The Newshound

'If that punch had not been delivered, he would have survived': family of student killed in charity boxing match sues organisers for £200,000

From the Newshound archive · first published 13 October 2026.

Jubel Reji Kurian, the 23-year-old Nottingham University postgraduate whose father is suing boxing event organisers for £200,000, claiming a referee failed to intervene before the fatal knockout punch.
Jubel Reji Kurian, the 23-year-old Nottingham University postgraduate whose father is suing boxing event organisers for £200,000, claiming a referee failed to intervene before the fatal knockout punch.

He sustained bleeding on both sides of the brain and his life support was switched off without him ever having regained consciousness. His father Reji Kurian is pursuing a £200,000 claim against organiser Ultra Events Ltd, contending that the fatal punch should never have been thrown because the referee ought to have intervened earlier. Ultra Events Ltd rejects all liability, maintaining that its referee was highly experienced and fully competent to oversee the three-round amateur bout.

Jubal had arrived in the UK only six months before his death, enrolled in a master's programme in sports medicine, with ambitions to qualify as an NHS physiotherapist.

The company contends that Jubal had logged more than 33 hours of training at a local boxing gym ahead of the fight.

The family's barrister told the High Court the case hinges entirely on whether carelessness by the organisers can be proved.

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