The family of Cardiff boxing legend Billy Waith has paid tribute to him as a "fantastic father, husband and uncle" who had a "big heart and cheeky sense of humour", following his death aged 71. Throughout his professional boxing career spanning 15 years, Mr Waith fought in 95 matches all over the world against many renowned boxers of his era.
He is remembered in particular for winning Welsh Boxer of the Year just two years into his career and later for being crowned Welsh Welterweight champion twice. He hung up his boxing gloves aged 34, and spent the rest of his life engaged in entrepreneurial pursuits and helping his local communities.
Having lived in Cardiff since he was born, Mr Waith moved to Llanharan in the early 2000s, where he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease . He died on August 12. Born in Butetown in 1950, Mr Waith was of Bajan heritage - his grandfather having come to Wales as a stowaway on a boat from Barbardos.
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His family moved to Ely when he was four, where he grew up with his brother, John Waith, and five sisters. When he was 11 years old, he started boxing with his brother at St Clare's Amateur Boxing Club. A love for boxing ran in their blood: the boys' father was a "great boxing fan", according to John, and they were family friends with fellow Butetown heavyweight boxer Joe Erskine.
His success as an amateur boxer foreshadowed his glittering professional career. He was crowned British Schoolboy Champion aged 14, and in 1972, before he turned professional aged 19. In 1972, aged 21, he was declared Welsh Boxer of the Year, having won 15 out of 16 fights.
He represented Wales on many occasions, fighting in countries all over the world - from Canada to South Africa and Croatia. He competed in four weight divisions - lightweight, featherweight, light welterweight and welterweight - before settling on the latter by the end of his career.
"He always struggled with his weight," said his daughter, Sarah Jane Waith. "I can remember before a fight, just for him to have a cup of tea, he would put all his training stuff on, put black bags over himself and go running for about 10 miles - to come back just to have a cup of tea."
She added: "My dad would fight anyone at any time - so if anyone dropped out of a fight, he'd be there straightaway. So all of a sudden, then, he's got to make this weight - so that's when he'd go training and get [the weight] off."
A highlight of Mr Waith's time in the ring included giving former English boxer Dave Boy Green the longest fight of his career (11 rounds) in 1976. He also took on former Scottish boxer Jim Watt twice, and John said Mr Watt admitted " he found it hard to land a punch on [Billy]".
He unsuccessfully fought Henry Rhiney for the British Welterweight title in 1978, but won the Welsh Welterweight championship in 1982 and again in 1984. "Everyone used to say he was a very fast, very clever boxer," said Sarah Jane. "Dad would go up against anyone. He wasn't fearful of anything, really."
Outside of the ring, he was known affectionately as "Billy Boy Waith" - a nod to the years he spent as a bread boy delivering Wonder Bread loaves while he was boxing in his late teens - and loved playing football as much as boxing. "He'd go and have a football game the day before he went into a boxing match," said Sarah Jane. "He was just so well known everywhere."
He retired from boxing in 1984, and started working with his wife, Anne, for a company that hired out fruit machines and jukeboxes to pubs, before he set up his own business selling pool tables and ice machines to pubs. He eventually went on to become a publican himself in 1988 for 15 years. He ran The Crown in Llandaff North, which he transformed into a "family pub".
"He used to do so much for the community [in Llandaff North]," said Sarah Jane. "My dad bought a Toyota Space Cruiser, just to go and pick up all the older ladies. Every Monday, he would go around the whole estate, picking them all up, bringing them up for bingo, doing the bingo and then taking them all home. He was that kind of guy."
He also opened Boxers snooker halls in Llanedeyrn and Ely, which he ran for about five years. "The reason that he actually opened those pool and snooker halls was because he knew that they were deprived areas, and he wanted to do something and get the kids off the street," said Sarah Jane.
After giving up the pub, he and Anne "semi-retired" and took a year off. But Mr Waith's entrepreneurial spirit had not yet left him. After moving from Cardiff to Llanharan, he and Anne set up a courier service delivering parcels and, in doing so, "got to know the whole community".
When Anne passed in 2013, Mr Waith was already showing signs of Alzheimer's and was diagnosed a year later. Following his death, his family hope to raise donations for The Ringside Charitable Trust, a project that seeks to establish a 36 bed residential care facility for ex-boxers who have depression, alcohol dependency, injuries and illnesses attributed to boxing. "It's really what my dad needed," said Sarah Jane.
Asked what the family will remember most about the boxing legend, Sarah Jane said: "He had such a cheeky, wicked sense of humour. He was a character. When you met Billy, you knew you'd never forget him. He lived his life like Del Boy, in a way, and my mum would just clean up his mess that he made. He did so many stupid things and it's those stupid things that we are going to miss."
She continued: "He was a softy. He was a fantastic father, husband and uncle. He would do anything for anyone. He loved Motown, he used to love Big Mac's Wholly Soul band and just dancing. He thought he was a cool dude, in all fairness, and he was."
Billy Waith is survived by his brother, John, his three children Louise, Wayne, and Sarah Jane, and his five grandchildren Adam, Corey, Oliver, Annaya, and William. His funeral will be held on Tuesday, August 30, at 11am at All Hallows Church in Miskin, 12pm in Llanharan Cemetery, and then Whitehill golf club in Brynna.
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