Nigeria: Boxer dies after collapsing during fight

A Nigerian professional boxer passed away after collapsing during a fight in Accra, Ghana, local media have reported.

Gabriel Oluwasegun "Success" Olanrewaju, a former Nigerian and West African light-heavyweight champion, was fighting Ghanaian boxer Jon Mbanugu in a Ghana Professional Boxing League bout on Saturday.

However, he collapsed onto the ropes in the third round — without having received a punch.

After receiving first aid in the ring at the Bukom Boxing Arena, he was rushed to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital where he was pronounced dead 30 minutes after arrival, the Ghana Boxing Authority (GBA) confirmed.

"Oluwasegun, a few seconds before the end of round 3, stepped back during the fight and leaned on the ropes with his back without any punch whatsoever from his opponent," read a GBA statement on Sunday.

"The referee, sensing danger, waved his hand for the end of the fight and immediately invited the ringside physician with the support of paramedics from the national ambulance service to attend to the boxer to help resuscitate him."

Was Olanrewaju's fight officially sanctioned?

The GBA insisted that Olanrewaju, 40, had been "declared medically fit by the Nigeria Boxing Board Control (NBBC)" and that it had therefore "sanctioned and approved the international contest."

However, the NBBC told Nigerian newspaper The Punch on Monday that it hadn't approved the ultimately fatal bout, which was reportedly arranged at short notice after Olanrewaju had been judged too heavy to compete in a scheduled fight on Friday.

"[Olanrewaju] got our approval to fight in Ghana, a fight that was proposed to take place on a Friday," NBBC secretary Remi Aboderin told The Punch. "Unfortunately, they did [the] weigh-in on Thursday and he was found to be overweight and they told him the person he was to fight was not his weight."

Was Olanrewaju in debt?

According to Aboderin, Olanrewaju was on his way back to Nigeria and had reached the border between Ghana and Togo when he decided that he couldn't return home empty-handed due to significant debts he had to pay.

"They called the matchmaker, who informed him that there was a fight on Saturday night, but we didn't give him the approval for that," said Aboderin, claiming the GBA got it wrong. "So, he turned back and went back to Ghana because he needed the money; he owed a lot of people money."

Babatunde Ojo, one of Olanrewaju's former coaches, told The Punch that he advised the boxer against fighting on short notice.

"These are the things I advise my boxers against," he said. "You can't just pick a fight at short notice; you need at least one month. I am very saddened by his loss; may his soul rest in peace."

NBBC secretary Aboderin told BBC Sport that Olanrewaju was a "fearless" fighter who died a "ring warrior." He said the federation was "really devastated" by his death and insisted: "We will live up to our responsibility and make sure that we stand [by his] family."

Before his bout with Mbanugu, Olanrewaju had an official record of 23 fights, with 13 victories and eight defeats.