LAS VEGAS (AP) — A former champion lightweight boxer and member of the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame has died in Las Vegas.
The Clark County coroner’s office said Thursday that Andrew “Andy” Ganigan died at home early Wednesday of end-stage liver cancer. He was 59.
Ganigan’s niece, Michell Shue, tells the Honolulu Star-Advertiser (http://bit.ly/JqG3pS ) that Ganigan never fully recovered from injuries suffered in a March 2010 attack by 21-year-old Matthew Kupa outside a bar in Waipahu, Hawaii.
The 6-foot, 290-pound Kupa told police he had been drinking and didn’t remember pummeling Ganigan. Kupa was sentenced this year to 18 months in prison.
The 5-foot-6 Ganigan was dubbed the “Hawaiian Punch.” He won NABF and WAA titles, and had a 34-5 record with 30 knockouts from 1972 to 1983.
