Word: sporting
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 2000-2000
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...accounts, the woman among the sport's famed newcomers who can really fight is the undefeated Ali, who sold her nail salon last year to devote herself full time to boxing. It doesn't hurt that she's a jab off the old block. In Detroit two weeks ago, Ali was knocked down in the second round for the first time in her career by Karen Bill. With her dad at ringside and buoyed by chants from the 14,000-strong crowd--"Al-ee! Al-ee! Al-ee!"--she struggled up at the count of eight, then beat on Bill...
...embodies the zeal of the sport's athletes, a quality that has struck a chord with both jaded fans and high-profile trainers. Former heavyweight champion Greg Page says women are more fun to watch and more rewarding to coach because "they work harder." Hannah Fox, a married mother of one and a former junior-welterweight champion, owns two Subway restaurants in Las Vegas and trains with Page. She rises at 5 a.m., runs four miles, goes to the gym for strength training, manages the eateries from 10 to 3, spars in the afternoon, then goes home and makes dinner...
...spite of the momentum, female pugilists have yet to win the hearts of some boxing "purists" like Sugar. HBO will not air women's boxing, partly because of its paucity of A-list fighters. "It's natural for a young sport," says CNN/SI boxing analyst Steve Farhood. "But the thin talent pool prohibits consistent, well-matched bouts." More to the point, says Vitiello, "promoters still see women as a sideshow. There is talent out there. But to get air time, you have to be a Playboy bunny or have a famous name...
Indeed, promoter Bob Arum, who manages welterweight champ Oscar De La Hoya, dropped Lucia Rijker, considered to be among the sport's best fighters, and now sets bouts for an NFL cheerleader, a topless dancer and boxing's infamous Playboy cover girl Mia St. John. Known more for her pink hot pants than her ring skills, St. John takes home about the same per fight as Ali and Frazier-Lyde...
Other promoters, however, are finding a real audience for real fights. Event Sports' Rick Kulis, who has produced 14 sold-out all-female cards for TV, says, "Weight for weight, women boxers are often as good as their male counterparts. I haven't had a single event where the women haven't received a standing ovation." Cedric Kushner, who admits to a personal aversion to the sport, features distinctly un-Playboy-ish female boxers on his cards because "the fans respond...