On June 12, 1930, Schmeling and American Jack Sharkey faced off in New York's Yankee Stadium to fight for the vacant world heavyweight title. After a couple of matches against unremarkable contenders, the German heavyweight made his mark internationally by defeating two major heavyweights, Johnny Risko and Paolino Uzcudun, earning him a number-two ranking and a shot at the world heavyweight title. In 1929, realizing that the United States was rapidly becoming the center of the international boxing scene, Schmeling came to America to challenge some of the world's leading heavyweight boxers. Three months later, boxing as a heavyweight, Schmeling defeated Franz Diener in a 15-rounder in Berlin to capture the German heavyweight title. On January 6, 1928, Schmeling again successfully defended his European title by knocking out Italian light heavyweight champion Michele Bonaglia in the first round of a match in Berlin. Later that year, he successfully defended his European light heavyweight title in a match against Hein Domgorgen in Leipzig, Germany, on November 6. The following year, Schmeling won the European light heavyweight championship by knocking out Fernand Delarge in the 14th round of a match in Dortmund, Germany. In their second match of the year on August 24, Schmeling knocked out Dieckmann in the first round to win the German light heavyweight title. In 1926, Schmeling squared off twice against Max Dieckmann in Berlin. On October 10, 1924, Schmeling was knocked out in the fourth round by Max Dieckmann in a match in Berlin. For the remainder of 1924, he fought another nine matches, winning eight, six by knockout, and losing only one. He knocked out Czapp in the sixth round to win his first professional bout. In 1924, Schmeling turned professional, facing off against Kurt Czapp in Dusseldorf on August 2. He began boxing as a boy and by his early teens was competing in amateur bouts throughout his native region of Germany. He was born Maximilian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling in Uckermark, Germany, on September 28, 1905. Despite unrelenting pressure from Hitler and his top aides, Schmeling steadfastly refused to join the Nazi party and also refused Nazi demands that he fire his Jewish manager, Joe Jacobs. Years after World War II, it was revealed that Schmeling had risked his own position and freedom by sheltering the two teenaged sons of a Jewish friend during the Kristallnacht pogrom of 1938. Although the highly visible Schmeling continued for years to be a symbol of Hitler's Nazi regime and the racial policies for which it became known, the boxer was not quite the ogre most Americans imagined. America's "Brown Bomber" exacted his revenge on Schmeling by knocking out the German in the first round. The tables were turned, however, in the 1938 rematch between Louis and Schmeling. In 1936 Schmeling, the under-dog, knocked out the previously unbeaten Louis in the 12th round of a match at Yankee Stadium. World Heavyweight Champion from 1930 to 1932, Schmeling is perhaps best remembered for his two heavyweight bouts with Alabama-born Joe Louis. His professional career stretched from 1924 to 1948, during which time he compiled a career record of fifty-six wins, ten losses, and four ties. Nevertheless one of Europe's greatest boxers of all time. Widely vilified as a willing propaganda tool of Adolf Hitler's Third Reich, Max Schmeling was
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |