IT is almost the one-year anniversary of the passing of Hugh Russell and his family have ensured his memory and legacy will live on.
A recent charity golf event at Fortwilliam Golf Club on August 23 raised £8700 for MacMillan Cancer Support and they intend to make it an annual fixture.
Hugh passed away on October 13, 2024 following a short battle with cancer and the support the Russell family have received from MacMillan before and after his death ensured there was no doubting which charity they wished to support.
"I couldn't believe how much money we raised," said the late Hugh's son, Hugh Jnr.
"This is going to be an annual thing around late August at Fortwilliam. The weather wasn't on our side, but we were delighted with the numbers were got on the day.
"MacMillan is a charity very close to our family's heart. They were very good to us during the latter stages of dad's life and they are still very helpful in terms of the support."
Hugh Russell was an iconic figure in not jut local boxing circles, but to the wider public.
His exploits in the ring saw him claim bronze at the Moscow Olympics in 1980 where, upon embarking for home, a new career in photography would arrive.
But his exploits in the ring continued, picking up the British titles at bantamweight and then later at flyweight before hanging up his gloves.
He remains one of Belfast's most celebrated sons and his legacy lives on.
"No matter where you go, there will always be someone talking about him," said Hugh Jnr.
"People on the street still want to talk about him, so he's still well recognised.
"In 1980 he won bronze at the Olympics in Moscow and that's where he bought his first camera.
"Staying in the Olympic Village, all the food, drinks and training gear was provided, so it was hard to spend money.
"At the time, you couldn't bring Roubles back into the UK so Gerry Storey said to him in the airport to buy the camera he had his eye on, rather than waste it on silly stuff.
"So then it became two careers going hand-in-hand as boxing and photography all rolled into one."
The Russell family name lives on in boxing circles as after his retirement, 'Wee Red' became a member of the British Boxing Board of Control and his son is now a familiar face on Belfast fight nights as the third man in the ring.
At present, he is ranked as a Class A referee, meaning he can officiate up to European level but the move into world title contests will come once upgraded to Class A-Star, an ambition he wishes to realise in the coming years.
The Ulster Hall was the venue where the first of his dad's two memorable contests against Davy Larmour took place and where he also won his British bantamweight title and defended the flyweight version before retiring.
"When I started the refereeing, there were a few goals," he outlined.
"One of them was to referee at the Ulster Hall just because it's so iconic to Belfast boxing and also because it's where dad won the British (bantamweight) title.
"The King's Hall was always the main place, but has been overtaken now by the SSE Arena as the major venue.
"Regardless of world titles, I would also love to referee a fight for the British flyweight title and anything after that would be a bonus."
