Throng Joins in Tribute to Sugar Ray Robinson : Boxing Great Called Hero In and Out of Ring

Boxer Sugar Ray Robinson once toured Europe with a group that included his manager, secretary, masseur, barber, two trainers, a voice teacher, drama coach, golf pro and a pink Cadillac.

But that entourage was nothing compared to the throng that gathered in Los Angeles on Wednesday for the champion’s last trip.

More than 2,000 mourners--including Olympic gold medal winners, boxing champions, other notables in sports, entertainment and politics, and, simply fans--attended a memorial service and funeral for Robinson who died April 12 at age 67.

West Angeles Church of God in Christ was filled and dozens of other mourners stood outside to hear the words spoken about the man considered by many to have been the greatest prizefighter ever.

Robinson, who had lived in Los Angeles for 27 years, was revered as a hero both in and out of the ring--a selfless family man whose quiet dignity and elegance help him transcend the sports champion image to cultural hero.

“Champions win events, heroes win people,” said the Rev. Jesse Jackson, whose eulogy, like others during the service, was marked by moments of deep somberness and light humor.

Jackson called Robinson one of the “dominant heroes of our culture” who, along with fellow athletes Joe Louis, Jesse Owens and Jackie Robinson kicked down racial prejudices and barriers to become inspirations for all races.

“Champions are of short duration--you can be stripped of champion status,” Jackson said. “Heroes cannot be. Heroes are needed. They give us security and confidence. Sugar had charisma and special gifts from God.

“He was part of the American quilt. His patch in that quilt had non-negotiable integrity. . . . He was born on the bottom, but left on the top. He went from the ‘guttermost’ to the ‘uppermost.’ ”

Jackson drew laughter when he noted that after the fighter arrived in Europe, he added to his huge entourage by hiring a midget as an interpreter. “Eat your heart out, Don King!” Jackson quipped, referring to the flamboyant boxing promoter, who was in the audience.

The memorial service was attended by several fighters, many long retired, while others were among the dominant figures of the sport today.

Heavyweight champion of the world Mike Tyson twice became choked with emotion while speaking about the man he said he had never seen fight, yet who had served as an inspiration to him.

“When you think of the name Sugar Ray Robinson, you think of class and style and dignity,” Tyson said. “I had the opportunity to meet him once. . . . (He had) a great impact on me with very few words.”

Retired in 1965

Robinson, who died of heart disease, leaves his wife, Millie, sons Ronald and Ray Jr., a stepson, Butch Robinson, a stepdaughter, Ramona Lewis, and a sister, Evelyn Nelson.

Robinson held the welterweight championship in the 1940s and the middleweight title five times in the following decade. He had 201 fights, winning 109 by knockout and losing only 19 bouts in a 25-year career. He retired in 1965 at age 44.

Sportswriters of the era said that “pound for pound” he was the best ever.

In Los Angeles in 1969 he helped found the nonprofit Sugar Ray Robinson Youth Foundation, which each year provides 2,000 underprivileged young people with social, sports and other recreational activities. One foundation alumnus is Olympic gold medalist Florence Griffith-Joyner, who attended the service Wednesday.

Before the service began, the front hall of the church was crowded with fighters, young and old. There was no mistaking the flattened noses, scarred brows and cauliflower ears for anything but the souvenirs of fighting careers, some of which never saw the same crowds and venues that Robinson’s did.

‘I Waited on Him’

Without a seat and standing outside when the services began was Jimmy Jones, a Los Angeles fighter who said he had worked out with Robinson at the old Main Street Gym.

“I never fought him,” he said. “I never sparred with him. I waited on him. He was the champion. Whatever he needed, I got it for him. I was happy just to be in the same gym. That’s why I come here, to pay my respects to the man.”

Carl (Bobo) Olson did fight Robinson--four times, losing each bout.

“Sugar Ray was the greatest boxer to ever step into the ring,” said Olson, who came from Sacramento for the memorial service. “ ... He was the best. I tried to copy his style a few times, but I couldn’t do it. He was too good. The second time I fought him it went 15 rounds to a decision. I lost, but I was very lucky to have gotten that far with him.”

Others said Robinson provided them inspiration for other pursuits.

“He was such a wonderful image for a young man to see,” said Berry Gordy Jr., founder of Motown records. “Style, class, fortitude, never giving up. When he stepped into the ring, he was swift, elegant, magnificent and deadly. This man was unique.”

“Sugar Ray Robinson holds a special place in my heart,” added Los Angeles Raiders owner Al Davis. “Not only as a friend but one of those special heroes when I was young. He captured my imagination. He dared me to dream.”

“You only have to look around you to see the legacy of this man,” Don King said. “This man touched black and white alike, young and old alike, American and foreign alike.”

Other mourners included former Gov. Edmund G. (Pat) Brown, actress Elizabeth Taylor, and Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda.

But most of the mourners were simply people who respected Robinson’s accomplishments.

“I feel I owe something to the man,” said a woman named Cheryl, who stood outside the church. “I respect what he was able to do, so I came.”

When the eulogies ended, the mourners slowly filed past the open casket and a black and white photograph wreathed in yellow flowers. The photo, taken during the champ’s prime, showed Robinson in white trunks, standing in the classic fighter’s crouch.

Interment was at Evergreen Cemetery.