Former French Boxing Champion Detained After Punching Police In Riots
In the midst of a period where protests are becoming commonplace in France, former pro boxer Christophe Dettinger has been identified as the man who was recorded throwing punches at police.
A video that has circulated around social media shows Dettinger punching a police officer in Paris during a “Yellow Vest” protest. Video of the incident can be seen in the tweet below.
—- Former French light heavyweight champion Christophe Dettinger uses his boxing skills to fight armed police on the streets of Paris. pic.twitter.com/TRhm6wnlaT
— EditinKing Boxing — (@EditinKing) January 7, 2019
Des policiers et (implicitement dans son tweet) le ministre de l’Intérieur lui même ont identifié l’homme qui a frappé samedi des forces de l’ordre sur la passerelle Léopold-Sédar-Senghor à Paris: le boxeur Christophe Dettinger. pic.twitter.com/BIAs48gbh4
— Stephane Jourdain (@s_jourdain) January 5, 2019
The former boxer was then detained by police. The 37-year-old Dettinger would later explain his actions in a video on social media, which can be seen below. Dettinger said he reacted angrily after he, his wife and a friend were tear-gassed and was simply defending himself.
Christophe #Dettinger “Le Boxeur” s’explique… #GiletsJaunes #Acte8 pic.twitter.com/eQ4gn62R8t
— La Po17ice —-—- (@La_Pollice) January 7, 2019
Dettinger was a former France national cruiserweight champion from 2007 to 2008. Dettinger would go on to challenge for the WBC Mediterranean cruiserweight title in 2012 and his last fight took place in 2013 when he got stopped by Jean Marc Monrose in the second round of their fight. Dettinger’s career stands at 18-4-1.
