Nationality Puerto Rican Martial art Boxing Role Boxer | Name Nero Chen Occupation Boxer | |
Born 1890 Puerto Rico Died 1924, New York, United States | ||
Nero Chen (c.1890–1924), a.k.a. El Negro, was Puerto Rico's first professional boxer to gain international recognition.
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Boxing career
Little is known about Chen's early years except that "Nero Chen" was his nickname, and that he was born in Puerto Rico.
He became interested in boxing and trained with the military personnel stationed in Camp Las Casas. A boxing championship was held in Las Casas known as the Campeonato Las Casas (Las Casas Championship).
Chen moved to New York City and lived in Harlem.
There he continued to train in the sport of boxing. In 1917, Chen became the first Puerto Rican professional boxer when he fought "Panama" Joe Gans at the Palace Casino on 136th Street and Lenox Avenue in Manhattan, New York City. At the time Chen, a Puerto Rican of African descent, went by the name of El Negro. He lost his first fight against Gans, but beat him in the rematch.
Chen's manager had him change his professional boxing name from Nero Chen to El Negro. Chen then went to Havana, Cuba at 170 lbs., fought a Cuban heavyweight named Espagaguerra, and lost.
Later years
In 1918, Chen served as a boxing instructor at Camp Las Casas in Puerto Rico. Chen returned to New York and died of tuberculosis in 1924.