Don King Tours Earthquake-Ravaged Region in China
CHENGDU, China (Aug. 14)—American promoter Don King was given extraordinary access today by Chinese officials who allowed him to tour hard-hit areas of May’s major earthquake near the Sichuan Province’s capital city of Chengdu.
King visited the same site that U. S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice toured on June 29 in the city of Dujiangyan. He stood in the rubble of the three-story Tengda Physical Club, which was decimated by the quake as evidenced by its toppled roof.
Activity in the streets showed the rebuilding effort is well on its way after the strong temblor registered 8.0 on the Richter scale, taking a heavy toll in the region.
“I have been very impressed by the great care and support that the Chinese government has given to its people in and around Chengdu,” King said. “It’s obvious to see they have been able to accomplish so much in terms of health, welfare and displacement facilities for those in need. The Chinese people have great resolve and resiliency.”
Accompanied by a Chinese media contingent, King also visited a nearby temporary housing village for victims of the quake that is currently accommodating 14,000 people. Children gravitated towards King in a small building next to a playground at the facility, and he obliged them with autographs and a bag of toys.
“It was a moving experience for me to meet with those who have lost so much and have been obviously grief-stricken and suffered great losses and still see they have a burning light of love and hope in their eyes. I was deeply touched.”
He continued, “I came here to see what happened in Chengdu. The boxing event we were planning prior to the earthquake is now taking a back seat to the humanitarian concerns in Sichuan Province.”
King believes a phrase adopted by top government leaders in China—wo men zai yi chi—which translates in English to “together we are” is apt.
“This rallying cry is being lived up to by the government and the people, uniting the country for a quick response, which epitomizes humanitarianism and the spirit of the heart.
King is scheduled to meet with Chengdu Mayor Ge Hung Lin on Friday.
Don King plans China quake aid match
BEIJING (Reuters Life!) - Boxing promoter Don King used the world spotlight on the Olympics this week to unveil in Beijing plans for a charity tournament in the earthquake-hit province of Sichuan later this year.
King, 76, said he planned to donate part of the proceeds from the event to help victims of the May earthquake that killed about 70,000 people in the southwestern province. "I'm here because I love China, I mean I love the Chinese people," King told Reuters Television in the Chinese capital, clutching a large cigar.
"We want to strike hard and rebuild. You have got a million-and-a-half people that are homeless. They have got several thousands that lost their lives. So we have to resolve that they have not died in vain."
The event, due to be held at the Chengdu National Stadium in November, is not the first King has organized in China.
In 2001, he promoted what was to have been the third meeting between then World Boxing Association heavyweight champion John Ruiz from Puerto Rico and former four-time heavyweight champion, American Evander Holyfield.
But the fight was postponed nine days before the event after Ruiz sustained a neck injury that forced him to withdraw.
(Reporting by Belinda Goldsmith, Editing by Miral Fahmy) LINK
Don King has plan to heal quake-hit China through boxing
(AFP)
Don King believes he knows exactly what China's earthquake-stricken Sichuan province needs to recover from the worst natural disaster in a generation: a heavyweight championship boxing fight.
Boxing's most flamboyant promoter and his electric hair emerged on the sidelines of the Olympics Wednesday to hype his latest bid to stage the first world title bout in China.
The match-ups for the November 7 fight at the National Stadium in Chengdu, Sichuan's capital, have yet to be decided, but King mentioned Shannon Briggs, Andrew Golota and Jameel McCline as possibilities.
"I'm trying to get them as they come up," King told AFP in an interview. "All of 'em got scheduled fights now. I want big names."
The event is King's second attempt at staging a fight in China. The first fight scheduled in Beijing in 2001 was cancelled when a neck injury forced boxer John Ruiz to withdraw nine days before he was to fight Evander Holyfield.
The controversial 76-year-old promoter said he is determined to organise China's first world championship fight.
"The first heavyweight title fight to China in 5,000 years, that can't be erased," he said. "The rest of them can come. There's going to be imitators and duplicators. But they can't be the first one that steps into virgin territory."
He said the key to signing top boxers will be persuading them the fight will seal their place in history.
"This is what I do. I'm a promoter of the people for the people -- and by the people -- my magic lies in my people ties," he said, waving an huge unlit Cohiba cigar.
The fight is being dubbed "For the Love of the People" and King has pledged part of the proceeds toward helping the province rebuild, but he gave no further details.
But King said money is only part of it. His goal is to make the spectacle of men pummeling each other a life-affirming message for earthquake survivors.
"Everything that will happen to you in life is coming at you symbolically in a boxing ring," King said. "In the foot race of life all the problems are there and you can't hide 'em. You've got to be able to deal with it."
King laughed at the suggestion that the name "For the Love of the People" lacked the punch of previous fights like "The Rumble in the Jungle," "Thrilla in Manila," or 2001's aborted "The Great Brawl of China."
"You may have a tagline," he chuckled.
During a lunch of Peking duck and diet Coke at one of Beijing's finest restaurants, King paused to sign a photo for a waitress of him superimposed in front of a Chinese flag, giving a crowd a strait-armed wave in a pose reminiscent of Chairman Mao Zedong.
With an array of diamond encrusted chains -- including a crown with his name under it and an American flag framed by the words "Only in America" -- hanging from his neck, King expressed his admiration for the late Communist leader.
"He was an excellent showman," King said. "He was a leader, in order to lead you've got to get people to do what they wouldn't do and agree to it."
But King also said China, a great civilisation, has been closed to the ideas of the outside world for too long. But now, as the Olympics show, it is opening up to outside ideas.
That's where King comes in, he said, mixing and mangling the words of Mao, Confucius, the Olympic slogan and possibly former U.S. President Richard Nixon to emphasise his point.
"In China, you say we're in it together: 'One world, One dream'. We've got to work and make this happen," he said, coming back to his title match.
"If I was in America, I'd say I'm in it to win it." LINK
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