The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

WHILE Tyrone Oliver Jr was being considered for representation in his first major international event by the Boxing Federation of the Bahamas next week, his younger brother Shakuar Oliver was preparing for his marriage on his older brother’s birthday in May.

Today, their family is grieving their loss on Saturday morning after they were killed together in the parking lot of Solomon’s Super Center. Tyrone Jr would have celebrated his 28th birthday on May 11 and Shakuar was 23.

Members of the Boxing Federation of the Bahamas and some of the coaches who worked with Oliver since his introduction into the sport have expressed their sympathy to the Oliver family, including their parents Eunice and Tyrone Oliver Sr, their three sisters and one brother.

Sonovia Oliver, one of the sisters, said it’s a double blow to their family and the community of White’s Addition off Kemp Road where they reside.

“Tyrone was always the life of the party. Once he comes with the jokes, the party will start,” she said. “He was always dancing, always cheerful. He always had an encouraging word to tell anybody. Even at the end of the conversation, he would tell you ‘blessing,’ or ‘forward blessing.’ He was always disciplined from boxing and his daddy, who was a no-nonsense person.”

As for Shakuar, who came out and supported Tyrone when he was in training and competing, Sonovia said he was quiet the opposite to his older brother. “He was very quiet. Most times you didn’t even know he was there. He was like a fly on the wall,” she noted. “He was a man of very little words, but he expressed himself through his music.”

According to Sonovia, Shakuar was getting ready to get married on Tyrone Jr’s birthday on May 11. The two left behind two daughters. Tyrone’s daughter was Danielle Oliver, who was seven, while Shakuar’s daughter was two-year-old Shaniyah Oliver.

“The only good thing about it is we have a huge outpouring of love already,” she stated. “There’s a song that says let your life speak for you. My brother’s lives are speaking for them right now. We are from Kemp Road, born and raised. We know what it is to share one plate of food and to see how far they came, not being a product of their environment and to go the way they did, I can’t fathom hat happened, but I know that is not the way my brothers should have goner.”

Boxing Federation of the Bahamas Vincent Strachan said it was painful for him because he only got to meet Tyrone Jr earlier this year in person, although they communicated over the past few years by phone.

“He was made a member of the Bahamas Boxing Federation elite men’s team. He was path of the IBA World Boxing Championships team for Tashkent, Uzbekistan from April 29th to May 14th, 2023.

Tyrone Oliver, according to Strachan, was making plans to go to the federation’s training camp in Freeport Grand Bahama and was being considered for selection on the national team for the

Central American and Caribbean Games in San Salvador, El Salvador in June; the Pan American Games qualifier in August in Cali, Columbia and the Pan American Games in November, also in Cali.

“He was positive about qualifying for the 2024 Olympics, in France,” Strachan said. “He was the main event representative for Team Bahamas, March 4th, 2023,at Sir Kendal Isaac Gymnasium for the second Sonny Boy Rahming and Leonard Boston Blackie Memorial Boxing Championship,” Strachan said.

“As the chief judge and a scoring judge, he won his match on my score card. I am proud of his representation of the 242 against the Bermudian boxer, who was much heavier.”

Strachan expressed his deepest condolence to the Oliver family, his boxing family and friends.

“I pray God will have mercy on him and his family member soul who died in the same incident,” he stated.

Ronn Rodgers, who had the opportunity to work with Oliver Jr since he started competing in the sport at age 13 when he started boxing up until he turned professional.

“When I got the news, I wanted to confirm it,” said Rodgers, who was in Canada at the time. “I got a call from Michelle Minus and told me that it had happened. I started to make some calls to make sure it was true or not. Once I confirmed it, all I could do was shut down.”

Rodgers said he had just spoken to Oliver Jr about a week ago as he was working out details to get him to appear on the undercard of the Return of Drama in Paradise professional boxing show on June 3 at Baha Mar featuring Ladarius Miller against Nomeva Kolisani in the main event.

“I was making sure he was training and also staying active and to confirm that he was still a go for the show on June 3,” Rodgers revealed. “I have fighters calling me from London, England, America and I have kickboxing and boxing coaches reaching out to me.

“The fighters who he grew up with say they can’t stop crying. So it’s a big blow to the club. He was fiery. When it came to the sport, there was nothing he love more than boxing. In fact, that was the way I could reach him mentally, physically and spiritually. I used boxing as leeway to get to him and make sure he stayed on the right path.

“He wasn’t happy unless he was doing boxing, weather it was training or fighting. If you saw him before a fight, he was the most exciting fighter ever. He was bouncing around. He wasn’t timid at all. He wanted to get into the boxing ring immediately. So his love for boxing is like none other.”

As a welterweight, Tyrone Oliver produced a 40-5 amateur win-loss record before he turned pro on May 26, 2018. He made a successful debut with a technical knockout over Justin Sawyer in an all-Bahamian match-up at the A Social Affair and Convention Center in Grand Bahama.

However, he suffered two consecutives losses on the road. On October 31, 2020, he suffered an unanimous decision to American Christian Otero in Colombia, before he got knocked out on July 31, 2021 by American Isaah Flaherty in Decatur, Georgia.

About three months ago, Valentino Knowles said Oliver Jr reached out to him to go over the details of a pro contract he had signed in Africa. After he helped to guide him along, Oliver Jr turned the deal down and returned home.

“Ever since he came back home, he came into the National Gym, along with Israel Johnson and Carl Hield where they trained together,” Knowles said. ”He was very respectful, humble and he had a lot of all-around skills. He was expected to be our next best international prospect.”

The Tribune Sports Department extends its dee[pest sympathy to the Oliver family on their double loss.