LI Boxer Patrick Day Dies From Injury Sustained During Match

FREEPORT, NY — Decorated boxer and Freeport native Patrick Day died late Wednesday from a traumatic brain injury he sustained during a match Saturday. He was 27. Day grew up in Freeport and went on to earn an associate's degree from Nassau Community College. In 2012, a year before he went pro, Day won two national titles, the New York Golden Gloves tournament and was named an alternate for the Olympic National Team.

"Patrick Day didn't need to box," his promoter, Lou DiBella, said in a statement. "He came from a good family, he was smart, educated, had good values and had other avenues available to him to earn a living. He chose to box, knowing the inherent risks that every fighter faces when he or she walks into a boxing ring. Boxing is what Pat loved to do. It's how he inspired people and it was something that made him feel alive."

Day went pro in 2013, DiBella said, and became a super welterweight contender. He won the World Boxing Council Continental Americas championship in 2017 and the International Boxing Federation Intercontinental championship in 2019. In June, he was rated in the top 10 by the WBC and the IBF.

DiBella said Day suffered a traumatic brain injury during a match at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago on Saturday. According to ESPN, the fight went on for 10 rounds until Day's opponent, Charles Conwell, landed blows that knocked Day unconscious. The back of his head struck the mat as he went down, ESPN reported, and Day never woke up. He underwent surgery at a hospital in Chicago, but never recovered.

Day was surrounded by his friends and family Wednesday when they disconnected his life-support machines, according to ESPN.

Conwell, Day's opponent, wrote in a public statement before Day's death that he never meant for this to happen.

"All I ever wanted to do was win," Conwell wrote. "If I could take it all back I would no one deserves for this to happen to them."

During his career, Day traveled the world to fight and train, and made an impact everywhere he went, DiBella said.

"In his hometown of Freeport, Long Island, he was a beacon of light and the star pupil at the Freeport PAL, the gym he trained in from the moment he began boxing until the last bout of his career," DiBella said. "He was recognized as one of Long Island's finest professional fighters for years. He was a fixture in the boxing community throughout New York City. Patrick was even known in Japan, which he visited to spar with his friend and colleague, world champion Ryota Murata."