CAYMAN ISLANDS  – Canadian boxing champ Steven “The Piranha” Wilcox, holder of the WBA NABA super lightweight title, has been named a Sports Ambassador for Health City Cayman Islands.

With his next match coming up on March 18^th, Wilcox is always a fighter with a cause. Throughout his career, he has fought to benefit the Robbie Wilcox Foundation in aid of sick children in his hometown of Hamilton, Ontario. His elder brother Robert Dino Wilcox passed away at the age of 7 after battling brain cancer.

Wilcox first became involved with Health City Cayman Islands through a visit he made to the Cayman Islands in January 2017 to participate in the Island Rumble boxing showcase, hosted by reigning World Boxing Organisation welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao.

While in the Cayman Islands, Wilcox toured the facility and met with children from around the world being helped by Have a Heart Cayman Islands to receive life-saving cardiac surgery at Health City Cayman Islands.

Have a Heart Cayman Islands partners with local and international organizations to subsidize and provide life-saving heart surgeries at Health City Cayman Islands to children from around the world based on financial need.

Shortly after the boxing delegation visited the facility, Pacquiao announced that his Emmanuel and Jinkee’s Heart Foundation has teamed up with Have a Heart Cayman Islands and Health City Cayman Islands on the charitable initiative to benefit children in his native Philippines.

The trip made a powerful impact on Wilcox, who decided to become a Sports Ambassador for the hospital providing these life-saving operations.

“I lost my older brother at a very young age to brain cancer. The Wilcox family is dedicated to helping charities supporting children with healthcare needs. Have a Heart Cayman Islands is an amazing organization that we will be supporting at our hometown title belt events,” Wilcox said.

Given the hospital’s expertise in orthopaedics and sports medicine, the champion boxer felt it was also a good fit for him to be involved at that level. While in Cayman, Wilcox met with Dr. Niranjan Nagaraja, a surgeon skilled in providing minimally invasive procedures to those with sports injuries.

Wilcox said, “In my profession, timing for healthcare is everything. Knowing that Canadians have access to medical care without the wait times is a great option for Canadians.”

Dr. Nagaraja noted the steady increase the facility has been seeing in Canadian patients seeking orthopaedic and joint replacement surgery.

Dr. Nagaraja is a Senior Orthopaedic Surgeon at Health City Cayman Islands, and oversees the joint replacement program, sports medicine clinic and performs arthroscopy and arthroplasty procedures to treat various joint diseases and orthopaedic conditions.

Wilcox has fortunately avoided serious injury in his boxing career, which has developed since childhood.

The sport is something of a family business for Wilcox, who trains at Steeltown Boxing Club on Upper Ottawa Street in Hamilton Ontario, where his father Bob Wilcox maintains an impressive stable of professional and amateur boxers.

He comes from a family of boxers. His brothers Spencer, Sheldon and Bradley are all current Canadian champions, and his brother Jessie is a professional boxer. Ever since entering the club as a child, Wilcox has dreamed of becoming world champion.

Wilcox won the Canadian lightweight championship in 2013, scoring an eighth round TKO over Marcel Maillet Jr. of New Brunswick. He turned pro in 2012 after a stellar amateur career with over 180 fights.

Wilcox entered the world of boxing at the age of 11, and by 21, was a full time professional boxer. On October 1st 2016, Wilcox won WBA NABA super lightweight belt by way of unanimous decision, against Jesus Singwancha.

His next hometown title event in Hamilton, Ontario is on June 3^rd, and will see proceeds benefitting Have a Heart Cayman Islands.

Health City Cayman Islands has a Canadian office in Hamilton, which along with its board of Canadian Physician Advisors, facilitates Canadian patients receiving healthcare services at Health City Cayman Islands.

About Health City Cayman Islands

Health City Cayman Islands, the vision of renowned heart surgeon and humanitarian Dr. Devi Shetty, is supported by two major healthcare organizations, Narayana Health and the U.S.-based Ascension, which is that nation’s largest faith-based and nonprofit health system, providing the highest quality care to all with special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable. Health City Cayman Islands, which became only the second hospital in the Caribbean to receive the Joint Commission International’s “hospital accreditation” and in record time, provides compassionate, high-quality, affordable healthcare services in a world-class, comfortable, patient-centered environment. Offering healthcare to local, regional and international patients, Health City Cayman Islands delivers excellence in adult and pediatric cardiology, cardiac surgery, cardiac electrophysiology, medical oncology, orthopedics, sports medicine, pediatric endocrinology, gastrointestinal and bariatric surgery, neurology, interventional neurology and neurodiagnostics, neurosurgery, minimally invasive spine surgery, gynecology, dental, sleep lab and pulmonology services. Every dollar raised by Have a Heart goes directly to the delivery of healthcare to children as the registered non-profit association does not divert funds to operations or administration.

For further information, visit www.healthcitycaymanislands.com.

IMAGES:

Captions:

1. Canadian boxing champ Steven Wilcox with children who received lifesaving heart surgery at Health City Cayman Islands.
2. WBA NABA super lightweight title holder Steven Wilcox with Health City Cayman Islands Senior Orthopaedic Surgeon Dr. Niranjan Nagaraja.