Rice was a member of the Holy Family Boxing Club of Belfast and won the Irish junior welterweight title in January 1961.[1] He represented Ulster and Ireland.[2]
He was selected for the 1962 Northern Irish team[3] for the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia.,[4] where he competed in the welterweight category.[5] He lost to eventual gold medallist Wallace Coe of New Zealand in the semi-final round.[6] Rice was denied a bronze medal because of his disqualification in the semi-final for an unintentional low blow and despite organisers wanted to award the medal, the rules of the International Amateur Boxing Federation stated otherwise.[7]
In March 1963 he reached the final of the Irish welterweight championships, losing out to Des Leahy in the final bout.[8]
After retiring from boxing he took a career in the civil service and left Belfast for Liverpool in 1971. After three decades he moved back to Belfast following the death of his wife Anne.[9]
