How could any fan of the art of pugilism not want to hear Howard Cosell describing all the action as Team USA did battle with Team DDR (East Germany) within the confines of the four posts….just one year before they were to most likely going to see each other again in the ring at the upcoming 1980 Moscow Olympic Games!?!
These Cold War Classic” international amateur boxing competitions between the USA AAU Team and the Russian, East German and Cuban National Teams….are literally “pure gold” in our treasure chest of vintage memories here at ImaSportsphile….as they give such a vivid snapshot of what was going on in the world at the times…..for there was significant tension in the world between the West and the East….. which spilled over into so many walks of life. The same polarization between the West and East that existed back then….exists today between the conservatives and the liberals in the USA….there was simply no “middle ground” from which to build a respectful relationship….as evidenced by the fact that in all of the fight footage seen in this video…..there was never a unanimous decision in any of the fights that are seen herewith…..as there was at least one East German judge…..and there was no middle ground…. even when it was obvious.
The final results of line-up of fights for this amateur boxing event went as follows….DDR Dietmas Gerlich vs USA Jeff Whaley in the light flyweight (106 lb) bout….followed by the bantamweight (119 lbs) fight between DDR Stefan Forster vs.USA Mike Felde….then came DDR Richard Nowakowski vs USA Davey Armstrong in the lightweight bout (132 lbs)….after which came the light welterweight bout with DDR Karl-Heinz Kruger vs USA Larry Tatum….where Tatum beat the snot out of Kruger and lost….there were two East German judges with no middle ground. Next came the welterweight fight with DDR Detlef Ludwig vs USA Dennis Armstrong….followed by the light middleweight bout with DDR Detlef Kastner vs USA Roosevelt Green….after which DDR Karl Gebhauer vs Andy May in the middleweight bout…..and the last televised bout featured two really good and tough heavyweight boxers as DDR Jurgen Fanghunel vs USA Tony Tubbs…..in an amateur fight that is well worth watching.
What can we say….this is classic vintage amateur boxing at the highest level…regarding the kind of athletes the sport was drawing….considering the patriotism that was carried into each fight by each fighter….who represented their country during The Cold War…..while adding the one and only Howard Cosell on the mike….with the interest of boxing fans everywhere….and what do you got?….a video to ENJOY!!!
