British boxing legend
Ricky Hatton was found hanged at his home last month, the Stockport Coroner’s Court was told on Thursday.
In a brief hearing, the inquest into the death of the 46-year-old Hatton was opened and adjourned until March 20 by the senior coroner for Manchester South, Alison Mutch, who gave the provisional cause of death as hanging.
Hatton had spoken openly about his battles with his own mental health. He admitted to a series of suicidal thoughts following the conclusion of his boxing career in 2012.
Mutch’s report confirmed speculation that Hatton committed suicide.
Over the course of the 10-minute hearing Thursday, the court heard some details related to
the discovery of Hatton’s body on the morning of Sunday, September 14.
Paul Speak, Hatton’s long-time friend and a respected boxing manager, arrived at Hatton’s house to take him to Manchester Airport for a flight to Dubai, but found him “unresponsive.” Emergency services were called, but Hatton was pronounced dead at the scene.
The court heard that Hatton was last seen by family members on Friday, September 12, when he had “seemed well.” However, he did not appear at an event he was scheduled to attend on Saturday, September 13.
The news of his death the following day prompted
an outpouring of grief across the boxing world.
Thousands lined the streets of Manchester for his funeral on October 10. Speak and Hatton’s son, Campbell, were among the beloved boxer’s pallbearers.