COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (March 14, 2019) — On March 14, 1980, the sport of amateur boxing and the world tragically lost 22 members to a plane crash near Warsaw, Poland. The fourteen boxers and eight staff members aboard the flight, which killed a total of 77 people, were en route to an international event in Poland at the time of the crash.
The team was traveling from New York to Warsaw to compete in two dual events in Cracow and Katowice when the Polish IL-62 jetliner went down just a half a mile from Warsaw’s Okecie Airport.
Today marks the 39th anniversary of the tragic accident and USA Boxing would like to acknowledge those team members and the sacrifice they made for their country and the love of the sport. Those lost on March 14, 1980 will never be forgotten.
USA Boxing Team Members and Staff Lost in the 1980 Plane Crash
KELVIN D. ANDERSON ELLIOT CHAVIS GARY TYRONE CLAYTON WALTER HARRIS BYRON LINDSAY ANDRE MCCOY PAUL PALOMINO BYRON PAYTON GEORGE PIMENTAL CHUCK ROBINSON DAVID RODRIGUEZ LEMUEL STEEPLES JEROME STEWART COL. BERNARD CALLAHAN THOMAS “SARGE” JOHNSON JOSEPH BLAND JOHN RADISON JUNIOR ROBLES LONNIE YOUNG DELORES WESSON DR. RAY WESSON STEVE SMIGIEL
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