The life of Barry McGuigan, from almost quitting boxing to tragic death | Celebrity News

Former boxing legend Barry McGuigan is set to hit the jungle after arriving in Australia on Monday ahead of the series 24 premiere of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here.

The 63-year-old will be one of ten celebrities to take on the bush tucker trials alongside Strictly’s Oti Mabuse, Loose Women’s Jane More and Corrie star Alan Halsall.

Fans are looking forward to gaining insight into Barry’s personality after watching him enjoy a successful sporting career.

During his career he won British, European and world titles and was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 1985.

However, this could not have been the case after a traumatic fight with his opponent Young Ali in 1982.

Barry revealed that he had almost completely left the sport after Young died six months after falling into a coma following their traumatic match.

After the Irish athlete won the sixth round knockout, his Nigerian opponent failed to regain consciousness and this had a devastating impact on Barry.

Speaking on the Gary Newborn Sports Show, he said: “I’ve been thinking about him all week and (I thought) if I win and get over this hurdle, the first thing I have to do is remember that terrible night. in 1982, where I had the tragic fight with the child.

“After that I didn’t know if I wanted to box or not. “If I can do this kind of damage to someone… it will happen, but it’s such a tragedy and it’s the one thing we as boxing fans don’t want to happen again.”

The fighter stated: “But it happened before and it will happen again. I was in a very unfortunate position, but I wanted to dedicate the fight to him.”

Outside of his career, Barry lived a lavish life at his family home in Buckinghamshire, where he and his wife raised four children.

The relationship between Barry and his wife Sandra Mealiff began during their childhood and as childhood sweethearts they married in 1981.

Although no details about her weddings had been reported, their wedding took place when Barry was 20 years old, demonstrating the couple’s deep commitment to each other from a young age.

Together they raised four children, sons Shane, Jake and Blain, and a daughter Danika.

Their daughter, nicknamed Nika, ventured into the acting industry and appeared in films and TV shows such as Wildfire (2020), Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope (2016), Traders (2015) and Philomena (2013).

Tragically, however, Danika passed away at the age of 33 after a brief battle with cancer, which was an aggressive return after overcoming leukemia as a child.

In 2019, Barry shared a touching tribute, writing: “The hardest thing I’ve ever had to do was say goodbye to my amazing daughter Nika earlier this week.

“She has been a shining light in our family’s lives for the past 33 years.

He added: “Our hearts are broken and we know life will never be the same for us.”