Gerald Dreyer took up boxing at the Pretoria City Club when he was eight-years-old. Coached by Greg Croce and Claude Sterley, who had won a silver medal in the heavyweight division at the 1938 British Empire Games, Dreyer was the South African amateur lightweight champion in 1947 and 1948. Selected for the 1948 South African Olympic team, Dreyer captured the Olympic lightweight gold medal and, as a great technical fighter, was considered the best boxer at the Games by many experts.
Dreyer finished his amateur career after his Olympic triumph with a record of 78 wins in 86 bouts and turned professional in December 1948. He won the South African lightweight title in March 1950, and held the title until February 1952, when he moved up to the welterweight division. As a welterweight, he won the British Empire welterweight title in August 1952, but lost it to New Zealander Barry Brown in January 1954. In 1953, Dreyer was rated #10 at welterweight by The Ring magazine and was scheduled to compete against World Welterweight Champion Kid Gavilán, but the match never came off. Dreyer also challenged for the South African welterweight title in August 1955, but not successfully. He retired from the ring at the end of 1955 with a record of 41 wins (23 KO), 8 losses (1 by KO) and 2 draws.
South Africa