(MAR 30) 2015 Carolinas Boxing Hall of Famer Larry Frazier grew up in Hartville, South Carolina and began boxing at an early age.   His interest was sparked in the sport when in 1973, he watched the Joe Frazier vs. George Foreman Heavyweight championship where he saw Frazier get knocked down five times.  He  began to get upset because he shared the same last name as "Joe Frazier".  So, at the tender age of 11 years old, he thought that getting into boxing, he might some day get a chance to fight Foreman and defend the "Frazier" name.

At the age of 16, Frazier went on to win the Carolina Golden Gloves at 147 pounds in Charlotte, North Carolina, and at that  time he was very impressed with the Marine Corps boxing team, and decided to follow in their footsteps right after graduating high school in 1976.   What impressed Frazier at the time, he said, "I saw how those guys warmed up and respected how they weren't afraid to go out there and fight, and that it was amazing to see the kind of condition they were in and how they knew they were going to win before they ever got in the ring. I thought to myself that that is where I want to be."

In 1976, Frazier joined the United States Marine Corps (USMC), with not only to serve his country but because of his interest in the boxing team.  He felt they had an excellent team and wanted to be part of it.  Frazier won the All-Marine Championship in 1977 and 1978, earning the No. 8 spot in the nation with a record of 38-5, and was also named the All-Marine Champion for the years 1977 and 1978.   After Frazier served in the Marine Corps for six years,  he fought professionally, accumulating a 9-3 boxing record.

When Larry Frazier signed on to coach the One More Round boxing team in 2014 in Darlington, he couldn't have imagined the fledgling group would be hosting a USA Boxing-sanctioned event just two years later.   On June 11-12, 2016 though, One More Round partnered with Cladom Enterprise out of Virginia to bring the Southeast Amateur Invitational Boxing Championship to the Florence Civic Center.

Photo:  Larry Frazier (left); Billy Stanick (center)  Rusty Fickling (right)

In an interview with the "South Carolina Now" media, Frazier said that it was a blessing to have an event like this and that One More Round was the only boxing team associated with USA Boxing.  Frazier went on to say that they had boxers from Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., who had entered the event at the civic center. [Full story, dated May 3, 2016, by Sam Bundy, entitled "Amateur Boxing to Hit Florence This Summer",  Link to article].

In 2017, Frazier was inducted into the Marine Corps Boxing Hall of Fame at the Goettge Memorial Field House in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina.  Frazier said at the time, "It's exciting and I am very happy to be a two-time hall of famer.  I was inducted into the Carolina Hall of Fame in 2015 and that was an amazing honor. Now I have the honor to be inducted into the United States Marine Corp Hall of Fame. It's overwhelming in some ways. I really can't explain it. I feel like a kid that just woke up on Christmas morning with a lot of toys he wasn't expecting to find."

Frazier, a boxing coach for "One More Round" Boxing has been involved in hosting different boxing events sanctioned by the USA Boxing.  These include a September 29, 2018 boxing event "Showtime in the Pee Dee II", held in Darlington, South Carolina;   November 9, 2018, "Pee Dee IV USA Boxing event in Darlington, South Carolina; and more.

 Larry is currently coaching for the  "One More Round" boxing club in Darlington, South Carolina.

Photo credit: Facebook - Elmore Congratulating Larry Frazier, 2015 Inductee

Photo:  Ray Mercer (left) -Former WBO Heavyweight world champion, Frazier (right)

Other Links: 

Amateur boxing to hit Florence this summer - by Sam Bundy, Morning News - May 3, 2016
Link to story:  https://www.scnow.com/sports

#          #          #          #          #          #          #          #
 

Due to the increased number of COVID cases, the Carolina's Boxing hall of fame is forced, once again to post pone our banquet until April 22, 2022.

Written by:   Sue TL Fox/WBAN