Brian Curvis
The welterweight won British and Commonwealth titles and notched 37 victories in a 41-fight career.
Yet it is for a heroic defeat that he may forever be remembered.
The Swansea-born fighter had won his first 13 fights as a professional when the chance came for him to fight in front of his hometown fans for the Commonwealth welterweight title.
It was May 9, 1960, at Vetch Field, and Australian George Barnes was in the opposite corner.
A campaigner with an anaesthetising punch, Curvis had stopped nine of his previous opponents but he could not put away the durable New South Walian.
In a memorable battle over 15 rounds, refereed by Jack Hart, southpaw Curvis nonetheless came through to take a clear points verdict.
Later that year his achievement was acknowledged when he was named BBC Wales Sports Personality of the year.
As he moved up the boxing ladder, he took centre stage in top-ranked shows in Johannesburg and Paris, not to mention the Albert Hall, London, and the Empire Pool.
From a famous boxing family, he had won the ABA title under his real name, Nancurvis, in 1958.
He took the British crown six months after his triumph over Barnes and reigned as dual champion until the end of his career at the age of 28.
His world title chance eventually arrived in 1964, when he took on the great Emile Griffith at the Empire Pool.
But Curvis's preparations for the fight were far from ideal — he had been injured during the build-up — and the tough New Yorker showed no mercy.
Curvis was knocked down three times — in the sixth, 10th and 13th rounds — by the brilliant American but showed remarkable courage to climb to his feet to force a points decision, which went against him.
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