City right now.”
Gill thinks that he can make a difference; but he is reluctant to align himself with any already established program that may lack credibility with interested donors. “I don’t want my name in anything that is not done right and the resources are not properly assigned to really help the program, so I rather start by own gym.”
If anyone is wondering about the credentials of Henry Gill, he hails from a period in Belize when boxing was highly promoted, sparked by the presence of Trinidad’s world ranked junior welterweight Fitzroy Guisseppi. Henry says he lost his first professional fight to Chester Audinett. He was beating Chester handily in the first round; but resorted to show-boating (Ali was his boxing idol), and paid the price for his carelessness in the second round when he was caught and knocked out by Audinett. “I tried in vain for a rematch,” said Gill. “The only chance I got was in a sparring session, and I did to Chester what George Foreman had done to Joe Frazier; after that, Chester wanted no part of me.”
Following the loss to Audinett, Henry says he reeled off five straight knockouts at Birds Isle. The first four were over Mexican fighters – “Baby” Canul, Rodolfo Rodriguez, Jose Torres and one (?) Gonzalez, who was then the champion of Campeche. He then travelled to Costa Rica to participate in a Central American lightweight elimination bout, and lost by a second round “knockout” to Alvaro Rojas; according to Henry, a story goes with that fight that will take some time to tell, and it involves the “Mafia” aspect of professional boxing that caused him to take the loss. The winner, Rojas, then went on to fight the legendary Roberto Duran who knocked him out in the first or second round. On his return to Belize, Henry says he was quickly matched against Cleophus Lord (a.k.a. “Brad’s Eyes”), whom he stopped in the second round of a scheduled ten-rounder.
At the height of his fame, then 25-year-old Henry Gill migrated to the States; but after losing two fights in the lightweight division at the Olympic Stadium in Los Angeles, his professional career faded.
Along with Chester Audinett and Cleophus Lord, other prominent boxers Gill recalls in his weight class at the time in Belize were the “Cow Blood” brothers – Dennis and Edmund White, Roy “Shorty” Clarke, Frank “Tucu Tack” Humes and Reuben Smith. Boxing gyms and prominent trainers were Havana Gym with Eustace Vernon, Independence Gym with Gus Marin, Birds Isle Gym with Cyril Davis, and Youth Hostel Gym with Arturo Ortega. He also mentioned trainer Wilfred Nicholas.
The “Boxer’s” dream is to bring back boxing in Belize to past where it used to be before he left for the States in 1978, and he wants to start with the kids. “Amateur boxing, 11- to 17-year-olds, is where we need to focus our efforts,” Gill says, and he is talking to a number of people to seek help in providing a gym and the equipment needed to get the program going in Belize City. “We need gloves – 12 oz, 14 oz, 16 oz; bandages for handwrapping; speed bags; mouthpieces; punching bags; skipping ropes; head gear – small, medium, large; protective “cups”.
All boxing equipment, including various types of rings can be sourced at the Everlast Sports Gear web site, said Gill. Interested donors can contact Henry “Boxer” Gill at 666-8091. In his plea for support, the Boxer maintains, “The kids are going astray because nothing is there for them.”