NCS
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Tributes poured in for George Foreman, who died Friday on the age of 76.
They revealed the multifaceted legacy of a man who was concurrently a fearsome heavyweight champion; a down-and-out boxer who got here again to win a world title at age 45; the USA’s best-known grill mogul; and one–third of heavyweight boxing’s “holy trinity” alongside Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier.
The tributes got here from the boxing world, former NBA stars, rappers as nicely as figures such as Billie Jean King and President Donald Trump, exhibiting the attain of Foreman’s stardom.
Trump referred to as the two-time heavyweight boxing champion and Olympic gold medalist a “GREAT FIGHTER” in a put up on his Truth Social account on Saturday.
Trump added that Foreman had the “heaviest and biggest punch in the history of boxing” and stated aside from Muhammad Ali, “when you got hit, you went down.”
He praised Foreman as a “great person, with a personality that was bigger than life,” and despatched condolences to his household.
Foreman belonged to an period when boxing exerted a huge pull on popular culture. An estimated one billion individuals watched the “Rumble in the Jungle” heavyweight title combat towards Ali in 1974.
Hall of Fame boxer Mike Tyson stated Foreman’s “contributions to boxing and beyond will never be forgotten” and posted two footage of the 2 heavyweights collectively.
NBA icon Magic Johnson remembered attending “so many of George’s championship fights,” as he paid tribute to certainly one of his “boxing heroes” on X.
“He was a knockout artist in the ring, and it was a pleasure getting to know him not only as a boxer but as a man. After leaving the ring, he turned into an amazing businessman — I even bought one of the first George Foreman grills!” Johnson added.
Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley stated the information left him “shook up right now” throughout an emotional tribute on CBS Sports’ protection of the boys’s NCAA basketball match.
“Rest in peace, George Foreman. Your legacy lives on, champ,” Basketball Hall of Famer and six-time NBA champion Scottie Pippen stated on X, alongside a photograph of the boxer.
Twelve-time grand slam winner King paid her personal tribute on social media too, saying that Foreman “bet on me in the Battle of the Sexes, and acted as a bodyguard to help me after the match when the crowds stormed the court.”
“Sad to learn that two-time heavyweight champion boxer, Olympic Gold medalist, and entrepreneur George Foreman has passed away,” she wrote. “He was a great champion and a good friend … Our condolences to his family. May he rest in power.”
Chuck D, the frontman of Public Enemy, posted a portrait of Foreman on X, including that “George was one of my HEROES.”