When news emerged in 1987 that George Foreman was contemplating a comeback, few believed it was no more than a money-making gimmick. Many predicted it would end in embarrassment.
Foreman’s place in the pantheon of heavyweight champions was secured decades earlier courtesy of legendary dust ups with fellow greats Joe Frazier, Ken Norton and Muhammad Ali. A return to prizefighting after a decade as an evangelical pastor had many a purist shaking their head in disbelief.
Then photos surfaced of Foreman’s portly frame in the ring against a journeyman named Steve Zouski, the former champion’s massive paunch protruding over the waist band of the same red and blue trunks he had worn years before.
Few were impressed. “This is pathetic,” remarked NBC boxing commentator Dr Ferdie Pacheco at the time, echoing the thoughts of many a respected pundit. “It shouldn’t be allowed.”
A string of victories against boxers whose only claim to fame was that they shared a ring with the once-great Foreman did little to enhance comeback credibility. Sure, Foreman was knocking people out, but these were against fighters who were barely fit to lace the great man’s gloves.
That all changed on January 15, 1990, when Foreman scored a victory over Gerry Cooney, a boxer good enough to share 18 championship rounds with Larry Holmes and Michael Spinks, in New Jersey. Billed as “The Preacher vs The Puncher”, Foreman knocked Cooney out in two rounds. Suddenly, the comeback was given legitimacy.
While Foreman was slowly building, the man of the moment was Evander Holyfield. The former world cruiserweight champion did what Mike Tyson failed to do and knocked out James “Buster” Douglas inside three rounds to become WBA, WBC and IBF heavyweight champion in October 1990.
Holyfield delayed a potential fight with Tyson, instead agreeing to face Foreman. Foreman was a perfect 24–0 on the comeback trail, with 23 of his wins coming via knockout, when he lined up opposite Holyfield at New Jersey’s Convention Centre on April 19, 1991 in what was billed as "A Battle For The Ages".
Few gave the rotund 42-year-old Foreman a chance against a 28-year-old Holyfield who looked as if chiselled by the gods. Holyfield's manager, Don Duva, mocked Foreman's weight pre-fight, infamously stating that the bout should be called "The Real Deal" vs "The Big Meal". "Some people say George is as fit as a fiddle. But I think he looks more like a cello,” Duva teased.
But when the bell rang, Foreman confounded middle age and a conventional wisdom to rattle Holyfield, who would have to muster up every ounce of the warrior spirit that would define his career.
One round – seven – will go down in boxing history, such was the ebb and flow of the fight. With Holyfield seemingly in control, peppering the old warrior with jabs, he was suddenly struggling to unscramble his senses after Foreman connected with a thunderous right hook. Holyfield rebounded and proceeded to land a 15-second, multiple punch combination that staggered Foreman.
Though Holyfield's barrage of punches seemed to tire Foreman, he nevertheless was able to survive the round without going down. The three minutes of mayhem was named "Round of the Year" by The Ring magazine.
As if to prove a point to the young buck, Foreman refused to sit in his corner in between rounds, to show he was not tiring; he had plenty left in the tank.
Holyfield took Foreman's best punches over 12 brutal rounds, proving his was one of boxing's most durable chins, and came back with plenty of his own, and was awarded a unanimous verdict by the judges.
"If you can live, you can dream," Foreman said. "The only thing that stopped me was the fine jaw of Evander Holyfield. But if I had to lose, I'm glad I lost to a fine gentleman. There's no dignity lost.”
"I couldn't just run him over," Holyfield said in a post-fight news conference. "He hits hard and was able to move me around more than I wanted to."
Though the records will show a third loss in 72 pro bouts, Foreman had won over the sceptics. Two years later, he would go on to reclaim the heavyweight title he had lost to Ali 20 years earlier, becoming the division's oldest champion at age 45.
"I didn't get it on points, but I made a point," Foreman concluded.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
'Avengers: Infinity War'
Dir: The Russo Brothers
Starring: Chris Evans, Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Robert Downey Junior, Scarlett Johansson, Elizabeth Olsen
Four stars
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre V6
Power: 295hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 355Nm at 5,200rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
Price: Dh179,999-plus
On sale: now
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
Tuesday (UAE kick-off times)
Leicester City v Brighton (9pm)
Tottenham Hotspur v West Ham United (11.15pm)
Wednesday
Manchester United v Sheffield United (9pm)
Newcastle United v Aston Villa (9pm)
Norwich City v Everton (9pm)
Wolves v Bournemouth (9pm)
Liverpool v Crystal Palace (11.15pm)
Thursday
Burnley v Watford (9pm)
Southampton v Arsenal (9pm)
Chelsea v Manchester City (11.15pm)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Director: Shady Ali
Cast: Boumi Fouad , Mohamed Tharout and Hisham Ismael
Rating: 3/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The 12 Syrian entities delisted by UK
Ministry of Interior
Ministry of Defence
General Intelligence Directorate
Air Force Intelligence Agency
Political Security Directorate
Syrian National Security Bureau
Military Intelligence Directorate
Army Supply Bureau
General Organisation of Radio and TV
Al Watan newspaper
Cham Press TV
Sama TV
Brief scores:
Liverpool 3
Mane 24', Shaqiri 73', 80'
Manchester United 1
Lingard 33'
Man of the Match: Fabinho (Liverpool)
Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
History's medical milestones
1799 - First small pox vaccine administered
1846 - First public demonstration of anaesthesia in surgery
1861 - Louis Pasteur published his germ theory which proved that bacteria caused diseases
1895 - Discovery of x-rays
1923 - Heart valve surgery performed successfully for first time
1928 - Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin
1953 - Structure of DNA discovered
1952 - First organ transplant - a kidney - takes place
1954 - Clinical trials of birth control pill
1979 - MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, scanned used to diagnose illness and injury.
1998 - The first adult live-donor liver transplant is carried out
The 12
England
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur
Italy
AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus
Spain
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8
Power: 712hp at 6,100rpm
Torque: 881Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 19.6 l/100km
Price: Dh380,000
On sale: now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Top 10 most polluted cities
- Bhiwadi, India
- Ghaziabad, India
- Hotan, China
- Delhi, India
- Jaunpur, India
- Faisalabad, Pakistan
- Noida, India
- Bahawalpur, Pakistan
- Peshawar, Pakistan
- Bagpat, India
Disability on screen
Empire — neuromuscular disease myasthenia gravis; bipolar disorder; post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Rosewood and Transparent — heart issues
24: Legacy — PTSD;
Superstore and NCIS: New Orleans — wheelchair-bound
Taken and This Is Us — cancer
Trial & Error — cognitive disorder prosopagnosia (facial blindness and dyslexia)
Grey’s Anatomy — prosthetic leg
Scorpion — obsessive compulsive disorder and anxiety
Switched at Birth — deafness
One Mississippi, Wentworth and Transparent — double mastectomy
Dragons — double amputee
Janet Yellen's Firsts
- In 2014, she became the first woman to lead the US Federal Reserve
- In 1999, she became the first female chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers
BRAZIL SQUAD
Alisson (Liverpool), Daniel Fuzato (Roma), Ederson (Man City); Alex Sandro (Juventus), Danilo (Juventus), Eder Militao (Real Madrid), Emerson (Real Betis), Felipe (Atletico Madrid), Marquinhos (PSG), Renan Lodi (Atletico Madrid), Thiago Silva (PSG); Arthur (Barcelona), Casemiro (Real Madrid), Douglas Luiz (Aston Villa), Fabinho (Liverpool), Lucas Paqueta (AC Milan), Philippe Coutinho (Bayern Munich); David Neres (Ajax), Gabriel Jesus (Man City), Richarlison (Everton), Roberto Firmino (Liverpool), Rodrygo (Real Madrid), Willian (Chelsea).
Sheikh Zayed's poem
When it is unveiled at Abu Dhabi Art, the Standing Tall exhibition will appear as an interplay of poetry and art. The 100 scarves are 100 fragments surrounding five, figurative, female sculptures, and both sculptures and scarves are hand-embroidered by a group of refugee women artisans, who used the Palestinian cross-stitch embroidery art of tatreez. Fragments of Sheikh Zayed’s poem Your Love is Ruling My Heart, written in Arabic as a love poem to his nation, are embroidered onto both the sculptures and the scarves. Here is the English translation.
Your love is ruling over my heart
Your love is ruling over my heart, even a mountain can’t bear all of it
Woe for my heart of such a love, if it befell it and made it its home
You came on me like a gleaming sun, you are the cure for my soul of its sickness
Be lenient on me, oh tender one, and have mercy on who because of you is in ruins
You are like the Ajeed Al-reem [leader of the gazelle herd] for my country, the source of all of its knowledge
You waddle even when you stand still, with feet white like the blooming of the dates of the palm
Oh, who wishes to deprive me of sleep, the night has ended and I still have not seen you
You are the cure for my sickness and my support, you dried my throat up let me go and damp it
Help me, oh children of mine, for in his love my life will pass me by.
