Arguably one of the greatest amateur boxers to enter the ring since the New Zealand Boxing Association was formed in 1902, has passed away after a life well lived at the age of 88.

Wallace Clifford Coe began his boxing journey as a 13-year-old under the tutelage of his uncle, legendary Kiwi trainer Dick Dunn, at the Railways Gym in Lower Hutt.

Known to all in the fight game as Wally, the Hutt Valley pugilist scaled unimaginable heights in the ring. His pinnacle achievement was to become just the second Kiwi boxer to win an Empire (later Commonwealth) Games gold medal. 

Wally won the New Zealand Boxing Association welterweight title on six consecutive occasions from 1959 to 1964. His name is engraved six times on one of the sport’s prestigious trophies, being the Ted Morgan Cup, is a record to this day.

In 1963, his battle with Southland’s Les O'Donnell in the title decider earned Wally the sport’s biggest prize of the Jameson Belt.

His 10 successive Wellington welterweight championship wins saw the trophy retired and given to Wally for his permanent possession.

Wally had a remarkable international record winning all 12 bouts he fought outside the shores of Aotearoa. He won the Australasian welterweight crown, in 1960 and 1961, before his biggest his biggest challenge at the 1962 Empire Games, held in Perth, Australia.

New Zealand's welterweight representative defeated a Pakistan fighter on his first visit to the Perth ring. Next up, he got past C Rice from Northern Ireland, when his opponent was disqualified in the semi-finals, to meet Johnny Pritchard from England in the gold medal decider.

The imminent New Zealand boxing historian, Brian O'Brien, who produced ``Kiwis With Gloves On’’ in 1960; selected the Wally Coe Empire Games gold medal victory, as one of three of the best amateur fights he had witnessed in his lifetime in the sport.

O'Brien wrote: “There was tremendous interest in this fight between the tall, erect standing Coe and the shorter more square-on Pritchett who appeared to have more of the American about him than the average UK amateur, though he too stood bolt upright.

“Pritchett shook Coe at the very start when he tagged him with a couple of powerful rights, with Wally later saying he thought he was finished there and then.

“There did indeed seem every prospect of Coe going down from one of these blows, but he spread his legs and boxed his way out of the shadows.

“By the time the second round came round, Coe had the old pump working and out snaked that gun barrel left, a little too long at first for maximum effect but, when shortened, often bringing the English champion up with a jolt.

“And when Coe threw his first serious right cross, it fairly exploded on Pritchett's chin and the New Zealand heads began to wag amongst the spectators.

“Pritchett, now taking his share of punishment, realised that Coe was a puncher worthy of his own steel and, after leading in with his left, was seen to grapple with Coe and hold on.

“English born Australian referee George Abrahart, one of the superior third men in the ring at the tournament, was very quickly onto this and there came two cautions.

“Coe was getting stronger and had come right back into the fight, an intensely interesting affair that had the hall split down the middle on who was ahead. He had lost the first round, taken the second, which meant that little if anything between this well-matched and talented pair as the vital third round came up.

“Pritchett continued to force the fight but was hanging on after he had fired his leads, apprehensive of the counter, and this time he was warned. I believe it was this warning, which eventually influenced the judges in this very close contest.

“Coe had now stepped up the pace noticeably and, with all the stops out, punished Pritchett with some trip-hammer rights. One of these in my opinion put the Englishman down, but the referee was unsighted and when Pritchett jumped straight to his feet, Mr Abrahart apparently treated it as a slip.

“The fight finished in a blaze of two-handed punching from both fighters and a 4-1 decision for Coe”.

Rest in peace Wallace Clifford Coe.

Photograph: Wally Coe – Credit New Zealand Boxing Hall of Fame

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Article added: Friday 17 July 2026