Tan Teng Kee was the Mike Tyson of Singapore boxing in the 1920s. Known as Battling Key, the larger-than-life boxer attracted crowds wherever he went. Which makes his drastic downfall all the more tragic.

Abhishek Mehrotra is a researcher and writer whose interests include media and society in colonial Singapore, urban toponymy and post-independence India. He is working on his first book (HarperCollins, 2025) – a biography of T.N. Seshan, one of India’s most prominent bureaucrats. Abhishek is a former Lee Kong Chian Research Fellow (2021–22).

What Abhishek Talked About

• 02:04 – How boxing came to Singapore
• 04:44 – Why boxing has wide appeal among the masses
• 06:43 – Who attended boxing matches in 1920s Singapore
• 08:13 – Background and rise of Tan Teng Kee or Battling Key
• 10:43 – Battling Key's matches with Yeo Choon Song
• 16:07 – Song's complaint about Battling Key's gloves
• 17:14 – What happened to Song after beating Key
• 20:56 – Key's downfall
• 22:31 – Boxing ecosystem and corruption
• 28:34 – Why professional boxing was more successful than professional tennis
• 31:27 – Abhishek's choice between being a boxer and tennis player
• 31:50 – Abhishek's nickname if he were in combat sport
• 32:09 – Fatherhood is...
• 32:06 – Sports is...

Transcript and Resources

• Read the transcript: biblioasia.nlb.gov.sg/podcast/singapores-first-boxing-superstar-tan-tang-kee/transcript/

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This episode of BiblioAsia+ was hosted by Jimmy Yap and produced by Soh Gek Han. Sound engineering was done by One Dash. The background music "Di Tanjong Katong" was composed by Osman Ahmad and performed by Chords Haven. Special thanks to Abhishek for coming on the show.

BiblioAsia+ is a podcast about Singapore history by the National Library of Singapore.