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There is only one question you must ask.
Question:Is Toughman safe?
Answer:No.
What is
Toughman?
Toughman is an event where people of any
shape, size, or physical condition are allowed to put on boxing gloves and
try to knockout the other person in only 3 minutes. The contest consists of
three one minutes round geared to ensure that the participants go for the
maximum effect the knockout.
The participant must sign a series of papers
without proper explanation designed to protect the promoter. Their
background is minimally checked, and their history is never tracked. This
has allowed professional and highly trained boxers to enter the contest when
state statutes and Toughman own rules do not allow it.
The participants are people from next door, as
Art Dore describes. “Toughman Contest offers the common man or woman the
chance to prove his or her mettle.” A Toughman bout consists of matching
those who are not trained or who are not in proper physical condition
against professional and trained fighters. Toughman is where concern for
safety is not met for the purpose of entertaining an audience. Ohio’s own
investigation uncovered this very issue.
“Toughman is a Friday night bar brawl crossed
with a boxing match," said Little Rock, Arkansas based promoter Lydia
Robertson. Lydia Robertson is a partner of Art Dore. He has been described
as the girlfriend of Art Dore, based on an article written about their
partnership for new wonder treatment called Snore-No-More spray they were
marketing in 1999.
Steve Coppler, another Toughman promoter and
partner, referee, and website newsletter writer, testified to the California
Commission that Toughman was built for someone with little or no skills.
Behind Toughman
Art Dore, Murray Sutherland, and several
promoters throughout the country own and operate Toughman. These promoters
exchange titles that allow them enter into a state with different statute
conditions and requirement. For instance Lydia Robertson has represented
herself as the Southern Coordinator of Toughman, as the owner of On the Move
Advertising, and as the designated representative of Art Dore’s nonprofit
the ABAA, in order to obtain or attempt to obtain a boxing/promoters
license.
Outright Lies?!
In several deaths that involve Toughman
participants the medical doctor presented to the participants and the
audience turned out to be nothing more than a farce. The medical doctor has
turned out to be a chiropractor or a physician assistant each without any
ringside training. In January 2005, the ABAA, tried to present under oath
to the Florida Boxing Commission a doctor not licensed in the state as part
of their application to become a sanctioning body within the state.
From the Article, Toughman Bouts With
Danger 5-18-03, in response to the question why do at times Toughman not
have a medical doctor present, "We prefer to get a guy that has a lot of
experience at actual fights," Dore said. "But sometimes we're not able to
get doctors that have a lot of experience." He stated this before Stacy
Young was killed in June of 2003, and after 2 deaths in the 8 months prior.
From the article, Contest is tough on a
man, 3-28-97, Wendy Dore, daughter of Toughman founder Art Dore and
president of Adorable Promotion, said “the comedy of errors is part of the
appeal. The most common injuries are bloody noses and cracked ribs,” Ms.
Dore said. “No one has died in 20 years of Toughman competition,” she said.
Yet by 1999, there had been several deaths.
In response to the fact that some fights are
run by Dore’s nonprofit, the American Boxing and Athletic Association (ABAA),
"It's an amateur event, and strictly not for profit -- all the proceeds go
to a nonprofit foundation," Dore said, naming the statute stipulations
necessary to not have to obtain an Idaho license. The nonprofit agency,
according to Guidestar, has never paid any business taxes on the monies
earned from boxing which is outside their primary purpose. This
demonstrates that Dore will do anything to bypass state statute.
Even now under Dore's (Toughman) rules,
contestants must live within 75 miles of an event. Steve Burress lived over
200 miles from the Ohio event. They ignored their own rule. How can you
trust a firm when they will not even follow their own published rules.
From the California Commission minutes dated
April 20, 2002, Commissioner Ducheny asked Mr. Dore if a contestant
has won five fights, would he then no longer be able to compete. Mr. Dore
answered that the Toughman rules state that a contestant cannot have won
more than five sanctioned amateur bouts. But after Stacy Young death and
only when it was found that Sarah Kobie, Stacy’s competitor, had more than
five wins Art Dore stated in his telling police detectives that an official
“win” meant a victory in a two-day event, not an individual fight. A
complete contradiction and lie to the statement in California. What this
means is that Art Dore will choose to apply the published Toughman rules in
whatever fashion to hide the truth, even if it means to misstate his own
rule.
Toughman’s Response to the Law
In the article Fighting fatality ruled an
accident, 8-12-2003, Art Dore is quoted as saying “There is no law that
says you have to use anything,” in response to a question about statutes and
laws applied to Toughman Contests. What this means is that Art Dore will
use minimal or no safety precautions when there are no laws requiring him to
do so or if he can find a loophole in state statute.
Further, Art Dore considers a death to be part
of the show. “I’ve done thousands of these shows, and it’s tragic, but
these things just happen.” So Art Dore in this statement demonstrates an
understanding of how a death “just happens” and that he further understands
that there is a high risk to the participants. Combine this understanding
with the prior paragraph of knowing failing to provide a medical doctor, or
competent referee, or even to follow the common rule of the sport, he
expects law enforcement’s lacks the understanding of what is constructive
murder and what can be defined as a sport allows him to not be prosecuted.
Mastery of obfuscation allows him to hide from the law.
He further demonstrates his understanding of
the risks. Art Dore, states in the article, You want to fight, 10-13-03,
“The object of a boxing match is to make the other guy unable to fight back.
It can lead to death. Why are people so surprised when someone gets hurt?
After all, that’s the object of he game.”
Toughman public relations officer stated, from
the article KnockOut, “The contests are not as dangerous as people
say they are”, English said. English has also stated “Toughman would
welcome legislation. Please, give us all the rules you want. We want to
follow the rules,” she said. Yet Art Dore has hired lobbyists to stop
legislation and has even gone as far as trying to get named, in 2002, as a
federal agency.
What do the best officials in the US think
about the Toughman Contest.
From the article, Toughman action
a ‘rush’ for fighters dangerous to opponents,
Barry Druxman, president of the International Professional Ring Officials
believes “there could be no safeguards that could make this a safe event.”
From the same article, Dr. Antoine Johnson of Aberdeen, a member of American
Association of Ringside Physicians said, “the rules in Toughman are not
strictly enforces and they have shown that the show must go on.”
From the Article, Toughman competition
returns to action at TECO, 9-27-03, “We’ve tried to get the Florida
Boxing Commission to sanction us for years,” said Lydia Robertson. “I have
no idea as to why the commission hasn’t stepped to the forefront. This is
not no-holds-barred boxing.” But when Toughman had the opportunity to get
the Florida Boxing Commission involved by providing a prize of $51 dollars
to the winner they choice not to do so. In Ohio the prize is $1,000 but
Toughman knowingly did not provide this in Florida because they did not want
commission oversight. In response to paying the fighters $51 dollars,
Robertson said that “the contest would have to be revamped to do that.”
From the article, Fighters line
up unfazed by death, 9-26-03, Lydia
Robertson stated “We’re safer than high school football,” Lydia Robertson
told reports “but the state refuses to acknowledge that.” “We’re an easy
mark. We’re not coercing people to fight. Whatever happened to personal
responsibility on the part of anybody over the age of 18?” “It’s dangerous
to bungee jump, it’s dangerous to jump out of an airplane,” Robertson said.
“And this is as old as the Roman Coliseum.” Unfortunately on several
occasions Toughman has lied about providing medical doctors, competent
trained referee being present, they have even ignored the pleas from the
boxer and the corner to stop a fight.
In an editorial Art Dore wrote, News punchy
in Toughman editorial, Feb 9 2004, he states, “The Toughman Contest
requires more safety precautions that used in either amateur or professional
boxing.” What he stated is a total fabrication since Toughman has the
highest death rate per actual time boxing. Head-gear according to everyone
associated with boxing knows that it only protects from cuts not the power
of the blow, and gloves only protect the fingers from breaking. Real safety
comes in the form on limitations on the number of fights per night, proper
training and the maximum allowed minutes per week, combined with proper
regulations.
"I believe that the Toughman bouts are
probably the most dangerous that we have had here in Nevada," says Dr.
Margaret Goodman, the leading neurologist and ringside physician who heads
the Nevada Athletic Commission's medical advisory board. She has served as a
doctor for both Toughman and mainstream professional boxing in her state.
From the Article, Toughman Bouts With
Danger 5-18-03,"The referee is centermost in protecting the health and
safety of the fighters," said New Jersey Boxing Commissioner Larry Hazzard,
who has refereed hundreds of bouts, including world championships. "When
you get people in there that are not trained, that have little or no skills,
then your problems triple."
So what is to be done
What is needed is the same as 24 other states
have accomplished. Ohio must follow in the same manner as those other
leading states have done, as the director of the American Boxing Commission
has called upon over three years ago, as the American College of Sports
Medicine has called for, and as leading doctors, trainers, and professional
fighters all understand and have pleaded for, it is time to place strong
regulation to ban this type of elimination style contest within the state of
Ohio.
Ohio has demonstrated based on the finding of
the Ohio Inspector General and now the death of Steve Burress that Ohio and
its commission cannot ensure the safety of the participants due to the
inherent dangers within the nature of the Toughman Contest concept. That is
the fact you cannot deny.
If you find or hear about problems or issues
with any combative sport email me at
admin@combativesports.org.
Hell even if you want to sound off.....
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