Man who died after boxing match 'missed training'

The event's organiser said he was "happy" that Dominic Chapman (left, pictured with his father John) was ready for the fight despite missing some training

A man who died after taking part in a charity boxing match had not attended every training session that was designed to prepare him for the bout, an inquest heard.

Dominic Chapman, 26, from Droitwich, Worcestershire, had taken part in a "white collar" boxing event at Tramps nightclub in Worcester in April 2022. He collapsed straight after his fight and died two days later.

At Worcestershire Coroners Court, Jon Leonard, the boss of Ultra Events which organised the fight, said Mr Chapman had attended 13 of 16 free boxing training sessions.

He told the coroner that despite missing some of the sessions, he was "happy" Mr Chapman was ready for the bout and that his opponent was "a fair match".

Mr Leonard also said that Mr Chapman had signed paperwork stating he was "happy" with his opponent.

The inquest was also told Mr Chapman had signed forms acknowledging there was "a risk of serious injury" from the event.

"In my opinion, ‘serious injury’ and ‘life threatening’ is a similar thing," said Mr Leonard.

"Brain injuries are incredibly rare - we have been running these events for 15 years now," he added.

He told the coroner there had been three deaths of men who had taken part in Ultra White Collar boxing events run by his company.

Karl Hurst, a barrister representing the Chapman family, pointed to a lack of regulation around "white collar boxing".

He questioned whether the venue was too far from a hospital and whether there was enough onsite medical cover.

Mr Hurst suggested that other boxers taking part in the event had expressed concern over the quality of the equipment, saying they had to reuse gloves that had become sweaty, making them heavy and loose.

He also told the hearing, which is sitting without a jury, that some boxers had expressed concern about some of the participants being "mismatched".

He pointed out that Mr Chapman's opponent had some experience of the sport via kickboxing, but Mr Chapman was a newcomer.

The inquest continues.