Heavyweight boxing legend George Foreman dies aged 76, says family

George Foreman, a legend in boxing, has passed away at the age of 76, according to his family.

The American, who went by the name Big George in the ring, won two Olympic gold medals in 1968 and the world heavyweight title twice, making him the 45th-year-old oldest champion in history. He also won the title twice, making him the oldest champion in history.

In their infamous Rumble in the Jungle fight in 1974, he lost his first title to Muhammad Ali. However, Foreman’s impressive 76 total victories and 68 knockouts were almost twice as many as Ali during his professional boxing career.

Our hearts are broken, his family wrote on Instagram on Friday night.

He lived a life of unwavering faith, humility, and purpose, including a devoted husband, devoted father, and proud grand and great grandfather.

He was referred to as a humanitarian, Olympian, and two-time heavyweight champion of the world. He was also regarded as a “force for good,” a man of discipline, conviction, and a protector of his legacy, working tirelessly to protect his good name for his family.

Foreman was born on January 10, 1949 in Marshall, Texas, and was raised by a single mother in the segregated American South along with six siblings.

At the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, Foreman, 19, turned professional and won 37 matches straight. In all of his career, he only lost five defeats.

In the first two rounds, he defeated reigning champion Joe Frazier, who had previously been undefeated in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1973, causing him to lose six times.

One of the most well-known boxing matches ever, Rumble in the Jungle against Ali from 1974, in Kinshasa, Zaire, is still played today in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

After being denied entry to the Vietnam War seven years earlier, Ali, the older man, was deemed the underdog.

Later, Foreman said, “I said I would go out there and kill him, and people said, “Please, don’t say you’re going to kill Muhammad.”

I then said, “OK, I’ll just beat him to the ground.” I anticipated the fight to be as simple as that.

However, the foolish Ali later used a trick known as “rope-a-dope,” which caused Foreman to throw out hundreds of punches before Ali unloaded on him in the eighth round and knocked him out.

On Foreman’s website about preaching, “We started meeting informally at various homes in Houston, and soon the crowds became too large for most homes to accommodate,” the crowds “ascended.”

On the north-east side of Houston, we eventually purchased a plot of land and an outdated, crumbling building.

Foreman retired in 1987 to start a youth center he founded. Before falling to Evander Holyfield in the final twelve rounds of 1991, he won 24 matches.

At age 45, Foreman defeated undefeated Michael Moorer to become the oldest heavyweight champion ever.

Thanks to his recognizable catchphrase, the “Lean Mean Grilling Machine,” he helped create the ads for his George Foreman Grill, which millions have purchased since 1994.

Foreman had five marriages. He has twelve children. George is the name of five of his sons.

He claimed on his website that he had given them the name “they would always share a common name” because of their mutual relationship.