Former Tobagonian professional boxer Claude Noel has died. According to reports the 74-year-old passed away at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex last Sunday, May 21.

His career spanned from 1973 to 1984 and he held the WBA World Lightweight title and the Commonwealth Lightweight title.

Noel began his professional career on November 13, 1973, fighting in Port-of-Spain, where he beat Art de Freitas by second-round knockout. After a run of four victories, Noel successfully challenged for his first title, the Trinidad & Tobago Lightweight title.

The fight, scheduled for fifteen rounds, was stopped in the tenth with Noel’s opponent, Fitzroy Guisseppi, unable to continue.

On June 16, 1979, Noel challenged for a version of the world title for the first time. Prior to this fight, Noel had built up a record of nineteen wins and just two losses, both against Lennox Blackmoore via tenth-round technical knockout.

Noel and his opponent, the Venezuelan Ernesto Espana, were fighting for the WBA title recently vacated by Roberto Durán. The fight started badly for Noel as Espana scored a first-round knockdown. Although he was able to recover, he was knocked down once again in the ninth round and he was unable to beat the referee’s count for the third knockdown, which ended the fight in the thirteenth.

Two years later on September 12, 1981, Noel once again challenged for the WBA title, this time successfully. The opponent for the fight, which took place in Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States, was the Mexican boxer Rodolfo Gonzalez.

Noel started the fight well but had to withstand a strong finish by the Mexican. The bout went the distance and the scores were read out as 145-140, 145-141 and 144-141, all in favour of Noel.

In 1982 Noel received the Chaconia Gold Medal and the Claude Noel Highway in Tobago was named after him.