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Turkey's first professional boxer Zakaryan dies at 90

Anadolu Agency SPORTS
Published January 26,2020
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Turkey's first professional boxer Garbis Zakaryan died on Sunday at the age of 90, the boxing federation said.

The Armenian-Turkish athlete is fondly remembered by his fans as "iron fist".

A staunch patriot, Zakaryan told Turkish daily Hürriyet in a 2013 interview that he wanted his coffin to be wrapped with the Turkish flag.

He became a professional player at the age of 24 and in a career which spanned over 22 years won many local and amateur titles.

He will be buried in Istanbul's Şişli Armenian Cemetery on Jan. 29 after a funeral ceremony at the Armenian church.