Azumah brought Ghana joy and pride
Almost three decades after he won Ghana’s second world boxing title en route to an illustrious career, Barima Azumah Nelson stood tall among some of the nation’s the most eminent personalities, including former head of state, business moguls and other sports icons, as he was eulogised for a distinguished career in the ring and a humble, selfless life in retirement.
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Last Wednesday night, the creme de la creme in society joined three-time world champion Azumah Nelson as he launched his autobiography, The Professor, authored by Ashley Morrison, which chronicled the life story of one of the sport’s finest practitioners and by far the greatest boxer to emerge from Africa.
Before the former president shared his relationship with Azumah, the boxer had paid tribute to many people who inspired and helped him on his way to superstardom, some of whom graced the occasion such as Ghana’s first boxing champion, David Kotei “Poison” and former sports minister, Amarkai Amarteifio, among others.
He spoke of his passion to mentor young and less privileged youngsters with special sporting skills, by providing educational and sporting facilities through the Azumah Nelson Foundation.
Leading the tributes was former President Jerry John Rawlings, a man who took personal interest in Azumah’s career and to whom the book was dedicated. Rawlings, during whose reign Azumah won his two world titles, described as “a genius” and an embodiment of “humility and patriotism who has not stopped to show love and compassion to the disadvantage”.
He noted that long before the Black Starlets won the FIFA under-17 title in 1991, Azumah had put Ghana on the world sporting map, when he won the WBC featherweight title by knocking out previously unbeaten Mexican, Wilfredo Gomez in Puerto Rico in December, 1984.
For Rawlings, the significance of Azumah’s conquest was not only the manner in which he invaded enemy territory to snatch victory, but also because he became a world champion during a very trying moment in Ghana’s history, a period when the economic fortunes of our country had declined to dangerous levels.
“Professor Azumah Nelson almost singlehandedly flew the kite of Ghana under those trying periods and brought so much joy to millions across the country. He was an embodiment of the sense of purpose, sense of mission and unity that had gripped the nation during the revolutionary period,” he said.
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“His desire to die for Ghana and put a smile on the faces of Ghanaians played a significant role in those victories, and it is gratifying to note that Azumah had a clause in his contract that ensured that all his world title fights had to be relayed directly to GBC so that Ghanaians could watch him live. When such arrangements were not in his contract he doled out thousands of dollars for the live telecast to take place.”
Other boxing icons, such as Mike Tyson, Sugar Ray Leonard, referee Joe Cortez and ace promoter Don King, as well as legendary TV talkshow host Larry King, all paid glowing tributes to the boxing Hall of Famer, in recorded video interviews played at last Wednesday’s function at the Alisa Hotel in Accra.
Copies of the autobiography were auctioned to raise money for the Azumah Nelson Foundation, with dignitaries like Dr Sam Jonah, Kennedy Adjapong of Kenpong Group of Companies and Isaac Tetteh of T.T. Brothers, among others, all pledging financial support for Azumah’s charity work.