Francisco Rodríguez (boxer, born 1945)

Francisco Antonio Rodríguez Brito (born September 20, 1945) is a retired Venezuelan boxer. At the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City he won the gold medal in the inaugural men's light flyweight (– 48 kg) division, after having claimed the gold as well at the 1967 and 1971 Pan American Games. He carried the flag for his native country at the opening ceremony at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany.

This article is about the Venezuelan boxer. For the Mexican boxer, see Francisco Rodriguez (boxer, born 1984).
This article uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Rodríguez and the second or maternal family name is Brito.
Francisco Rodríguez
Personal information
Full nameFrancisco Antonio Rodríguez Brito
Nickname(s)Morochito
NationalityVenezuelan
Born (1945-09-20) September 20, 1945
Cumaná, Sucre
Height1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight132 lb (60 kg)
Sport
SportBoxing
Weight classLight Flyweight and Flyweight

Amateur career

Rodriguez, nicknamed "Morochito", was Venezuela's first Olympic gold medalist, winning gold in the light flyweight division in its inaugural year of competition, 1968. His amateur record stood at 266 wins, 4 losses.

After the Olympics, Rodríguez signed a professional contract. Before fighting he took his mother to a pro bout. At one point, one of the boxers' bloody mouthpiece landed in Rodriguez's mother's lap. She begged Rodriguez to give up fighting and he cancelled his contract.

Olympic results

Mexico City - 1968

  • Round of 32: bye
  • Round of 16: Defeated Rafael Carbonell (Cuba) on points, 5-0
  • Quarterfinal: Defeated Hatha Karunaratne (Ceylon) by a second-round TKO
  • Semifinal: Defeated Harlan Marbley (United States) on points, 4-1
  • Final: Defeated Jee Yong-Ju (South Korea) on points, 3-2 (won gold medal)

Munich - 1972

Honors

He was inducted into the Venezuelan Sports Hall of Fame in 1988.

References
  • Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Francisco Rodríguez". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 2008-12-23.


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