Rope-jumping runner wants Leonard next (circa 1984)
(Last week, I shared the information from Arlen Isham and Jack Lippincott's newsletter on Veterans about Vera Balic's Dad, Boris. Here is the Houston Post article that talked about him skipping rope the entire marathon distance that year. -- JW)
Page 2F, Houston Post, Monday, January 16, 1984
By Richard Brown, Post Sports Staff
Quick, get the producers of That's Incredible on the phone.
"Listen, I got a sure winner for you. Promo it for a week and the biggest audience in your history will be watching. Trust me, this guy will go over big. His name? Why, Boris Balic. Never heard of him? Hey, get with it. Everyone in Houston knows Boris."
Well, almost everyone. But don't be surprised if his name is dropped in conversation this week.
You see, Balic, a former lightweight boxer, delighted spectators at Sunday's Houston-Tenneco Marathon by skipping rope over the entire 26.2-mile course.
"I wanted to do something different," Balic said.
Obviously, it didn't matter to the 47-year-old Balic, a veteran of 22 marathons, that it took him 4 hours, 47 minutes to finish. His motive, however, for being unusual this year went deeper. He wants to fight Sugar Ray Leonard in an exhibition bout and skipping rope was one way of getting noticed.
"Leonard's the best boxer I've seen," he said. And Balic knows a boxer when he sees one. He was the Canadian lightweight champion before moving to Houston in 1976. A native of Yugoslavia, Balic says he was a member of that nation's boxing team in 1959, before joining the German squad in 1960.
Of course, there are conditions Leonard must meet before Balic enters the ring with him.
"We will both skip rope for six miles and then spar for 10 rounds," Balic said.
No word yet from Leonard. Balic, though, says his intentions are sincere.
"The purpose would be to show our youth and older people the power of the human body and mind when they exercise."
Page 2F, Houston Post, Monday, January 16, 1984
By Richard Brown, Post Sports Staff
Quick, get the producers of That's Incredible on the phone.
"Listen, I got a sure winner for you. Promo it for a week and the biggest audience in your history will be watching. Trust me, this guy will go over big. His name? Why, Boris Balic. Never heard of him? Hey, get with it. Everyone in Houston knows Boris."
Well, almost everyone. But don't be surprised if his name is dropped in conversation this week.
You see, Balic, a former lightweight boxer, delighted spectators at Sunday's Houston-Tenneco Marathon by skipping rope over the entire 26.2-mile course.
"I wanted to do something different," Balic said.
Obviously, it didn't matter to the 47-year-old Balic, a veteran of 22 marathons, that it took him 4 hours, 47 minutes to finish. His motive, however, for being unusual this year went deeper. He wants to fight Sugar Ray Leonard in an exhibition bout and skipping rope was one way of getting noticed.
"Leonard's the best boxer I've seen," he said. And Balic knows a boxer when he sees one. He was the Canadian lightweight champion before moving to Houston in 1976. A native of Yugoslavia, Balic says he was a member of that nation's boxing team in 1959, before joining the German squad in 1960.
Of course, there are conditions Leonard must meet before Balic enters the ring with him.
"We will both skip rope for six miles and then spar for 10 rounds," Balic said.
No word yet from Leonard. Balic, though, says his intentions are sincere.
"The purpose would be to show our youth and older people the power of the human body and mind when they exercise."
posted by WalkSports.com | 12:20 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home