Mike Stafford, a respected trainer who made a lasting impact among boxers in his hometown of Cincinnati, died late Wednesday afternoon at the age of 67.
Stafford’s death was confirmed Wednesday night by his family members on Facebook. The cause of his death was not known at the time this story was posted.
The affable Stafford, who was quiet and never sought the spotlight, spent more than three decades diligently working with professional and amateur boxers. Stafford ran a gym, Cincinnati Golden Gloves, after his son, Mike Stafford Jr., tried boxing, and it became a safe haven after school and on weekends for countless boys and girls in the city where Stafford was born and raised.
Stafford eventually became well known for training four-division champion Adrien Broner, three-time U.S. Olympian Rau’shee Warren, former IBF lightweight champ Robert Easter Jr. and onetime WBO junior lightweight champ Jamel Herring, who was also a U.S. Olympian in 2012. The nurturing Stafford was a father figure to many of the boxers he helped along the way and took particular pride in teaching impressionable boys and girls much more than how to box.
“Not only do we teach boxing,” Stafford told Cincinnati Magazine for a story published in June 2022, “but we teach manners. We teach them how to eat, what to wear, hygiene.”
Stafford was named “U.S. Coach of the Year” by USA Boxing in 2003 and 2005 for his renowned work with amateur fighters. He was also part of USA Boxing’s coaching staff at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens and the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.