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Misc Info:
Past Article/not undated: Rita Turrisi was born in Sicily, her father is Sicilian and her
mother Croatian. Boxing runs in the family, since her grandfather, on her
mother’s side of the family, was a light heavy-weight European champion
in the 1920’s. She fights and trains herself, following her own
ideology very closely, i.e. there are no restrictions of any kind; above
all, one must not listen to outside voices which weaken our basic
instinct. Astute training and perseverance yield their fruits, although
the number one rule is to breathe deeply and have respect for the other
person. Rita began her competitive career swimming and shot-putting at
school. It didn’t take her long to realise that track-and-field sports
were her childhood dream. She was most suited to long-distance running and
her time in the 42,195-metre marathon was so good that it got her into the
Italian national team. Some time later, a haemorrhage in her leg obliged
her to undergo surgery and she was no longer able to continue running. She
stopped - feeling very bitter. She did many other sports, including
the triathlon and karate in the goju-ryu style. However, there was no
competitive spirit in the latter and other defensive arts were too
unrealistic for her. She got tired of them. As fate would have it,
while she was in a gym, she saw a training session for fighting and
encountered Thai boxing, finding what she had been looking for. On
12-10-96 she won the European title, I.S.K.A., in the 62 kilo category,
with a technical knock-out, in the 7th round. On 22-11-98
she won the European title, W.I.B.F., in Croatia, in the welter-weight
category, with a knock-out in the 8th round. On 14-2-98
she won a kick-boxing match in Zaandam (Holland), with a knock-out in the
second round, XXX, after a heavy exchange of punches. In
March of last year she fought in Moscow but was obliged to follow a strict
diet in order to lower her weight to 64 kilos. In view of the opportunity,
Rita and her team decided to take on the preparation and the ruinous diet.
But a surprise awaited her. On arriving in Moscow, after all the
sacrifices, her opponent weighed in at 63 kilos! The President of WAKO
insisted that Rita lost another one-and-a-half kilos at all costs. As a
result, on the day before the match, she skipped for three hours solidly,
until she had lost one kilo, seven hundred grams. This match remains one
of her finest fights, against an opponent holding two world titles. But
the Italian fighter loses on points, after having shaken the Russian
several times. Boris Lagutin is at the ringside and calls out to Rita,
"You may have lost but you must not be sad, because it’s just as
if you had won." When she hears these words, her spirits are lifted.
This is the man who had won everything in boxing and also three gold
medals in the Olympics of 60/64/68. In the same year (1999), Rita fought for
the world title in the 70 kilo category at Pola (Croatia) against Derdic,
from whom she had taken the European title.
March 31, 2005 - Henry
Fonda Theatre, in
Hollywood, California
Welterweight
Suswella Roberts won by
four-round unanimous decision over Rita Turrisi.
Final Judges scores were 40-36.
October 27, 2004 - Andiamo Italia, in
Warren, Michigan
IBA Intercontinental Jr. Welterweight champion
Mary Jo Sanders, 144, of Detroit, Michigan, won an unanimous
eight-round decision over Rita Turrisi,
146, of Italy, who fights out of Las Vegas. Final judges scores were 80-72
on all scorecards. These were three-minute rounds, not two.
July 23, 2004 - Warner Hotel,
Fresno. California
Eliza Olson, 145, won a six-round unanimous decision over
Rita Turrisi, 146.
June 27, 2004 -Sandia Casino, in Albuquerque, NM
Rita Turrisi, 140, a boxer from Italy who fights out of Las Vegas, won
by TKO in the fourth round, over previously undefeated
Holly Holm, 140. Holm's corner threw in
the towel due to a deep cut under Holm's eye.
October 2, 2003 - Laughlin, Nevada
Weigh-In Report
Tonight at the Palace Indian Gaming Center in Lemoore, California, Jenifer Alcorn TKO1 41seconds,
Franchesca Alcanter. In a second women's match, Claudia Valenciana
won a four-round majority decision over Italy's Rita Turrisi.
In the third match, Lisa Lewis won a majority decision over Blanca
Luna.
More by Steve Cummings
on InTheCorner.net
News
Article: Knockout Motivation
PHOTO LINK
August 16,
2003-Oakland Arena, Oakland, California
In a women's match on an undercard, Welterweight Rita
Turrisi, 147, now 2-3-0, stopped last-minute
opponent Melissa Rodriguez, making her pro debut, in the fourth round. Gina
Guidi who was making a comeback did not make it onto the
card. |
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