OBITUARY
BREAKING! Boxing great, George Foreman dies at 76
American George Foreman, one of the great second acts in sports, who reclaimed the heavyweight boxing title at age 45 and became a celebrated product pitchman, died on Friday at age 76.
“With profound sorrow, we announce the passing of our beloved George Edward Foreman Sr. who peacefully departed on March 21, 2025 surrounded by loved ones,” his family said in an Instagram post.
An intimidating, thunderous puncher who lost his first title to Muhammad Ali in their famous “Rumble in the Jungle” in 1974, “Big George” was a more rotund, jovial figure when he knocked out Michael Moorer for his second crown two decades later.
Muhammad Ali watches as the defending world champion George Foreman goes down in the eighth round of their fight in Kinshasa, Zaire, on 30 October, 1974. Photograph: AP
Foreman’s comeback and the fortune he made selling fat-wicking electric cooking grills made him an icon of self-improvement and success for the Baby Boom generation.
Born in Marshall, Texas, on Jan. 10, 1949, Foreman’s family soon moved to Houston where he and his six siblings were raised by a single mother. Growing up poor in the segregated American South, Foreman dropped out of junior high school and used his size and fists in street robberies.
“George’s journey from the streets of Fifth Ward to boxing and business success was an inspiration,” Houston Mayor John Whitmire said in a statement.
“He never forgot where he came from … Houston will forever be proud to call George Foreman one of our own.”
The Job Corps, part of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s “Great Society” reforms, “rescued me from the gutter,” Foreman later wrote. Through the program, 16-year-old Foreman moved out of Texas and was encouraged to channel his rage and growing bulk into boxing.
At age 19 and in his 25th amateur fight, Foreman captured the heavyweight boxing gold medal at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. Turning pro, he won 37 straight matches on his way to face reigning champion Joe Frazier in Kingston, Jamaica, winning by technical knockout in round two.
Foreman defended the belt twice more before meeting Ali in Kinshasa, Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in one of the most celebrated boxing matches in history.
Ali had been stripped of his crown seven years prior for refusing to be drafted into the Vietnam War and came into the match a heavy underdog against the bigger, younger champion. But for seven rounds, Ali laid against the ropes and fended off Foreman’s clubbing blows, tiring him before knocking him out in the eighth round.
“I was one strong heavyweight punching fighter,” Foreman told Reuters in 2007. “I was one punching machine and that was the first time I delivered everything I had and nothing worked.”
The loss devastated Foreman. He took a year off before returning to the ring and then, after a second professional loss, retired in 1977 to become an ordained minister in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ.
A decade later and considerably heavier at 315 pounds (143 kg), Foreman staged an unlikely return to the ring to raise money for a youth center he founded in Texas.
He went on to win 24 straight matches, gradually slimming along the way, before losing to Evander Holyfield in a 12-round decision in 1991. Three years later, he knocked out undefeated southpaw Moorer to become the oldest ever heavyweight champion at age 45.
Foreman’s last match was in 1997, ending his career with a professional record of 76 wins and five losses.
Foreman was married four times in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1985, he married for the fifth time to Mary Joan Martelly, with whom he remained for the rest of his life. He had five sons – all called George – five biological daughters, and two adopted daughters.
Throughout the 1990s and after retirement, he was an enthusiastic pitchman for various products, most notably an electric grill from home appliance maker Salton Inc. In 1999, the company paid Foreman and his partners $137.5 million to put his name on the grill and other goods.
“What I do is fall in love with every product I sell,” Foreman wrote in his autobiography, “By George.”
“That’s what sells. Just like with preaching.”
-Reuters
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Ted Turner, the pioneering media mogul who transformed television and sports broadcasting, has died at the age of 87, his family announced Wednesday.
Turner founded CNN in 1980, creating the world’s first 24-hour news network, and later launched TBS and TNT, which became staples for sports fans. He purchased the Atlanta Braves in 1976, helping turn them into “America’s Team” and guiding the franchise to its 1995 World Series championship. Turner Field, built in 1996, remains a landmark of his influence on Atlanta sports.
As owner of the Braves from 1976, Turner transformed the struggling franchise into a nationally recognised team through nationwide cable broadcasts on TBS, branding them “America’s Team.” Under his leadership, the Braves won the 1995 World Series title and moved into Turner Field ahead of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
In a tribute, the Braves described Turner as “a brilliant businessman, consummate showman and passionate fan,” crediting him for helping shape the club’s modern identity.
Turner also left a major imprint on basketball and professional wrestling. He owned the Atlanta Hawks for over two decades and helped expand the reach of the NBA through TNT broadcasts. He also built World Championship Wrestling into the biggest rival ever faced by Vince McMahon’s WWF.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred hailed Turner as “a visionary whose impact on the media landscape transformed how fans experience sports,” while NBA commissioner Adam Silver praised his role in growing the league’s global audience.
Beyond media and sports ownership, Turner was an accomplished sailor who won the 1977 America’s Cup and later earned induction into the America’s Cup Hall of Fame and the National Sailing Hall of Fame.
Widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in sports media history, Turner’s innovations reshaped how live sports and news are consumed around the world.
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The Nigerian football community has again been thrown into mourning following the sudden death of former Super Eagles forward Michael Eneramo, who collapsed during a friendly match in Kaduna on Friday morning.
Eneramo, 40, reportedly suffered a cardiac arrest just five minutes into the second half of the game in Ungwan Yelwa, after featuring throughout the first half. Efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.
Reacting to the tragic incident, Mohammed Sanusi, the General Secretary of the Nigeria Football Federation, expressed shock and grief.
“This is devastating. I am short of words at this moment. I can only pray that God will grant him eternal rest and also grant his loved ones and the Nigerian football family the fortitude to bear the loss,” Sanusi said.
Born on November 26, 1985, in Kaduna, Eneramo carved out a respected career both at home and abroad. He began with Lobi Stars before moving to North Africa, where he became a fan favourite at Espérance Sportive de Tunis.
Nicknamed “Al Dababa” (The Tank) for his powerful playing style, Eneramo’s exploits in Tunisia earned him widespread admiration, helping Espérance to multiple honours. His career also took him through Algeria with USM Alger and later to Turkey, where he featured for clubs including Beşiktaş, Sivasspor and İstanbul Başakşehir.
Service to the Super Eagles
Eneramo earned 10 caps for the Nigerian national team, choosing to represent his country despite overtures to switch allegiance to Tunisia. He even scored against Tunisia in a 2-2 draw World Cup qualifier in 2009.
He made his debut in a goalless friendly against Jamaica in London in February 2009, before scoring his first international goal against the Republic of Ireland later that year.
One of his most memorable moments came in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Tunisia in Abuja, where he scored in a dramatic 2-2 draw.
Another Painful Season of Loss
Eneramo’s passing adds to a growing list of recent losses in Nigerian football, deepening a period of reflection and grief within the sport.
In recent times, the nation has also bid farewell to respected figures such as coaching legend Adegboye Onigbinde, former Super Eagles midfielder Henry Nwosu, and football administrator Ibrahim Galadima.
Together, these departures represent the loss of experience, history and institutional memory across different generations of Nigerian football.
Eneramo will be remembered as a strong, determined striker who made his mark in Africa and Europe, and as a player who remained committed to Nigeria at a crucial point in his career.
His sudden death, on the very field where he once found joy and purpose, underscores both the fragility of life and the enduring bond between footballers and the game they love.
As tributes continue to pour in, Nigerian football reflects not only on a life cut short, but on a legacy defined by resilience, loyalty and passion.
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The President of the Confederation of African Football, Patrice Motsepe, has expressed deep sorrow over the passing of former Nigeria Football Federation chief, Ibrahim Galadima.
In a condolence message issued on behalf of CAF and its 54 Member Associations, Dr Motsepe extended heartfelt sympathies to the Nigeria Football Federation, its current president Ibrahim Musa Gusau, the Galadima family, and the people of Nigeria.
Motsepe described Galadima’s death as a significant loss to Nigerian and African football, acknowledging his contributions to the development of the game during his tenure.
Galadima served as President of the NFF from 2002 to 2006, a period marked by key administrative and footballing developments in the country.
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