Archie Sexton

Who is Archie Sexton?

Archibald Ernest 'Archie' Sexton GM was an English professional boxer who began his career at featherweight in 1925 and finished as a middleweight in 1936. He had at least 222 professional contests, including one for the British middleweight title in 1933, where he lost by a tenth round technical knockout to Jock McAvoy.

Sexton was born at Bethnal Green. He took part in the world's first televised boxing match, a six-round exhibition against Laurie Raiteri in London on 22 August 1933. The loss of the sight of his left eye - which occurred during a boxing match - forced him to retire from boxing in 1936, although he later worked as a BBB of C referee. During the Second World War he served as a Police War Reserve constable and in 1944 he was awarded the George Medal for his part in rescuing two men and a woman trapped in an air-raid shelter underneath Moorfields Eye Hospital in London.