Gilberto Román was a Mexican

Mexican people

Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....

 boxer

Boxing

Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...

 in the Super Flyweight

Super Flyweight

Super flyweight is a weight division in professional boxing. It is alternatively referred to as junior bantamweight and light bantamweight...

 division and a member of the 1980 Mexican Olympic team. Román was a two-time WBC

World Boxing Council

The World Boxing Council was initially established by 11 countries: the United States, Argentina, United Kingdom, France, Mexico, Philippines, Panama, Chile, Peru, Venezuela and Brazil plus Puerto Rico, met in Mexico City on February 14, 1963, upon invitation of the then President of Mexico, Adolfo...

 Super Flyweight

Super Flyweight

Super flyweight is a weight division in professional boxing. It is alternatively referred to as junior bantamweight and light bantamweight...

 Champion and is considered by many fans to be one of the great champions in this division. Gilberto was trained by Boxing Hall of Famer

International Boxing Hall of Fame

The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame is located in Canastota, New York, United States, within driving distance from the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown and the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta...

 Ignacio Beristáin

Ignacio Beristáin

Ignacio Beristáin is a Mexican trainer in the sport of boxing. Beristain is a member of the Boxing Hall of Fame and is considered one of the greatest trainers in the history of boxing.-Training career:...

.

Amateur career

As an amateur boxer he won some Mexican National Championships and was a member of the 1980 Mexican Olympic team. He fought with Ezequiel Cano Molina, from Naranjos, Veracruz, México, and with many other important amateur boxers.

WBC Super Flyweight Championship

In 1986, Román dethroned Jiro Watanabe

Jiro Watanabe

is a Japanese former boxerWatanabe, who fought only in Japan and South Korea, was one of the first World Super flyweight champions, as the division was relatively new when he was crowned.-Biography:...

 of Japan as the WBC

World Boxing Council

The World Boxing Council was initially established by 11 countries: the United States, Argentina, United Kingdom, France, Mexico, Philippines, Panama, Chile, Peru, Venezuela and Brazil plus Puerto Rico, met in Mexico City on February 14, 1963, upon invitation of the then President of Mexico, Adolfo...

 Super Flyweight Champion. In 1985, Roman had lost two fights early in the year and many thought his days of being a contender would be over. However, he reeled off eight straight wins to earn the fight with Watanabe, and won a twelve-round decision.

WBA Super Flyweight Championship

As champion, Román made seven title defences. One of these was a draw against former WBA

World Boxing Association

The World Boxing Association is a boxing organization that sanctions official matches, and awards the WBA world championship title at the professional level. It was previously known as the National Boxing Association before changing its name in 1962...

 Flyweight

Flyweight

Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing less than 112 lb but above 108 lb .-Professional boxing:...

 Champion Santos Laciar

Santos Laciar

Santos Benigno Laciar , known familiarly as Santos Laciar and nicknamed Falucho, was an Argentine world flyweight champion.-Biography:Laciar was born in Huinca Renancó, in the province of Córdoba, Argentina....

 (30 August 1986). Nine months later, Roman and Laciar met again on 16 May 1987, with Laciar taking the title by eleventh-round knockout.

Regaining title

Sugar Baby Rojas took the title from Laciar and Román earned another title shot against the new champion. On 8 April  1988, Román regained the title with a twelve-round decision.

Román made five more defences, including victories in rematches over his former nemesis Laciar, Juan Carazo

Juan Carazo

Juan Carazo is a former boxer from Caguas, Puerto Rico.Carazo was considered to be a boxing reincarnation of Wilfred Benítez or Wilfredo Gómez by many of his fans, and he won his first five professional bouts by knockout in 1984...

 and Rojas. Following his victory over Laciar, Román lost the title to Ghana's

Ghana

Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...

 Nana Konadu

Nana Konadu

Nana Yaw Konadu Yeboah is a retired boxer who won World titles in two different weight divisions. Konadu turned pro in 1985 and in 1989 won the WBC Super Flyweight Title by winning a decision over Gilberto Roman. He lost the belt in his first defense to Sung Kil Moon in 1990 and lost a rematch to...

 on 7 November 1989. Konadu lost the title to Sung-Kil Moon

Sung-Kil Moon

Moon Sung-Kil is a former two-division world champion boxer from South Korea. His name is also rendered Sung Kil Moon.- Amateur career :...

, whom Román challenged on 9 June 1990, losing by a TKO in the ninth round. That was Román's last fight, as he was killed in an automobile accident less than three weeks later.

Román had a record of 54 wins, 6 losses and 1 draw, with 35 wins by knockout.

See also

• List of Mexican boxing world champions
• List of WBC world champions
• List of super flyweight boxing champions

External links