I always believed that Big George Foreman would be world champion again. Even when, upon returning to the ring after ten -year -old, the newspapers printed photos of overweight foreman. Even when everyone reacted with laughs at their statement that their plan was to get an unbeaten, knockout and seemingly invincible “Iron” Mike Tyson.
I started reading everything I could about Foreman, it was a great incentive to buy imported books and magazines, such as the mythical The Ring and Boxing Illustrated, among many others.
As an amateur boxer, a photo of Foreman decorated my closet at the gym. Not as the destructive champion of the 1970s, but its overweight version, bald, but with its still threatening countenance from the 1980s.
And I would like to read as Foreman was snubbed, I think for Jim Brown, he felt bad and had promised himself that if he was someone someday, he would pay attention to all his fans.
The years passed and had the opportunity to meet Foreman in 2000, covering the duel between Oscar de la Hoya and Shane Mosley in Los Angeles. When I saw him, he was talking to other champions; I approached and asked to autograph a boxing glove. Firm, slightly dry, perhaps because he was interrupted, he replied not, and repeated when he insisted.
At the time, I remembered what I had said about being attentive to the fans. I interpreted his attitude as hypocrisy, thanked him with a “thank you, world champion” and before he could finish something that started talking, turned my back, left, and left him talking alone.
Three years later, when Foreman visited Brazil to promote the famous George Foreman Grill, I had the opportunity to interview him.
Speaking to the staff about the interview, I was intrigued when I saw that an instruction was not to bring glove so that he signed.
The interview went well – for obvious reasons, I didn’t mention what happened three years earlier – but I asked why I didn’t like to autograph gloves. He replied that it was not to encourage the counterfeit autograph market; After all, if they knew that he doesn’t sign, they would not falsify them.
But to my big surprise, when he was already on his back and ready to leave the room, he asked in a humorous tone: “But you were very angry that day, huh?”
“What? It can’t be, it is impossible for you to remember …”, I said, kind of incredulous.
And he continued, “But I remember, I remember …”
I took advantage of the friendly mood and asked if I would autograph if it took a glove in the recording of ESPN’s “Ball of the Ball” interview program, where I would be one of the interviewers.
He again insisted no, but I took other items, which he kindly signed.
And in the dressing room, I told him it was his picture that stamped my closet and inspired me, not that of Tysons, Holyfields, or other names of the moment as soon as he returned from retirement.
And now it was my turn to surprise him by questioning him on the program about an episode in which he, as he escaped the police, hid in a mud and remembered the cousin forecast that caught him killing and interrupted him as he offered: “You can continue like this, George, you will never be anyone, even …” “
He was amazed by knowing this story, and then commented, “You’re one of the people who know the most about my story in the world.”
He wrote something on a card. Milton Leite, who commanded the program, thought it was something about the George Foreman Grill, but no.
After the recording, he handed me the card with his address in Texas and, to my total surprise, said he would autograph a glove if he sent it with the return to prepaid Brazil.
Over the years I have changed emails with Big George. I interviewed him when he kindly took the initiative to call me to talk about professional boxers at the Olympic Games for a report, and when I saw my surprise, it was his turn to thrill me when I said “I’m your friend.”
I have also followed his activity on social media for years, where his positive attitude was palpable, never attacked anyone, even speaking of politics, valued everyone, even ex or rivals of hypothetical combat, by always positioning himself in a very modest way.
But what about the glove, did I get to send? No, unfortunately, I still planned to find him personally at some point to sign. But he gave us something more valuable.
Foreman was a great athlete, a champion; But more than that, a great one you can point to for a young man to follow; Someone who has long been safe who would contribute to making the world a much better place if something like a president of the planet existed.
