The tragic news of the passing of Dan Goossen has taken its toll on the boxing community. The longtime promoter - one of ten siblings, and thus the inspiration for Ten Goose Boxing Gym in Van Nuys, Calif. - was 64 years young when he passed away early Monday morning following a bout with an aggressive form of liver cancer.
Rare is the occasion where nary a bad word can be said about any notable figure in this industry, but the overwhelming outpour of cherished memories have been shared by hundreds of boxing luminaries. Below is a sampling of the impact Goossen had on many throughout the years in the sport.
"I was deeply saddened to learn the news of Dan Goossen's passing early this morning. My thoughts and prayers have been with Dan and his family since I received the news of his illness last week. While Dan and I recently had our professional struggles, he was a great man, father and husband. He will be greatly missed by the boxing community. I will continue to keep the Goossen family in my prayers."
- Andre Ward, undefeated super middleweight king
"Everybody at HBO is saddened by the sudden loss of Dan Goossen. Our prayers are with the entire family."
- Ken Hershman, head of HBO Sports
“All of us at Showtime are deeply saddened by the passing of Dan Goossen. This news has come as a shock to many of us who knew Dan personally, beyond our collaborative work on boxing events, for decades. We will remember Dan as a passionate advocate for the sport of boxing, a fun-loving colleague and friend,and, above all, a devoutly religious family man. Our deepest sympathies to the entire Goossen family. May he rest in peace.”
- Stephen Espinoza, head of Showtime Sports
"Devastated to hear of the passing of my almost career long promoter Dan Goossen. Promoted my 1st thru my last fights. He'll be missed."
- Wayne McCullough, former bantamweight champion
"I had many laughs with Dan Goossen. He had a great sense of humor and a big, colorful loving family. Will miss our early morning talks. RIP."
- Lou DiBella, boxing promoter
"My sincere condolences to Debbie on the passing of Dan. He was one of the true characters in the sport we call Boxing. May he rest in peace."
- Gary Shaw, boxing promoter
"I'm at a lost for words and truly saddened I've worked with Dan Goossen closely in and out of boxing for the past 10 yrs."
- Henry Ramirez, boxing trainer
"Saddened to hear of the passing of Dan Goossen - had the pleasure of working with him on (Carl) Froch v (Andre) Ward, a real character. God bless."
- Eddie Hearn, boxing promoter
"We get 140 characters on Twitter - Dan Goossen was 140 characters in himself! What a smart funny bright crazy talented witty amazing guy."
- Bruce Trampler, Hall of Fame matchmaker
"I had a lot of days and nights in Dan Goossen's company from the east coast, LA, Vegas and Mexico. He was always funny & always a gentleman."
- Steve Bunce, boxing commentator
"Dan Goossen was my hi(gh) school mate, (double) dated with me,repped me as agent,hired me to do TV of his boxing, gave me far more than I gave him."
- Rich Marotta, boxing commentator
“Dan Goossen was an absolute titan in the boxing industry and a great friend to ESPN. He was the mastermind behind bringing the WBC World Heavyweight Championship bout between Bermane Stiverne and Chris Arreola to the masses via ESPN back in May. He will be sorely missed.”
- Bryan Kweder, ESPN Programming Senior Director
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