| Olympic medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's Boxing | ||
| Gold | Seoul 1988 | Bantamweight |
Kennedy McKinney (born January 10, 1966 in Hernando, Mississippi) is a former professional boxer, who won the bantamweight gold medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics. As a professional, he won the IBF and WBO super bantamweight titles.
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Known as "King", McKinney was a cautious yet exciting junior featherweight (super bantamweight) fighter who captured the IBF title by beating Welcome Ncita in 1992 in a spectacular bout that saw him on the deck before knocking the African cold with a perfect right hand.
After five defenses, among others a KO over Rudy Zavala and a points win over Ncita, he lost his belt to future star Vuyani Bungu, a fight which was deemed 1994 Upset of the Year by Ring Magazine.
Two years later he challenged undefeated Marco Antonio Barrera for the WBO super bantamweight title, a vicious battle in which he dropped Barrera in the 11th, but lost via TKO in the 12th. McKinney later took a rematch against Bungu, but lost a narrow split decision. Later that year, he did battle with Junior Jones who had upset Barrera in an exciting war, one which McKinney won via TKO.
McKinney then moved up a weight class to challenge Luisito Espinosa for the WBC featherweight title in 1998. Espinosa made quick work of McKinney, winning via a 2nd round TKO.
After the loss to Espinosa, McKinney quickly lost steam. He would fight only five more times against scattered and limited opposition, three of which took place during a brief comeback run in 2002-03.
Kennedy now resides in Golden Meadow, LA, were he is know simply known as "Coach". He is the head trainer of the Bayou Side Boxing Gym.
| Preceded by Welcome Ncita |
IBF Super Bantamweight Champion 2 December 1992 – 20 August 1994 |
Succeeded by Vuyani Bungu |
| Preceded by Junior Jones |
WBO Super Bantamweight Champion 19 December 1997 – 1998 (vacates) |
Succeeded by Marco Antonio Barrera |
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