Heavyweight boxing legend Mike Tyson has said he will open a boxing gym in his name in Moscow ‘in the near future', according to the organizers of a leading world forum in which Tyson is taking part.
Boxing icon Tyson, who in 1986 became the youngest man to win the world heavyweight title aged just 20 years, 4 months and 22 days, was speaking during the Las Vegas leg of the Synergy Global Forum. He is expected to appear at the forum’s event in Moscow on November 27 and 28, held at the city’s Olympic Stadium.
“I open boxing gyms around the world and literally the other day opened one in Australia. I had a lot of requests about this from Russia, and I am sure that in the near future, a Mike Tyson boxing gym will open in Moscow,” forum organizers told RSport, quoting Tyson.
The New York City-native will join fellow champion Floyd Mayweather Jr in having opened a boxing gym in Moscow. Five-division champion Mayweather opened his state-of-the-art ‘The Money Team’ boxing academy in Moscow’s Zhukova suburb in March whilst visiting on the Russian leg of ‘The Money Tour’.
Tyson has in the past confessed his fascination with Russian culture and history and in 2005, he was Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov’s guest of honor at a boxing match in the republic’s capital of Grozny.
A troubled youth in the gritty Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn, Tyson turned professional in 1985 under the guidance of legendary boxing trainer Cus D’Amato. Tyson became known as ‘Kid Dynamite’ for a string of explosive knockout wins on the way to capturing his first world title by bulldozing Trevor Berbick in two rounds, before going on to unify the division.
Later in his career, ‘Iron’ Mike became known as ‘The Baddest Man on the Planet’ for the erratic behavior that led to an implosion in his personal and professional life.
In the ring, incidents such as biting the ear of opponent Evander Holyfield in their 1997 world title fight made headlines. Additionally, a 3-year prison stint after being convicted of the rape of a beauty pageant contestant made sure Tyson became famous and infamous in equal measure, as he was throughout his career.
Also expected to attend the Synergy Global Forum, which welcomes 20,000 entrepreneurial figures from all over the world, are film director Oliver Stone and motivational speaker and Australian Christian evangelist Nick Vujicic
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