Ivan Calderon Marrero (born January 7, 1975) is a Puerto Rican former professional boxer. He held the WBO minimumweight title from 2003 to 2007, successfully defending it eleven times and being recognized as a "Super Champion" by the organization. From 2007 to 2010 he held the WBO light flyweight title, defending it six times as well as winning the Lineal and Ring magazine titles. As an amateur, Calderon represented Puerto Rico in international competitions and competed at the 2000 Olympics in Australia.

Personal life

Ivan Calderon was born in the municipality of Guaynabo, Puerto Rico and currently resides in a sector called "Las Americas" in Bayamon. Ivan had a troubling childhood surrounded by violence and problems, which according to him has helped him develop more patience which has helped him in his personal life. Calderon attended middle school in Jose Nevarez Landron School, located in Toas Baja, Puerto Rico. His first wife was Wilma Laguna, with whom he has two children, Wilvani and Ivan Junior. In an interview with El Nuevo Dia he noted that he engaged Laguna on August 29, 1997 following a quinceanero and the couple married on February 5, 1999. According to him the couple had some disagreements when they met, based on some attitudes he presented, he also notes that he felt she was arrogant at first. However, on one day he decided to propose to her and after four months of establishing a relationship the couple moved in together. Calderon expressed that he is "too much of a house man" and claims that as a result of a rule established by his former wife any kind of non'familiar activity is prohibited on Sundays. In January 2009, it was made public that Calderon and Laguna had established a divorce process.

Amateur career

In 1993, Calderon defeated Miguel Cotto in the light flyweight division, when both boxers were in the early stages of amateur experience. Following this, both athletes developed a close friendship. Calderon lost to Brian Viloria once during his amateur boxing career, but defeated him three times before turning professional. In addition, Calderon competed as an international amateur in several tournaments, including the following.

- 1999 3rd place as a Light Flyweight at Pan-American Games in Winnipeg, Canada

- 2000 represented Puerto Rico as a light flyweight at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.

Professional career

After turning professional, Calderon was frequently showcased on ESPN's Friday Night Fights show. On July 1, 2001, Calderon defeated Jose Manuel Ramirez by unanimous decision. During this fight, he suffered an open wound over his right eyebrow, which required surgery. On May 3, 2003, Calderon became a world champion for the first time, defeating Eduardo Marquez by a technical decision in nine rounds at Las Vegas, as part of the De La Hoya-Campas undercard, to win the World Boxing Organization's world strawweight title. He had dropped Marquez twice before the end of the fight. Calderon retained his title by a 12 round decision in his first defense, on September 5, over Lorenzo Trejo of Mexico, at Caguas, Puerto Rico. In his second defense, held at Bayamon, he defeated former world champion Alex Sanchez by a unanimous twelve round decision. On March 20, 2004, he retained the championship with an eleventh round knockout win over former International Boxing Federation world champion Edgar Careneas, in Guaynabo. Before that fight, Calderon obtained his high school credit diploma.

On July 31, 2004, as part of the Morales-Hernandez undercard in Las Vegas, he retained his title once again, with a twelve round decision win over former world champion Roberto Leyva. On November 23 of that year, he made his fifth defense, defeating Nicaraguan Carlos Fajardo by a twelve round unanimous decision. As part of the Barrera-Morales III undercard. His fight with Fajardo was shown live on HBO's Pay Per View. On April 30, of 2005, he retained the title with an eighth round knockout victory over Noel Tunacao, a member of the Tunacao boxing family of the Philippines. On September 25, he retained his title for the seventh time, with a twelve round unanimous decision over Mexico's Gerardo Verde, at Atlantic City, New Jersey.