Anti-boxing activist Manuel Velazquez compiled
extensive data on deaths in boxing.

In 1984, R.J. McCunney and P.K. Russo published a
study entitled Brain Injuries in Boxing. The study
argued that boxing is relatively safe compared to
other sports by citing the following figures on U.S.
sports fatalities:

Fatality rates per 100,000 participants

Horse racing: 128
Sky diving: 123
Hang gliding: 56
Mountaineering: 51
Scuba diving: 11
Motorcycle racing: 7
College football: 3
Boxing: 1.3
Dr. Lundberg replied: "It's not the deaths but the
chronic brain damage that is so frequent." The AMA
reports brain deterioration in three out of four
boxers who have twenty or more professional fights.

To date, there has been little research regarding the
long-term effects of amateur boxing.