Allan Bayne has gone from Canadian boxing champion to punching bag in the last 15 years.
"My daughters seem to like giving me a couple of shots here and there," laughed Bayne.
His two daughters may get a few jabs in on the former Spruce Capital Warriors Boxing Club fighter nowadays but Bayne's past glory is fondly recalled by many in the Boxing BC community. The BC Amateur Boxing Hall of Fame (BCABHF) has selected Bayne as one of 16 of its 2012 inductees.
"There's a lot of great boxers that are inducted already and to be in company with them is phenomenal," said Bayne.
Other Prince George members of the 2012 class are Mandy Lapointe, Laurie Mann and the Spruce Capital Warriors Boxing Club. The BCABHF was established in 2010 and has inducted 41 members including 17 boxers. Victoria's Brian Zelley, a former boxing coach, is an administrator for the hall of fame.
"Hopefully as it grows there will be something more permanent," said Zelley. "It would be nice if Boxing BC came on board and
became involved."
Bayne said it was his dad Boyd who informed him of the honour early one morning in June.
"My dad thought he'd die," said Bayne. "He's more excited than I am."
Boyd never boxed himself, but he took over as manager of the Spruce Capital club from Harold Mann where he worked with many young boxers in Prince George
including his son.
"He made sure I got to the gym to pursue a career that his son really wanted to do," said the 40 year old.
"It was nice to have a supportive family."
After hanging up his gloves Bayne stayed connected with the sweet science by achieving his Level 4 referee and judging certification. An Olympic level judge has a Level 5.
"It's a little different but if I can give back to the sport that's given me so much, why not?" said Bayne. "The kids need it."
Bayne had 168 recorded amateur bouts during his career,
posting a 144-24 record and was 3-0 as a professional boxer before his 1997 retirement. He was inducted into the Prince George Sports Hall of Fame in 2005 while his dad was inducted in 2008.
Bayne said he has no regrets about calling it a career before he turned 30.
"It's all been good, positive," he said. "I've been very, very healthy."
During his career, Bayne was an eight-time Silver Gloves champion, nine-time BC boxing champion, 11-time Golden Gloves champion and he won the BC Golden Boy honour twice. In addition to his prowess in BC, the southpaw had wins at the Houston and Tacoma Golden Gloves tournaments - he was a two-time champion in
Tacoma in 1985 and 1986.
He also earned the title at the Blue and Gold tournament in Los Angeles in 1992 after earning four wins over four days. After four second-place finishes at Canadian nationals Bayne won the light middleweight gold medal in 1993 at the amateur boxing championship in Winnipeg.
Bayne reached the final of the light middleweight division at the St. Georges Challenge Cup in Liverpool, England in 1994, but was forced to retire from the match after receiving a cut to his forehead after butting heads with his opponent.
Despite not being able to finish the fight, a 22-year-old Bayne was voted top boxer at the 18-country tournament.
Bayne was also the only BC boxer to qualify for the Canadian team when the Commonwealth Games were held in Victoria. But his competitive Games' experience was short-lived. Bayne suffered a first-round knockout.
"It wasn't the highlight of my career, but that's the way the punches roll," he said about falling to Rival Cadeau of the Seychelles Islands, who at the time was the No. 8 ranked fighter in the world.
Bayne hung up his boxing gloves in 1997 after recording his third profession win.
"It was nice to finish off my career with a win before I carried on with life and family," said Bayne about the six-round bout in Prince George. "I got to fight a great boxing legend from Vancouver, Al Harper. It was a great match."
