Memorabilia relating to the British 1908 London Olympic Games boxing champion Richard K Gunn including his winner's diploma, the lot comprising: a 190

Memorabilia relating to the British 1908 London Olympic Games boxing champion Richard K Gunn including his winner's diploma, the lot comprising: a 1908 Olympic Games winner's diploma named to R K GUNN, trimmed at margins the result of an earlier mounting and framing; a large mounted 22 by 15in. signed photographic portrait of Richard Gunn posed in boxing vest and trunks, signed in ink lower left and inscribed by hand OLYMPIC GAMES, 1908; a hallmarked silver salver of octagonal form with presentation inscription dated July 1950 reading PRESENTED TO R.R. (DICK) GUNN BY THE AMATEUR BOXING ASSOCIATION IN RECOGNITION OF HIS LONG AND VALUABLE SERVICES ON THE COUNCIL AS A MEMBER LIFE PRESIDENT AND HON. TREASURER, A.B.A. FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMPION 1894, 1895 & 1896, 30.5cm., 12in. diameter; a first prize diploma for featherweight boxing named to Gunn and presented by the German Gymnasium Societyin 1893; a scrapbooks, press cuttings and a quantity of other ephemera relating to the career of R K Gunn (a qty.) Richard Kenneth Gunn (1871-1961) is the oldest man ever to have been crowned as an Olympic boxing champion. He achieved this feat in the featherweight division of the boxing tournament at the London Games of 1908 aged 37 years and 254 days. He had in fact retired when still British amateur featherweight champion in 1896, a title he had held for three consecutive years. This retirement was actually at the request of the ABA as Gunn was far the superior of any of his rivals. In return Gunn served on the ABA Council for more than ten years. When the fighter learned that the Olympic Games were coming to London he resumed training, returned to the ring and won the gold medal at the 1908 Games, before hanging up his gloves for good immediately thereafter. He only ever suffered one defeat in 15 years of boxing. Gunn was born in Charing Cross, London, 16th February 1871 and died at Lambeth, London, 23rd June 1961 aged 90.