Boxing great Emanuel Steward, who was known as the godfather of Detroit boxing and one of the greatest trainers in boxing history, died on Thursday afternoon at the age of 68. After some confusion about the time of his passing, as his death was reported on Twitter and picked up by some news media outlets too soon, prompting a retraction from his sister, Diane Steward-Jones, Steward actually did pass away.
"He has passed — he has gone home," Steward-Jones personally told the Detroit Free Press after the death of her brother. "He was in no pain, and we sang to him, as well as did the doctors present. He had loved ones around him," she said, even remarking on how the hospital staff rallied around the charming Steward. "They loved him," she said. "He'd tell them to lose some weight and fight for him."
Steward, who was also a boxing analyst and owned the Kronk Gym in Detroit, retained close ties with boxing legends such as Thomas Hearns, Lennox Lewis, Oscar De La Hoya and Wladimir Klitschko, but it is they who think of Steward as a legend.
"It is not often that a person in any line of work gets a chance to work with a legend," Klitschko said in a statement. "Well I was privileged enough to work with one for almost a decade,'' Klitschko said Thursday. "I will miss our time together. The long talks about boxing, the world, and life itself. Most of all I will miss our friendship.''
Hearns also chimed in about his relationship with Steward. "Emanuel was like a daddy to me," he told the Detroit Free Press. "The man literally changed my life. I loved him and respected him so much."
Steward is a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the World Boxing Hall of Fame. In addition to being a famous boxer-turned-trainer, he also did commentary for HBO Boxing and youth-oriented charity work in Detroit. He trained 41 world champion fighters during his career.
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