The Quebec boxing world mourned the loss of one of the province's most exceptional trainers when Abe Pervin died peacefully in his sleep Sept. 19, just over a month after he turned 100.

Pervin's funeral was Sunday at 1 p.m. at the Paperman & Sons funeral parlour.

A Cote-St-Luc resident, Pervin was actively training fighters only five years ago and was recognized as the oldest active trainer in the world by the Guinness World Records.

Trainer Herby Whyne owns Hard Knox gym in St. Henri and travelled the world with Pervin training champions like Lucian Bute. He said most boxers, from amateur to professional, in some way went through Pervin.

"At one point, Quebec boxing was second only to Vegas, that's how popular it was, and when you think of a name that put it on the map, Abe Pervin is probably the number one name that comes up from boxers," said Whyne.

He also is credited with opening doors for female boxers.

"He had an open mind because not many men at the time wanted to see female boxers," said former boxer Louise Provencher. "He opened the doors for us."

Whyne said Pervin was never one for the spotlight, but that he commanded respect through his soft-spoken way.

"He was so quiet, but he's so prominent at the same time," said Whyne. "He's very soft-spoken and extremely respectable." 

Pervin started boxing as a teen at the Young Men's Hebrew Association (YMHA) in Mount Royal and was the head coach for the Canadian national boxing team at the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games.

Five of his boxers went on to world championship status, and he was inducted into the Canadian Boxing Hall of Fame in 1988.

Pervin is predeceased by his wife Annie Ludwig who passed away in 2000, and is survived by three children, five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Pervin only stopped showing up at the gym about two years ago, and his name is far from forgotten in the boxing world.

"He's still so present. His name is still being heard or talked about on a daily basis," said Whyne.