I watched a brilliant documentary recently, about 70s boxer Smokin Joe Frazier that confirmed everything I thought I knew about him. Not only was he a world champion boxer, and Olympic Gold Medallist, but he was an excellent singer and dancer who had his own highly successful travelling show: Joe Frazier and the Knockouts. His success aside, he was a good father and a man of kindness, integrity and generosity. He took Mohammed Ali under his wing when Ali was penniless and banned from boxing. He gave him money and opened doors to get his ban lifted. How was he repayed? Ali trash-talked him in public and slurred him with all kinds of racial hate. It was only decades later, when both men had retired and Ali could barely speak due to his illness, that Ali apologised. Even then, he wouldn’t apologise to his face and he followed it with another racial slur. When Joe retired he opened a boxing gym in his local area, and among others, trained his sons to fight. He made and lost his fortune through bad money management, but what I love about him is that, when showered with greatness, he remained a kind, honest man who always looked after his family and remembered his humble roots. Not only that, but he was also one of the greatest fighters in the history of the sport. That makes him special, but when it all comes down, Joe Frazier wasn’t only a great man, he was a good man, and that makes him a hero in my book.