Violent 'no holds barred' match ends in tragedy
KYIV – A 31-year -old American died here Wednesday from head injuries suffered during a ‘no holds barred’ fighting competition that mixes martial arts, wrestling and boxing, friends and doctors said.
Douglas Dedge, of Chipley, Florida, had been hospitalized after collapsing in the ring Monday night during a match of what Ukrainian organizers referred to as Ultimate Fighting, a controversial sport with few rules.
‘We can say that his death was caused by severe injuries to the brain,’ Petro Spasichenko, chief emergency ward doctor at Kyiv’s Institute of Neurosurgery, told The Associated Press. ‘The parts of the brain controlling breathing and heart functions were extremely seriously damaged.’ Dedge had founded a school to teach the sport in Enterprise, Alabama, said Danny Ray, a close friend who traveled with him to Ukraine for the competition. Dedge is survived by a wife and five children, Ray said. The fight that killed Dedge lasted less than five minutes, said Ray, who referred to the sport as a ‘no holds barred’ competition.
On the mat, Dedge had taken a series of punches to the head but was still ‘defending himself well’ when the referee called the fight, Ray said. Dedge then stood up, but collapsed a few seconds later and was not breathing. Dedge was one of three U.S. fighters who participated in the competition, which brought a large crowd to Kyiv’s Palace of Sport arena. The sport is popular in the former Soviet Union, where it is called ‘Battle Without Rules.’ Only a few things are prohibited, such as eye-gouging and kicking an opponent when he is down, one of the organizers of the competition said. Rules can vary slightly from country to country.
Ultimate fighting has drawn fire in the United States from critics who say it is too dangerous, and it is prohibited in some states.
No rules were broken during Dedge’s fight with Ukrainian Yevhen Zolotaryov, said Yuri Smetanin, general director of Club Minamoto, one of the Ukrainian organizers of the competition.
‘We consider his death a tragic accident that disturbs us greatly,’ Smetanin said.
