Floyd Patterson

Floyd Patterson (1935 to 2006) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1952 to 1972 and twice reigned as world heavyweight champion between 1956 and 1962. At 21 he became the youngest boxer in history to win the heavyweight title, and he was the first heavyweight to regain the title after losing it. As an amateur he won the middleweight gold medal at the 1952 Summer Olympics. The Ring magazine and the Boxing Writers Association of America voted him Fighter of the Year in 1956 and 1960, and he is counted among the top fifteen heavyweights of all time. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1991 and received the Barney Nagler Award from the Boxing Writers Association of America in 1995 for his long and meritorious service.