'And I say, he is the greatest trainer that ever lived.' 'I've been interviewed by a lot of TV stations around the world, they have put Emanuel Steward a league of great trainers,' Lewis said. Lewis was trained by Steward from 1994 to 2004, a period that included victories over Holyfield and Mike Tyson. He was hired by boxers from all over the globe. Steward, who was born in West Virginia in 1944 and moved 11 years later to the Motor City, trained boxers born and raised in Detroit such as Hearns. 'We want to get a good foundation, like it was in the beginning, and build it back up.' 'We closed it after he passed, but we're going to restructure it and we want it done correctly,' Sylvia Steward-Williams told The AP, sitting in her father's second-floor office at his brick home on Detroit's west side. Now, there isn't a Kronk Gym anywhere - and his family is hoping to change that. It was allowed to remain open, but it put Steward in a difficult financial situation and he later rented space at a gym in Dearborn so his young fighters could train. The city closed the original Kronk Recreation Center - a hot, sweaty basement gym - after vandals stole its copper piping in 2006. 'I'm so glad he made the Kronk Gym what it was, helping countless young boys become men and many amateurs become champions.'Ī private dinner and party in Detroit followed the service. 'He had a million-dollar smile you couldn't deny,' Franklin told The Associated Press from her front-row seat. Franklin, a friend of Steward's in Detroit for decades, said she wouldn't have missed the memorial for anything. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world.'Īnd if that wasn't impressive enough, Aretha Franklin sang a stirring rendition of 'I'll Fly Away' in front of a few thousand witnesses at Greater Grace Temple. 'There are five legitimate heavyweight champions sitting in the first two rows and the No. You would have to go to Canastota (N.Y.) in midsummer to the Hall of Fame to see anything even remotely approaching this group. 'Over here, you have a section that I would call the Hall of Fame section. 'What a spectacular turnout of support,' HBO Sports commentator Jim Lampley said. His family took its time to plan a memorial befitting a beloved public figure - and it was a hit.Ĭhampions he trained - including Thomas Hearns, Lennox Lewis, Wladimir Klitschko and Evander Holyfield - one he worked out only briefly - Sugar Ray Leonard - and another he didn't train at all - Roy Jones Jr. Steward, the man who made the Kronk Gym famous, died of colon cancer last month at the age of 68.

You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browserĭETROIT - Hall of Fame trainer Emanuel Steward was celebrated by boxing royalty and the Queen of Soul at a star-studded memorial service Tuesday in the Motor City.

Emanuel steward trainer