How a great Australian boxer you've never heard of was robbed of heavyweight glory by shocking racism and left the nation in mourning when he died at just 40 years old.

• Peter Jackson was a pioneer in Australian boxing
• Considered by many to be the best boxer of his time
• Champion John L. Sullivan refused to fight him.

When sporting icon Jack Johnson became the first black man to win the world heavyweight boxing title in Sydney in 1908, he dedicated a cemetery in Australia to commemorate Peter Jackson, who had been largely forgotten by history. Special visit.

Jackson, a black man, was a prominent figure in Australian sport in the late 19th century and was considered by many to be the greatest martial artist of his time.

Nicknamed “The Black Prince” by Australian fans and hailed as “Peter the Great” in Britain, he was denied a shot at the world heavyweight title because of the color of his skin, but his achievements in sports It has expanded beyond the boundaries of

Jackson was born in the West Indies in 1861 and came to Australia as a teenager, finding work as a deckhand on the docks of Sydney.

Blessed with unique athleticism and cat-like reflexes, he soon attracted the attention of famous boxing trainer Larry Foley, who invited him to train at his boxing academy in George Street.

The talented young man fell in love with the sport and stepped up to play in his first professional match in 1882.

With Foley's help honing and developing his skills, Jackson won the Australian heavyweight title in 1886 and became a national sensation.

With no one left to fight in Australia, Jackson decided to go to America to pursue the world heavyweight title, which was previously held by “Boston Strongboy” John L. Sullivan.

Jackson soon won the World Colored Heavyweight Championship by defeating George Godfrey in California later that year, competing against British Empire Champion Jem Smith and other top boxers of the time.

Jackson quickly became a worldwide celebrity, with some historians claiming he was the most famous black man on the planet in the late 19th century.

Abolitionist Frederick Douglass is said to have kept photographs of Australian fighters in his office, and said, “Peter is doing a great deal with his fists to solve the Negro problem.'' is said to have said.

However, champion John L. Sullivan refused to fight Jackson because of his race, declaring, “I will not fight a Negro.” I never have and never will. ”

Jackson and Sullivan were famously introduced in 1891, but when asked afterwards what he thought of Jackson in the American newspaper Chronicle, Sullivan did not hold back.

“I'm more happy with him than I expected. This is the first time I've talked to him in my life. But he's a freak and that's settled with me. God he's like a white man. It's not meant to be good, otherwise it would change the color of your skin.

Although Sullivan was an extraordinarily talented boxer in his prime, many experts at the time believed that Jackson would have earned his turn had he fought.

Nat Fleischer, who founded and published The Ring magazine, known as the “bible of boxing,” said Sullivan drew a “color line” to avoid facing Jackson, saying that if the two men were to meet during the bout, Had they played against each other, Sullivan said he probably would have been beaten by the Australian. ring.

In 1891, Jackson fought future world champion “Gentleman” Jim Corbett in a grueling match in San Francisco. The match lasted 61 rounds and was declared a no-contest after the match as neither man was a clear winner.

Corbett would defeat Sullivan the following year to win the heavyweight title, but Jackson was left out cold.

Despite his attempts, Jackson was unable to win a rematch with Corbett, and after defeating Commonwealth champion Frank Slavin in 1892, he seemed resigned to never challenging for the world heavyweight title.

Jackson was reportedly well-read and loved quoting William Shakespeare, and in the following years he participated in exhibition events and appeared in the play Uncle Tom's Cabin.

It is said that it was during this period that Jackson suffered from bouts of alcoholism and became unwell.

Six years later, in 1898, Jackson finally stepped into the ring again against future heavyweight champion Jim Jeffries, but he was nothing like his old self and was brutally knocked out in the third round.

Around this time Jackson contracted tuberculosis and eventually returned to Australia in 1900 with his health in such poor health and his boxing career in tatters.

Mr Jackson was moved to the small Queensland town of Roma, where the dry, warm air was believed to have a positive effect on his condition. However, he died in 1901 at the age of 40.

Hundreds of people attended Brisbane's Towong Cemetery to bury Mr Jackson in what some claimed was the largest funeral ever held in the city.

Funds were subsequently raised to build a magnificent marble monument inscribed with the words of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar: “This was a man.”