Page, Gregory E. "Greg" (boxing)
(born: 1958 - died: 2009)Page was born in Louisville, KY. A gifted boxer, he won the national Amateur Athletic Union heavyweight championship in 1977 when he was a junior in high school. He won it again in 1978 prior to his high school graduation. After graduation, Page turned pro. He was touted as the next Ali. But after his father's death, Page ran into contract and financial troubles. He defeated Gerrie Coetzee of South Africa for the 1984 WBA heavyweight title, then lost the title five months later. He also began to lose his property and took a break from boxing. Page boxed off and on, filed for bankruptcy, and later left boxing again and held a full-time job painting dental equipment. In 2001, at the age of 42, Page left his day job to prepare for a boxing career comeback. He suffered permanent brain damage in a bout with Dale Crowe in Erlanger, KY, in March 2001. Greg Page was inducted into the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005. For more see "Greg Page" on the Inductees, Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame website; Greg Page time-line articles in the Courier-Journal (Louisville), June 12-15, 2005; W. Graves, "New regulations close to reality," The Kentucky Post, 03/23/2006; D. T. Lovan, "Former boxing champ Greg Page dies in Louisville," Lexington Herald-Leader, 04/27/2009; and B. W. Baye, "Special Tribute, Boxing Royalty, Greg Page" in Who's Who in Black Louisville, 3rd ed., pp.49-50. See video Greg Page vs Gerrie Coetzee RD 8 on YouTube.
