George Foreman

 

Most adults are aware of George Foreman’s fight in Zaire with Mohammed Ali
In the bout Ali won using his rope-a-dope technique
But there are many aspect’s to Foreman’s life
Which make him a person who is truly unique

Foreman had a very successful boxing career
He has been inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame
His overall record was 76 wins and 5 losses, with 68 knockouts
Ring Magazine ranked him as the 9^th greatest puncher ever in the fighting game

But even more remarkable than his many wins
Was the span of time in which he was great
Foreman’s professional debut occurred in 1969, at age 20
And his last fight took place in 1997, at age 48

Thus Foreman’s professional career spanned 28 years
In 1973 he first won the heavyweight title, after his opponent Joe Frazier six times hit the floor
And then became the oldest fighter to ever win the heavyweight crown
When he won it again at age 45 in 1994

After first retiring in1977, he was successful returning 10 years later
He attributed this to eating healthy
This lead to an alliance with the makers of a fat reducing grill
Which ended up making Foreman very wealthy

Foreman served as spokesman for this product, renamed the George Foreman Grill
The Grill was very successful, and he was paid $137 million dollars in 1999 to buy out the use of his name
Together with prior payments, it is estimated he earned about 200 million
Substantially more than the total earned in the boxing game

In his early days Foreman presented a menacing image
But later in life developed a genial, self-deprecating personality, with his snarl replaced by a grin
He explained this transformation by saying that Jimmy Young, with whom he had a tough fight
Had knocked the devil out of him

Along the way Foreman became an ordained minister,
Using some of his wealth to support a youth facility
He also fathered 12 children, 7 girls and 5 sons, all named George
So his money came in handy to support his family

There are two important lessons we can learn from George Foreman’s life
If you keep in shape, and have the determination
You can maintain physical rigor
Far beyond normal expectation

His experience with the George Foreman Grill
Demonstrates that we need not limit ourselves to what we normally do
If we keep alert, and examine all the possibilities
There is always an alternative to pursue