AALARA would like to recognize the passing of Jimmy Sharman, operator of the famous Sharman Boxing Tent, an era in Australian history which will never come again.

Jim passed away aged 93 on 24 April 2006.

He was an Australian icon, as was his father before him, travelling the length and breadth of Australia providing entertainment at country and capital shows.

His ‘catch cries’ “A round or two for a pound or two” or “Who’ll take a glove”, have been immortalised in song and poem.

The boxing tents were a training ground for many Australian boxing champions.

It was a place where indigenous Australians were treated as equals long before it became politically correct to do so. They could learn their craft, under the watchful eye of someone who had a genuine interest in their wellbeing and their future.

He will be sadly missed by all who had the pleasure of knowing him, but his memory will live on in the history of Australia.

Photograph: Jimmy Sharman (centre), his father Jimmy Sharman Snr (right) and his son Jim Sharman (left)