Awarded Life Membership 24 November 2007

Birth: 13 January 1932 Moldova

Death: 19 July 2016 Melbourne (84 years)

Solomon ‘Sol’ Spitalnic spent his lifetime in boxing and the Commonwealth Games movement as a devoted administrator for more than 40 years.

Born in Moldovia he arrived in Australia in 1939. His association with the ‘sweet science’ commenced in the late 1950’s when he was involved with the AJAX Boxing Club in Melbourne.  It led to Sol joining the Victorian Boxing Association and he went on to become the boxing delegate to the Australian Commonwealth Games Association from 1972 – a contribution he maintained through until 2006.

He was the Vice-President of the Australian Boxing Association from 1979-1986, Vice-President of the Commonwealth Boxing Bureau from 1982-1986, executive member of the Oceania Amateur Boxing Association from 1990-1994 and President of the Oceania Boxing Association for many years.

He was appointed Boxing Section Manager for Christchurch 1974 but had to withdraw before the Games due to business commitments, but returned for Edmonton 1978 to fulfil the role.  He was Assistant General Manager in Brisbane 1982, Edinburgh 1986 and Team General Manager in Auckland 1990.

Sol attended two Olympic Games, including when he was the boxing team manager at the 1984 Los Angeles Games.

He also proudly carried the Commonwealth Games Queen’s Baton during the relay prior to the Opening ceremony of the 2006 Games in Melbourne.

For his service to boxing and the Commonwealth Games, Sol was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in 1993 ‘For service to amateur boxing as an administrator’, the Australian Sports Medal in 2000 ‘For outstanding service as an official’, and Life membership of Boxing Australia (2012).  In 2000 he was admitted to the Maccabi Victoria Hall of Fame honouring Jewish athletes, coaches and administrators, male and female, who have made a significant contribution to sport in Victoria.