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Former boxing world champion Ricky Hatton He seemed “fine” when his family last saw him days before his death, an inquest heard.
46 year old man found dead at his home Hydewith Greater Manchester Police They said they are not treating the death as suspicious.
At the start of the inquest on Thursday, the provisional cause of his death was ruled as hanging.
The court heard that Hatton was last seen by his family on September 12 when he seemed “fine”.
But the following day he did not attend a concert as expected and on the morning of 14 September his manager Paul Speak arrived at his home to take him to Manchester Airport to catch a flight to Dubai.
Hatton was found unresponsive.
The details were given during a 10-minute hearing as the inquest into the popular former boxer’s death was opened by Manchester South senior coroner Alison Mutch and adjourned until March 20 next year.
In a statement, his family said: “Richard was much more than a world champion. To us he was simply ‘Richard’, our son. A loving father, grandfather and brother and a true friend to many.”
“His heart was as big as his smile, and his kindness, humor and loyalty impacted all who were fortunate enough to know him.
“To the wider world, Richard will always be remembered as one of boxing’s greatest champions – a man who gave everything inside the ring and wore his heart on his sleeve outside it.”
Thousands of mourners stood on the streets In Manchester to pay tribute to him.
Celebrities including Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher, former England and Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney And his wife Coleen and boxers Tyson and Tommy Fury attended the private memorial service at Manchester Cathedral last Friday.
The service was played for the crowd outside the cathedral and Hatton’s son Campbell, who had followed his father into the boxing ring, paid tribute, saying: “I can’t tell you how much I’ll miss you, Dad, and we won’t make any new memories – but I’ll always cherish what we did.”
Hatton’s daughters Ferne, 12, and Millie, 13, also paid emotional tributes to their father and spoke of their pride and love for him.
Hatton won world titles at light-welterweight and welterweight, and his all-action style made him one of the most popular fighters in the first decade of the new century.
He rose through the ranks on the amateur and domestic levels and displayed his wits against the best boxers of his generation, including Kostya Tszyu, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.
Hatton’s easy-going demeanor endeared him to fans around the world, and he spoke openly about his mental health issues after retiring from the ring.
Before his death, he had resumed training and was scheduled to take part in a fight in Dubai in December, with his family saying he was “in a good place” and “excited for the future”.
His death sparked debate over whether enough is done to help sports stars after retirement.
Sports promoter Barry Hearn said all sporting bodies and the government needed to look at the issue of athletes no longer in the spotlight, calling on everyone to help “in our own small way where we can”.
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