In the wake of his loss to Deontay Wilder in April 2013, British heavyweight Audley Harrison announced his retirement from professional boxing before reversing his decision less than three weeks later. It was a move that attracted criticism from all quarters, but after failing to secure a suitable fight in over two years, the 43-year-old released a statement on Thursday to end what turned out to be a 12-year career in the paid ranks.
It's a decision that many consider to be a long time coming, but what's important is that Harrison has reached a moment in his life where he can be at ease with calling time on his spell in the ring. Time and time again, boxers bring a halt to their career and struggle to find a replacement for the lifestyle and the buzz that goes hand in hand with being a professional sportsman. We've seen before that Harrison immediately regretted his previous decision to retire and that he was prepared to risk the mockery that came with changing his mind, but this time around, the Londoner appears to have drawn a line under a career that should be respected for what it is, not criticised for his failure at the highest level.
It's easy for the casual supporter to define Harrison's career by his defeats to David Haye, David Price and Wilder, but it's wrong for his time inside the ring to be defined by his setbacks. Before triumphing in the super-heavyweight division at the Sydney Olympics, Great Britain had won only 11 gold medals in boxing in almost a century, while it was just the second won by Team GB since 1956. Even if Harrison didn't go on to achieve anything in his professional career, he had written his name in history.
But despite what the majority may remember, Harrison did go on to achieve plenty when making the transition into the professional ranks. His performance in Sydney had been enough for the BBC to make a commitment to a man who had attracted more fans to the sport at a time when Lennox Lewis was undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. Harrison's debut coincided with Lewis's double-header with Hasim Rahman and a period where there was an increased interest in the sport, with over six million people tuning in to Harrison's first outing against Michael Middleton at Wembley Arena.
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Major fights have returned to terrestrial television in recent weeks, but neither Martin Murray's world middleweight fight with Gennady Golovkin nor Carl Frampton's IBF super-bantamweight title defence against Chris Avalos came close to doing the domestic numbers that Harrison once attracted. Murray's loss to Golovkin attracted 0.75m viewers, while Frampton's fifth-round victory peaked at just under two million. A questionable comparison, perhaps, but it puts into perspective how Harrison's achievements in Australia led to people wanting to see how he performed as a professional.
However, the £1m handed out to him by the BBC probably had a detrimental effect on Harrison's development. It immediately put him in a position to be shot at, to be criticised for every wrong move that he made, rather than being allowed the opportunity to progress at a pace that suited him. Despite suffering two serious injuries, Harrison fought 19 times during his first four years, something possibly driven by the need to remain relevant and in the public eye before the conclusion of his television deal.
The BBC's loss of interest in boxing hit Harrison hard, something which he alluded to in today's retirement statement, and rushing into a fight against Danny Williams - a contest which remains long in the memory for all of the wrong reasons - saw him suffer his first professional loss. That was quickly followed by a defeat in America to Dominick Guinn, and in the space of four months, Harrison had gone from unbeaten Olympic gold medallist to a fighter who had lost the backing of the same public that had celebrated his victory in 2000.
The following few years saw Harrison revive his career a number of times only to fall to disappointing losses shortly afterwards. It was a journey that was experiencing as many detours as it was smooth passages, but in 2010, Harrison finally found that moment that tempted the public to reinvest in his capabilities. Despite suffering a torn pectoral muscle, Harrison wiped out Michael Sprott in the final round of their European title clash to put himself in contention for a potential fight with one of the Klitschkos, but an even bigger showdown lay in wait for the southpaw.
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WBA champion David Haye, a former friend of Harrison, allowed him a shot at his world title in Manchester, an encounter that would sell out the Manchester Evening News Arena as well as being granted pay-per-view status on Sky Sports. It was one of the biggest domestic matches for over a decade, but the fight itself turned into a damp squib, with Harrison freezing on the occasion and allowing Haye to prevail in the third round. The performance was ridiculed by disappointed supporters to such an extent that the BBBofC held back part of his purse for the fight before eventually paying him in full. Nevertheless, with his reputation in tatters, a rebuilding job was required if Harrison was going to maintain any kind of standing in the sport.
Like much of his career, the remainder of Harrison's time was up and down. Five months after being obliterated by an emerging David Price, he convincingly won Prizefighter for a second time, which set up a match with Deontay Wilder, who at the time had knocked out every one of his opponents inside four rounds. In hindsight, Harrison should have taken an easier match but there was a feeling of last-chance saloon surrounding his career and he needed to make a statement. However, it took just 70 seconds for Harrison to be knocked into the boxing wilderness as Wilder continued his rampage up the ranks that now sees him possess the only world title not held by Wladimir Klitschko.
That defeat is a devastating way for Harrison's career to come to an end but while he hasn't turned every head with his decision to retire, he deserves the respect and acknowledgement for paving the way for some of Great Britain's next crop of Olympic gold medallists. He stopped a rot that had stemmed for 32 years and that laid the foundations for the likes of Amir Khan to earn silver in 2004 and James DeGale to win gold in 2008.
There would have also have been a time when Anthony Joshua would have used Harrison's success as inspiration ahead of his glory at London 2012. A meeting between the two had been once touted for 2015, but given the expected one-sided nature of the clash, it's a good thing that fight never materialised. Harrison can retire not only content with his failure to fulfil what he previously described as his destiny but also with the satisfaction that he played a considerable part in helping elevate the sport in this country to the level in which it stands today.
