Pamela `Grenade’ London might not be as well-known as Gwendolyn O’Neil who beat her on both occasions they fought.
But she is a former world champion nonetheless who also challenged twice albeit unsuccessfully, for the Women’s International Boxing Federation (WIBF) heavyweight title some five years apart. London was born on September 13, 1973 and started boxing in 2002.
Like it is now, amateur boxing for females is not popular mainly because females are more inclined to be glamourous as opposed to being rough and tough as their male counterparts.
The one exception might be those of a tomboyish nature.
London, whose sister Pauline also dabbled in the fistic sport, is a product of the Forgotten Youth Foundation Boxing Gym in Albouystown where George `Canche’ Oprecht was the resident trainer.
However, her professional trainer was Brian Barker who also trained `Deadly’ Denny Dalton.
London had her first bout on August 29, 2003 at the Mackenzie Sports Club ground in Linden.
The four-round bout against Geraldine Cox, a bodybuilder turned boxer, ended in a draw.
A mere three months later she fought Cox again but lost a points decision.
That fight took place on November 1, 2003 at the same Mackenzie Sports Club ground.
London finally got the first `W’ of her career when she defeated Shelly `The Boom’ Gibson on Boxing Day that same year.
The next year started brightly for London as early in the year she got a crack at the national heavyweight title of Guyana.
Her opponent was Shelly Parks and the eight-rounder, on February 21, 2004 at the MSC ground in Linden, saw London winning her first title.
A bout against Krystal Lessey, a kickboxing champion from Trinidad and Tobago, was next up for London and she won on points at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall although the decision was not too well received by the crowd.
That bout took place on April 16, 2004 and the very next month she took on Cox again in the final fight of their trilogy and won a unanimous decision at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.
That win earned her her first world title crack on November 28, 2004 at Splashmins Fun Park where she lost to Martha Salazar by a TKO in round nine for the vacant WIBF women’s heavyweight title.
London suffered another defeat when she lost to O’Neil on July 9, 2005 on points in a light heavyweight contest.
She then travelled to Trinidad to take on `Big’ Kim Quashie of Trinidad for the WIBC heavyweight title of the world winning over 10 rounds on 23 2015.
She also went on to win the vacant WBC International female heavyweight title defeating Veronica Blackman over eight rounds on July 5, 2008 in her very next fight at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall in Guyana.
On December 19, 2009 she fought Natalya Ragozina for the vacant WIBF and WBF women’s heavyweight world title losing by a TKO in round 8.
That fight took place in DIVS, Ekaterinburg, Russia.
In her last bout she fought O’Neil on November 6, 2010 and lost a unanimous decision.
She has a record of 12 fights, six wins, with one knockout, five losses and one draw and is our latest inductee into the Stabroek Sports’ Boxing’s Hall of Fame.
