Thursday will be Deontay Wilder day in Columbus.
Mayor Robert Smith is giving the WBC heavyweight champion of the world keys to the city.
Wilder, who grew up in Tuscaloosa, will address local student athletes at Columbus Middle School at 4:30 p.m. Thursday. Columbus Municipal School District board of trustees member Glenn Lautzenhiser said it is a once in a lifetime opportunity for local youth.
All student-athletes in CMSD grades 7-12 will be in attendance, as will about 50 students who participate in the After School Academy, according to Jannette Adams, strategic communications director with the district. Lautzenhiser said student athletes from Clay, Monroe, Noxubee and Oktibbeha counties have been invited. Kids will also come from Pickens and Lamar counties in Alabama. The event was brought to Columbus by the Deontay Wilder Celebration Committee, which included school board members and officials, members of city government, local history enthusiasts and resident boxing trainer Oliver Miller. Committee member Rufus Ward will detail the fighter’s career in an introduction.
“It’s looking like we’re going to have more than 1,000 students here,” Lautzenhiser said.
An inspiring story
Wilder is the first American heavyweight champion since 2006. He currently holds the WBC belt — one of four top tier boxing divisions in the world, which are largely considered interchangeable. He is known as the undisputed champion, with a 33-0 record including 32 knockouts. He began his professional career to help pay for his disabled daughter’s medical bills.
Wilder fought his second professional fight in Columbus at the Trotter Convention Center against Shannon Gray, a man who has his own unlikely tale of success and will be joining Wilder to address the students Thursday.
Gray was once homeless and suffering from substance abuse issues. A rising fighter in the early 1990s, Gray ended up being arrested 28 times after slipping into addiction in 1995. In 2001, he was in a homeless shelter in Louisville, Kentucky. He turned his life around, making returns to school and professional fighting. His 2009 bout with Wilder was his last professional fight. He has since written a book — “The Healing Place” — and travels Kentucky speaking to kids. His biggest message is to be true to yourself.
“Self-worth is everything,” Gray told The Dispatch.
Gray said Wilder’s trainer, Jay Deas, called him and asked him to join the champ at Columbus Middle School. Gray said he couldn’t turn down an opportunity to reach kids. He thinks Wilder can help promote boxing to American youth, which has been a tough thing to do in recent years.
“Deontay is the first American heavyweight champ in a long time,” Gray said. “He has the personality and the charisma to attract good attention and he is going to be hard to beat.”
Columbus connection
Wilder, who boasts an 85 inch reach, trained in Columbus before going to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing where he took home the bronze medal.
“We’ve been knowing him forever,” Oliver Miller, who owns and operates Miller’s Taekwondo and Boxing Club in Columbus, said. “He’s a very likable guy.”
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 45 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
