View source for Jimmy Carruthers

{{Short description|Australian boxer (1929–1990)}}
{{Distinguish|Jimmy Caruthers}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2018}}
{{Use Australian English|date=March 2018}}
{{Infobox boxer
| name = Jimmy Carruthers
| image = Jimmy Carruthers 1953.jpg
| imagesize = 
| caption = Carruthers after defending World Bantamweight title against Gualt on 13 November 1953
| nationality =Australian
| realname = James William Carruthers
| nickname = 
| weight = [[Bantamweight]]
| birth_date = {{Birth date|df=yes|1929|07|05}}
| birth_place = [[Paddington, New South Wales]]
| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|1990|08|15|1929|07|05}}
| death_place = [[Sydney]], [[New South Wales]]
| reach = {{convert|67|in|cm|abbr=on}}
| height = {{height|ft=5|in=6}} 
| style = [[Southpaw (boxing)|Southpaw]]
| total = 25
| wins = 21
| KO = 13
| losses = 4
}}
'''James William Carruthers''' (5 July 1929 – 15 August 1990) was an Australian boxer, who became the [[list of undisputed world boxing champions#Bantamweight|Undisputed Bantamweight World Champion]] in 1952.

Jimmy was the 2009 Inductee for the [[Australian National Boxing Hall of Fame]] Veterans category.

==Amateur career==
Carruthers's boxing career started as an Australian representative at the [[1948 Summer Olympics]] in [[London]]. In his first-round match of the [[Boxing at the 1948 Summer Olympics - Men's bantamweight|bantamweight competition]], he fought [[Fred Daigle]] of [[Canada]] and won on points. He defeated [[Arnoldo Parés]] of [[Argentina]] in his second match. However, he had sustained an eye injury during his bout with Parés, and had to withdraw from the quarter-final match with the eventual gold medalist [[Tibor Csík]] of [[Hungary]].<ref name=sr>[https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ca/jimmy-carruthers-1.html Jimmy Carruthers] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151001094357/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ca/jimmy-carruthers-1.html |date=2015-10-01 }}. sports-reference.com</ref>

==Professional career==
Carruthers joined the professional ranks in 1950, and was an immediate success. By then, he was being managed by Dr. Jim McGirr, and trained by "Silent" Bill McConnell.

He won the Australian Bantamweight title in 1951 and then the British Commonwealth and Bantamweight Championship of the world the following year.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cyberboxingzone.com/boxing/bantam.htm|title=Jimmy Carruthers - Lineal Bantamweight Champion|publisher=The Cyber Boxing Zone Encyclopedia}}</ref> Carruthers became Australia's first universally recognised boxing world champion when he knocked out the guy who had been crowned [[South Africa]]'s first world champion himself, [[Vic Toweel]], in the first round.<ref name=sr/> Great Australians of the past—including [[Young Griffo]], [[Mick King]], and [[Les Darcy]]—had all won world titles, but they had not received international acceptance at the time of winning their respective crowns.  After defending his newly won world bantamweight title by knocking out Toweel in the tenth round of their rematch at [[Johannesburg]], and then against the American Henry "Pappy" Gault in Sydney, by a fifteen-rounds decision, it was found that Carruthers was carrying a 30-foot-long [[tapeworm]].<ref name="adb">{{cite book|url=http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/carruthers-james-william-jimmy-12294|title=Carruthers, James William (Jimmy) (1929–1990)|publisher=Australian Dictionary of Biography|accessdate=8 March 2012}}</ref>

He was matched for a world title bout against the New Zealand Bantamweight Champion [[Lyn Philp]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article27131841|title=The Mercury Newspaper|newspaper=Mercury |date=15 January 1953 |publisher=Thursday, 15 January 1953}}</ref> For unclear reasons the fight never went ahead.

After a non-title bout in Sydney, and a further title defence against [[Chamroen Songkitrat]] in [[Bangkok]], Carruthers retired on 16 May 1954.  Among the fighters he defeated were South African Vic Toweel (twice); [[Pappy Gault]]; [[Bobby Sinn]] and Chamroen Songkitrat. He made a brief comeback in Melbourne and Sydney in the early sixties in non-title fights, with his last fight in Wellington New Zealand in 1962 where he lost to Jimmy Cassidy.

==Personal==
He worked on the Sydney docks as a wharf labourer in the 1950s.

Carruthers was married to Myra (née Hamilton) until his death and is survived by four children - Boyd, Ginna, Dimiette and Lukas.  During the 1950s he owned the colourful Bells Hotel in Sydney's [[Woolloomooloo]].  After that he had a number of businesses, including several vegetarian takeaway and juice bars in Sydney.

In his last years Carruthers suffered from [[lung cancer]] and [[Parkinson's disease]]. He died on 15 August 1990.<ref name="adb"/> In 1995 he was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame.

== Professional boxing record ==
{{BoxingRecordSummary
|ko-wins=13
|ko-losses=1
|dec-wins=8
|dec-losses=2
|dq-losses=1
}}
{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
!{{abbr|No.|Number}}
!Result
!Record
!Opponent
!Type
!Round
!Date
!Location
!Notes
|-
|25
|{{no2}}Loss
|21–4
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|NZL}} Jimmy Cassidy
|DQ
|8 (10)
|Jun 18, 1962
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|NZL}} {{small|Town Hall, Wellington, New Zealand}}
|
|-
|24
|{{yes2}}Win
|21–3
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} [[Johnny Jarrett]]
|TKO
|2 (12)
|Mar 29, 1962
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Woodville, South Australia, Australia}}
|
|-
|23
|{{yes2}}Win
|20–3
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Louis Magnifico
|KO
|2 (12)
|Mar 9, 1962
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Adelaide, South Australia, Australia}}
|
|-
|22
|{{no2}}Loss
|19–3
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|US|1912}} Don Johnson
|TKO
|5 (12)
|Dec 15, 1961
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Festival Hall, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia}}
|
|-
|21
|{{no2}}Loss
|19–2
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Wally Taylor
|PTS
|12
|Nov 20, 1961
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small| Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia }}
|
|-
|20
|{{no2}}Loss
|19–1
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|ITA}} Aldo Pravisani
|PTS
|12
|Sep 11, 1961
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small| Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia }}
|
|-
|19
|{{yes2}}Win
|19–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|THA}} [[Chamroen Songkitrat]]
|PTS
|12
|May 2, 1954
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|THA}} {{small|National Stadium Gymnasium, Bangkok, Thailand}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{small|Retained NBA, NYSAC, and ''The Ring'' bantamweight titles}}
|-
|18
|{{yes2}}Win
|18–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Bobby Sinn
|PTS
|12
|Mar 29, 1954
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small| Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia }}
|
|-
|17
|{{yes2}}Win
|17–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|US|1912}} Pappy Gault
|UD
|15
|Nov 13, 1953
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small| Sydney Sports Ground, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia }}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{small|Retained NBA, NYSAC, and ''The Ring'' bantamweight titles}}
|-
|16
|{{yes2}}Win
|16–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|Union of South Africa}} [[Vic Toweel]]
|KO
|10 (15)
|Mar 21, 1953
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|Union of South Africa}} {{small|Rand Stadium, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{small|Retained NBA, NYSAC, Commonwealth British Empire, and ''The Ring'' bantamweight titles}}
|-
|15
|{{yes2}}Win
|15–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|Union of South Africa}} [[Vic Toweel]]
|KO
|1 (15)
|Nov 15, 1952
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|Union of South Africa}} {{small|Rand Stadium, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{small|Won [[list of WBA world champions#Bantamweight|NBA]], [[New York State Athletic Commission|NYSAC]], [[list of Commonwealth Boxing Council champions#Bantamweight|Commonwealth British Empire]], and [[list of The Ring world champions#Bantamweight|''The Ring'' bantamweight titles]]}}
|-
|14
|{{yes2}}Win
|14–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|US|1912}} Johnny O'Brien
|PTS
|12
|May 12, 1952
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|13
|{{yes2}}Win
|13–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Ray Coleman
|PTS
|12
|Apr 7, 1952
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|12
|{{yes2}}Win
|12–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Taffy Sammy Hancock
|TKO
|7 (12)
|Mar 13, 1952
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Leichhardt Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|11
|{{yes2}}Win
|11–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|MEX|1934}} Luis Castillo
|PTS
|12
|Nov 26, 1951
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|10
|{{yes2}}Win
|10–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|US|1912}} Enrique Morales
|TKO
|7 (12)
|Aug 27, 1951
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|9
|{{yes2}}Win
|9–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} [[Elley Bennett]]
|PTS
|15
|May 14, 1951
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|style="text-align:left;"|{{small|Won vacant Australian bantamweight title}}
|-
|8
|{{yes2}}Win
|8–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|US}} Billy Herbert
|TKO
|10 (12)
|Apr 2, 1951
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|7
|{{yes2}}Win
|7–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|French protectorate of Tunisia}} Bobby Scrivano
|KO
|1 (12)
|Mar 5, 1951
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|6
|{{yes2}}Win
|6–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Bluey Wilkins
|PTS
|12
|Jan 22, 1951
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|5
|{{yes2}}Win
|5–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Jim McFadden
|TKO
|9 (12)
|Dec 11, 1950
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|4
|{{yes2}}Win
|4–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Keith Francis
|TKO
|10 (12)
|Nov 20, 1950
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Sydney Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|3
|{{yes2}}Win
|3–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Fred Kay
|TKO
|12 (12)
|Oct 19, 1950
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Leichhardt Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|2
|{{yes2}}Win
|2–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Ron Wilson
|TKO
|5 (12)
|Oct 13, 1950
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|West Melbourne Stadium, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia}}
|
|-
|1
|{{yes2}}Win
|1–0
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} Ted Fitzgerald
|TKO
|3 (12)
|Aug 15, 1950
|style="text-align:left;"|{{flagicon|AUS}} {{small|Leichhardt Stadium, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia}}
|
|-
|}

==Titles in boxing==
===Major world titles===
* [[New York State Athletic Commission|NYSAC]] [[bantamweight]] champion (118&nbsp;lbs)
* [[list of WBA world champions#Bantamweight|NBA (WBA) bantamweight champion]] (118&nbsp;lbs)

===''The Ring'' magazine titles===
* [[list of The Ring world champions#Bantamweight|''The Ring'' bantamweight champion]] (118&nbsp;lbs)

===Regional/International titles===
* [[Australia|Australian]] bantamweight champion (118&nbsp;lbs)
* [[list of Commonwealth Boxing Council champions#Bantamweight|Commonwealth bantamweight champion]] (118&nbsp;lbs)

===Undisputed titles===
* [[list of undisputed world boxing champions#Bantamweight|Undisputed bantamweight champion]]

==See also==
*[[List of bantamweight boxing champions]]

==References==
{{commons category|Jimmy Carruthers}}
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{boxrec|id=16365}}
*[http://www.cyberboxingzone.com/boxing/carruthers.htm Jimmy Carruthers - CBZ Profile]

{{s-start}}
{{s-ach|ach}}
{{s-before|before=[[Vic Toweel]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=World Bantamweight Champion
|years=15 November 1952 - 16 May 1954<br>Retired}}
{{s-vac|next=[[Robert Cohen (boxer)|Robert Cohen]]}}
{{s-end}}

* https://titlehistories.com/boxing/wba/wba-world-b.html
* https://titlehistories.com/boxing/na/usa/ny/nysac-b.html
* https://boxrec.com/media/index.php/The_Ring_Magazine%27s_Annual_Ratings:_Bantamweight--1940s

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carruthers, Jimmy}}
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:1990 deaths]]
[[Category:Bantamweight boxers]]
[[Category:Boxers from Sydney]]
[[Category:Olympic boxers for Australia]]
[[Category:Boxers at the 1948 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in New South Wales]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Boxing Council champions]]
[[Category:Australian male boxers]]
[[Category:Australian waterside workers]]
[[Category:Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Sportsmen from New South Wales]]
[[Category:20th-century Australian sportsmen]]