Walter McGowan


1942 -

Boxer. McGowan was born in Burnbank (South Lanarkshire). He took the Amateur Boxing Association flyweight title (1961) and went on to beat Jackie Brown in Paisley to take the British and Commonwealth championship (1963), again at the flyweight. He took the World flyweight title in London (1966) beating the Italian Salvatore Burruni. McGowan lost this title to Thailand's Chartchai Chionoi in the same year, when the referee stopped the fight. He failed to regain the title from Chionoi in 1967. He moved up a fighting weight and defeated Alan Rudkin for the British and Commonwealth bantamweight title (1966), although Rudkin regained the title from McGowan in Manchester (1968).

McGowan retired in 1969, having won 32 of his 40 fights. He was regarded as a brave boxer, noted for his superior footwork in the ring. He was inducted as one of the first members of the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame in 2002.


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