Boxer's death sparks safety concerns

A Chinese boxer has died in hospital 42 days after he was knocked out during a free boxing tournament in South China's Hainan province.

Shangguan Pengfei was rushed to a hospital after he collapsed following a blow to the head on Oct 31 during the Kungfu King Free Boxing Championship in Haikou.

The death on Monday sparked a wave of public concern over the safety of Chinese boxing, Beijing News and sina.com.cn reports.

Some blame the opponent for violating the rules of sportsmanship after the blow to the back of Shangguan's head, which is forbidden under the rules.

Others have questioned how the 23-year-old fighter from Henan province could have passed the organizer's medical examination given he had already been knocked out in the months before the game in Haikou.