Larry Foley

Australia
Born 1849-12-12, Sofala, New South Wales
Died 1917

Also known as

Laurence Foley · Father of Australian Boxing

Description

Australian middleweight boxer and teacher, "Father of Australian Boxing", a protégé of Jem Mace. After beating Abe Hicken in 1879 he opened a boxing academy at his White Horse Hotel in Sydney, with Mace as an instructor, introduced the Queensberry Rules to Australia, and trained Bob Fitzsimmons, Peter Jackson, Young Griffo and Frank Slavin. He controlled Australian boxing into the early 1900s.

Teachers (1)

  • Jem Mace
    sports_martial_artsBoxing Confirmed
    Confirmed
    Independent sources state it.
    The evidence establishes the claim: it is sufficient and consistent, and any conflicting evidence is resolved.
    Coach (1879)
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    2 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    Independent sources state it.
    “Sydney’s first important promoter was Laurence “Larry” Foley (ca. 1849–1917), a Jem Mace protégé who effectively controlled Australian boxing from the 1870s to the early 1900s.”
    — Green, Thomas A.; Svinth, Joseph R.. (2010). Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation info
    “Former English champion Jem Mace, who trained Foley for his championship bout with Hicken, helped open the school and continued as an instructor.”
    — Larry Foley - Wikipedia (English). Wikipedia (English)link history info

Students (4)

  • Bob Fitzsimmons
    sports_martial_artsBoxing Probable
    Probable
    Wikipedia only.
    The evidence favours the claim and nothing credible contradicts it, but it falls short of establishing it.
    location_onLarry Foley's boxing academy, White Horse Hotel badge
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    1 source expand_more
    fact_check
    Wikipedia only.
    “He was known worldwide for the quality of his boxing training, and acted as a promoter as well at times, helping to mold the career of his most gifted student Bob Fitzsimmons, who would become a champion in three weight classes.”
    — Larry Foley - Wikipedia (English). Wikipedia (English)link history info
  • Young Griffo
    sports_martial_artsBoxing Probable
    Probable
    His own account, via Wikipedia; Foley's record agrees.
    The evidence favours the claim and nothing credible contradicts it, but it falls short of establishing it.
    location_onLarry Foley's boxing academy, White Horse Hotel badge
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    2 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    His own account, via Wikipedia; Foley's record agrees.
    “He said in a 1902 interview with The Cincinnati Enquirer that Larry Foley of Sydney had acted as an important early boxing mentor, and indeed Griffo had trained at Foley's boxing school at Sydney's White Horse Hotel”
    — Young Griffo - Wikipedia (English). Wikipedia (English)link history info
    “At his gym at the White Horse, Foley taught, trained and guided the careers of the great boxers Young Griffo, Bob Fitzsimmons, Paddy Slavin, and Peter Jackson as well as the lesser known Dan Creedon and George Dawson.”
    — Larry Foley - Wikipedia (English). Wikipedia (English)link history info
  • Peter Jackson
    sports_martial_artsBoxing Probable
    Probable
    Wikipedia only.
    The evidence favours the claim and nothing credible contradicts it, but it falls short of establishing it.
    location_onLarry Foley's boxing academy, White Horse Hotel badge
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    2 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    Wikipedia only.
    “Both Slavin and Jackson had trained under Larry Foley and a real feud had existed between them for several years, due to Slavin's racism and a romantic triangle with a woman named Josie Leon.”
    — Peter Jackson (boxer) - Wikipedia (English). Wikipedia (English)link history info
    “At his gym at the White Horse, Foley taught, trained and guided the careers of the great boxers Young Griffo, Bob Fitzsimmons, Paddy Slavin, and Peter Jackson as well as the lesser known Dan Creedon and George Dawson.”
    — Larry Foley - Wikipedia (English). Wikipedia (English)link history info
  • Frank Slavin
    sports_martial_artsBoxing Probable
    Probable
    Wikipedia only.
    The evidence favours the claim and nothing credible contradicts it, but it falls short of establishing it.
    location_onLarry Foley's boxing academy, White Horse Hotel badge
    fact_checkassessed by FSMverified
    Frederico Muñoz
    Researcher, Martialis
    2 sources expand_more
    fact_check
    Wikipedia only.
    “He was a pioneer of prizefighting in his country, fighting under the tutelage of Larry Foley.”
    — Frank "Paddy" Slavin - Wikipedia (English). Wikipedia (English)link history info
    “At his gym at the White Horse, Foley taught, trained and guided the careers of the great boxers Young Griffo, Bob Fitzsimmons, Paddy Slavin, and Peter Jackson as well as the lesser known Dan Creedon and George Dawson.”
    — Larry Foley - Wikipedia (English). Wikipedia (English)link history info

Sources

Larry Foley - Wikipedia (English). Wikipedia (English)link history info

Identifiers

https://martial.is/entity/01M5JPY6FNJBK7WVKR797CX3WY
Wikidata

Cite and reuse

CC BY-SA 4.0expand_more
Plain text
Muñoz, Frederico (YEAR_PLACEHOLDER). Larry Foley. In Martialis: Martial Arts Lineage Database. https://martial.is/entity/01M5JPY6FNJBK7WVKR797CX3WY - CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed ACCESSED_DATE_PLACEHOLDER.
BibTeX
@incollection{martialis_01M5JPY6FNJBK7WVKR797CX3WY, author = {Muñoz, Frederico}, title = {Larry Foley}, booktitle = {Martialis: Martial Arts Lineage Database}, year = {YEAR_PLACEHOLDER}, url = {https://martial.is/entity/01M5JPY6FNJBK7WVKR797CX3WY}, urldate = {ACCESSED_DATE_PLACEHOLDER}, note = {CC BY-SA 4.0} }
data_object JSON-LDdata_object Turtle

Database content on this page is CC BY-SA 4.0; the database right is separately reserved. Licensing