[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 15]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 21377-21378]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     HONORING THE LIFE OF RON LYLE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DIANA DeGETTE

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, December 19, 2011

  Ms. DeGETTE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Ron Lyle, a Colorado 
resident and professional boxer who passed away late last month.
  In Colorado's surprisingly rich boxing history, Lyle stands alongside 
names like Jack Dempsey and Sonny Liston not only for his success in 
the ring but for his commitment to giving back to his community after 
retirement.
  His story is one of redemption. Born into a family of 19 children in 
a downtrodden area of Northeast Denver, Lyle dropped out of school at 
age 19 and was subsequently convicted of second-degree murder in the 
death of a local gang-rival. Lyle, who had always been an impressive 
athlete growing up, learned to box in prison, and was pardoned 7\1/2\ 
years later by Colorado Gov. John Love.
  Upon his release, Lyle pursued a career in boxing, winning the 
National Amateur Union heavyweight championship at age 28 before 
turning pro at the relatively old age of 29. He won his first 19 bouts, 
including an impressive 17 of them by KO.
  As Lyle's professional boxing career came of age, it did so during 
the golden-era for heavyweight fighting. The mid-1970's was the time of 
Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, and Joe Frazier--it was a time when 
families would gather around the radio or the network television as 
Howard Cosell narrated the poetic clash of power, resilience and grace 
that is a heavyweight title fight. During this time, Lyle fought 
Muhammad Ali, Earnie Shavers, and George Foreman, taking Ali to the 
11th round before losing by TKO, knocking-out Shavers in the 6th, and 
knocking down Foreman twice before suffering a KO late in the 5th. 
While calling the Lyle-Foreman fight for ABC's ``Wide World of 
Sports,'' Cosell remarked ``it's not artistic, but it is slugging!''
  Lyle retired from boxing in 1980, and then attempted a brief comeback 
in 1995, when he won four more fights. After retirement he dedicated 
himself to coaching boxing in his old neighborhood, hoping to give 
children the same opportunities that boxing had afforded him. On most 
any given afternoon he was down at the Salvation Army Red Shield Center 
in Denver's Five Points neighborhood, coaching at the boxing program 
that bore his name and teaching not just the right jab and left hook, 
but also the discipline and focus that allowed him to go toe-toe with 
the great heavyweights of his era.
  Mr. Speaker, Ron Lyle was an inspiration to our community--a role 
model whose impressive 43-7-1 record nonetheless does not do justice to 
what he meant to those around him. He will be sorely missed, but his 
legacy will continue to shape young boxers and help write the next 
chapter in Colorado's boxing history.

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