Family of fighter who died after Edmonton boxing match frustrated review still not underway

Exactly two months after 34-year-old boxer Tim Hague died in hospital after being injured in a fight at Edmonton’s Shaw Conference Centre, his sister says her family is frustrated the city has yet to launch a probe into his death.

“It’s just very frustrating because in any other workplace fatality… everything stops and the investigation starts that day, and it’s as if life has just kind of carried on and things have just carried on without us seeing any justice (or) any answers for him,” Jackie Neil told Global News on Friday.

On June 16, Hague lost his KO Boxing bout against former Edmonton Eskimo Adam Braidwood by a knockout. He walked out of the ring but was later taken to hospital in critical condition and died of his injuries the next day.

The City of Edmonton, which oversees the Edmonton Combative Sports Commission, said shortly after that a third-party review would look into the match. The city said the commission always does internal post-fight reviews, but in some cases, an independent review is ordered.

READ MORE: Third-party review to be done on boxing match after Tim Hague dies

Watch below: On June 19, 2017, Tom Vernon filed this report after Tim Hague died in hospital after a knockout blow during a boxing match in Edmonton. The city then announced a third-party review would take place.

2:26 Review will examine boxing match after Hague death

“We want to retain – we don’t know who or how yet – a third party to do a comprehensive review and our thinking is… that review will have to get information from all of the different individuals who were part of organizing the event,” deputy city manager Rob Smyth said on June 19.

He said the probe would include everyone involved, such as promoters, physicians, referees and inspectors.

“We want to understand what happened and determine if there’s anything we need to do better,” Smyth said.

On Friday, Neil said her brother was in excellent physical condition ahead of the match but that he had suffered multiple concussions in previous years.

“Should he have been in the ring? We don’t know,” she said. “There’s no answers… no one has told us yet anything about this investigation. Nothing has come to light.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Should he have been in the ring? We don't know," she said. "There's no answers… no one has told us yet anything about this investigation. Nothing has come to light."

When asked about the investigation on Friday, Mayor Don Iveson said the city is expected to hire a person or firm to conduct the review within the next two weeks and that the review could then begin.

“I hear absolutely from the family concern about how long its taking but they’re the ones we have in mind when we say we want a process that is fair, that is transparent, that does have integrity,” Iveson said. “That’s what Mr. Hague and his family deserve.”

Iveson’s comments echo what Neil said the city has told her mother but that she is still frustrated by the lack of progress.

“The city declared they were going to do this big investigation and answers were going to be found and things were going to be figured out and as of now, nothing has happened.”

“When there’s a fatality involved (like) in the case of Mr. Hague’s very unfortunate death and you’re going to have an inquiry, it’s very important to ensure that that inquiry is going to have legitimacy, that its findings are going to be relevant to the family ultimately,” Iveson said. “But also useful to the city and the commission if changes need to be made and so ensuring that there is an independent review with integrity – even setting that up and selecting the right person or firm to do that – is a complicated process.”

Hague, who was also a teacher and a coach at the UFC Gym in Sherwood Park, was originally from Boyle, Alta. He had a mixed martial arts record of 21-13 and eventually fought in the UFC. In 2016, after 10 years in the octagon professionally, he set his sights on the boxing ring.

“I guess it’s been the last few years, when he started getting more concussions, taking more blows,” Neil said. “He wasn’t winning as many fights and so then it started to kind of concern us.

“He would go in and be in the best shape of his life and then he would go in… and some young guy – younger than him and in better shape – would just kind of end things pretty quick.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "He would go in and be in the best shape of his life and then he would go in… and some young guy - younger than him and in better shape - would just kind of end things pretty quick."

Neil said her brother’s death is “the worst thing that our family has ever been through” but that she hopes something positive can emerge out of his death.

READ MORE: Family and friends celebrate the life of boxer Tim Hague

Watch below: On June 26, 2017, Vinesh Pratap filed this report about Tim Hague being remembered at a celebration of his life.

1:59 Alberta boxer who died after fight honoured by friends and family

“If Tim’s death can shine a light where it needed to be shined, then maybe that would give us some peace… if he can save someone, if he can save another fighter, if there’s someone else in his shoes who has too many concussions and then maybe they’ll look at this case and say, ‘No, this person can’t fight.’

“He’s just very missed by all of us…he was just such a good guy.”

-With files from Julia Wong and Emily Mertz