LEGENDARY boxing trainer and manager Lou Duva, who spent more than seven decades in the sport he loved, died Wednesday at St Joseph’s Hospital in Paterson, N.J. He was 94.

Duva, the patriarch of one of the most influential families in boxing, died of natural causes, according to his only surviving son, Dino Duva.
The fiery and charismatic Duva was a mainstay in the world of professional boxing for more than seven decades. He was probably best known for being the trainer of heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield, who was voted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame this year.
Duva and his family, along with powerful manager Shelly Finkel, founded Main Events in 1978, and built it into one of the most powerful promotional companies in the sport. Duva was voted Manager-of-the-Year in 1985 by the Boxing Writers, and Trainer-of-the-Year in 1987 by the World Boxing Association.
Overall, Duva handled the careers of 19 world champions. Besides Holyfield and Lennox Lewis, he handled welterweight champions and former U.S. Olympians Pernell Whitaker and Meldrick Taylor, along with Hector ‘Macho’ Camacho and Arturo Gatti.
Duva’s first world champion was middleweight Joey Giardello, who won the title in 1963 against Dick Tiger.
Duva was born on May 28, 1922 in New York City to Italian immigrants, and the family later moved Paterson. Duva boxed in his youth but never amounted to much, going 6-10-1 in the 1940s, and eventually moved to the business side of it.
Duva joined the U.S. Army after World War II broke out and was dismissed from his first base in Jackson, Miss. for excessive fist-fighting with fellow soldiers as well as an altercation with two officers when he defended a black woman being harassed on a public bus. After that, he was sent to Camp Hood in Texas, where he was given a job as — what else? — a boxing instructor.
One of Duva’s close friends was the undefeated heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano. Duva was one of the last people to talk to Marciano before he died in a plane crash in 1969.
Lou Duva was voted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1998, and also was voted into the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame, and the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame.
A book about Duva’s life, entitled A Fighting Life: My Seven Decades in Boxing, co-written by former New York Times and Daily News boxing writer Tim Smith, is available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
“He was truly an original,” Smith said Wednesday. “A true ambassador for the sport. To touch as many eras in boxing as he did — glory years in the sport — will never be duplicated.
“People pay lip service to putting family first, but he lived it and embraced boxers into that fold. It’s truly a sad day.”
Lou Duva is survived by his son Dino, daughters Donna, Deanne and Denise, and daughter-in-law Kathy Duva, who currently is the CEO of Main Events. Duva was predeceased by his wife, Enes, and eldest son Dan, who passed away in 1996. Dan Duva was the husband of Kathy Duva.
“The overwhelming number of calls and sympathy wishes from so many friends and associates shows how much our father was loved and respected. We sincerely appreciate the support from everyone,.” said Dino Duva.
There will be a viewing at Festa Funeral Home in Totowa, N.J. on Sunday from 15:00hrs to 19:00hrs ET. A funeral mass will be held at St Mary’s Church in Paterson, N.J., Monday at 10:00hrs ET.