Pierre Jacy Fourie is perhaps not the first name that comes to mind when you speak about boxing, but the fighting record he left behind is one to be remembered.
Fourie was born in Malvern in 1943 and took up boxing at a pretty young age. Fourie was trained by none other than now Linden-based trainer Alan Toweel, and would make his boxing debut little more than a month shy of his 23rd birthday.
Tall in stature at 1,87m, his boxing career got off to a flying start as he went on a 14-fight unbeaten streak (of which 13 were wins), suffering his first loss on 15 March 1969. It was during this streak that he claimed his first South African Middleweight Title, defending it twice, against Blackie Zwarts and Willie Ludick respectively.
Fourie would go on a resounding winning streak from thereon, winning 30 straight fights over a period of four years. During this period, he retained the South African Middleweight Title, a title which he never lost, a further four times. It was also during this time that he elected to go up a weight class and begin boxing in the light heavyweight category.
Fourie defeated Sarel Aucamp to win the South African Light Heavyweight Title on 2 September 1972, and would defend it against Aucamp three months later. Fourie’s winning streak came to an end when he suffered the second of his seven professional losses at the hands of Bob Foster in the World Light Heavyweight Title bout.
He would attempt the World Light Heavyweight Title three more times, losing all three; once more against Foster and twice against Victor Galindez. His final professional bout came against legendary Gerrie Coetzee in search of the South African Heavyweight Title, a fight which he lost by knockout.
by the end of his career, Fourie had fought in 60 fights, winning 52, drawing one, and losing seven. His 52 wins included 10 by knockout/ technical knockout.
Pierre Fourie died on 21 June 1980, a few days before his 37th birthday in a motor vehicle accident near Cecil Payne Park. Other than his phenomenal boxing record, he was also the first white South African boxer to fight a non-white boxer, American Bob Foster, in South Africa, on 1 December 1973.
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