ALI LAMENTS PASSING OF CUBA?S INCOMPARABLE HEAVYWEIGHT TEOFILO STEVENSON
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Thu, 14 Jun 2012
Muhammd Ali, considered the greatest heavyweight of all-time laments the passing of the incomparable Cuban heavyweight Teofilo Stevenson at the age of 60.
Stevenson is considered the finest amateur champion of all-time having won the gold medal in three successive Olympic Games.
In a message Ali said he deeply regrets learning about the death of Stevenson who he almost fought in 1978 when both fighters were near their peak although the famous 1975 ?Thrilla in Manila? against Joe Frazier took something out of Ali.
The World Boxing Council website said that there was a possibility that Ali and Stevenson would fight under amateur rules since Ali himself won an Olympic gold medal in the light heavyweight division.
The WBC quoted Ali who said ?Despite his never fighting as a professional, having conquered three Olympic gold medals in three different Olympic Games meant that he wouldn?t have been an easy rival. He would have been a great challenger for any champion.?
Ali recalled that he and Stevenson had met in Cuba in 1996 and 1998 and added, ?Stevenson was one of the greatest. He was a great man. My condolences to his family and friends. May he rest in peace.?
At the time of his passing Stevenson was vice president of the Cuban Boxing Federation and worked at the National Retired Athletes Commission and the National Sports and Physical Education Institute in Cuba.
It was reported that Stevenson took part in a walk staged in Havana last Saturday to focus on the 2012 Olympic Games in London and was joined by more than 100 of Cuba?s outstanding athletes.
Cuban state television said that ?beyond the glory won in the ring, his death leave an incalculable vacancy at the heart of Cuban revolutionary sports.?
Stevenson rejected all importunities for him to virtually abandon Cuba and turn pro because of the huge money to be made. He stood by his country and its government.
He won his first Olympic gold medal at the age of 25 in Munich, Germany in 1972. He followed up with gold medal victories in Montreal in 1976 and Moscow in 1980.
His devastating right crushed many of his opponents and his final triumph was at the world championships in Reno, Nevada in 1986.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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