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kenyan_cheena · 12-18-2007, 09:33 PM

VINCENNES PROUD OF
FEDERATION'S ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Saturday 31 August 2002

Speaking live on ESPN in the lead-up to tonight's HBF Madison Square Garden fight card, federation president Michael Vincennes has talked of having mixed feelings over the conclusion of stage one of the World Championship and 1st Defense tournaments.

"We've been on an incredible journey," Vincennes said. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't experiencing any sadness with stage one almost over. It's been our reality for these last eight months and it'll be strange to wake up tomorrow morning and know that it's finished. Yes, what's ahead of us will be even more exciting but, nonetheless, tonight really represents the end of the opening act of our story. It is a pretty significant moment."

Vincennes went on to say how proud he was of what the federation has accomplished in such a short amount of time.

"On Monday it'll be exactly one year since we announced that we'd be staging a World Championship tournament," Vincennes said reflectively. "It's hard to believe how much has happened since then. Boxing was little more than an afterthought for most people but now, just twelve months later, it's one of the premier sports in the world. The HBF is regarded as one of the most exciting international sporting organisations in the world and I don't mind saying, that's quite an accomplishment."

The federation president also spoke of how much he had looked forward to seeing Sonny Liston's Madison Square Garden debut.

"He's one of the biggest superstars in the HBF," Vincennes said. "There's absolutely no doubt about that. I think the people of New York are going to see something pretty special tonight and I can tell by the crowd that's already here that the atmosphere will be electric."

Asked about the behaviour of HBF debutants David Kane and Dre Linton during Thursday night's Buenos Aires fight card, Vincennes was understandably not as cheerful.

"Obviously, I was disappointed by their behaviour," he said. "There's exuberance over winning and then there's basic, foul language. Both men crossed the line between the two on Thursday and even though their words were censored when broadcasted, I'm sure everyone would have understood what they had said. Our sport has a lot of young children watching it and they, in particular, shouldn't have to be exposed to that type of thing. Mr Kane and Mr Linton will be spoken to about their actions during the coming days."

Vincennes left the broadcast booth soon after, taking up a ringside seat moments before the opening bout of the evening...

12-18-2007, 09:33 PM	#1602 (permalink)
kenyan_cheena Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Sydney, NSW, Australia Posts: 4,631	VINCENNES PROUD OF FEDERATION'S ACCOMPLISHMENTS Saturday 31 August 2002 Speaking live on ESPN in the lead-up to tonight's HBF Madison Square Garden fight card, federation president Michael Vincennes has talked of having mixed feelings over the conclusion of stage one of the World Championship and 1st Defense tournaments. "We've been on an incredible journey," Vincennes said. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't experiencing any sadness with stage one almost over. It's been our reality for these last eight months and it'll be strange to wake up tomorrow morning and know that it's finished. Yes, what's ahead of us will be even more exciting but, nonetheless, tonight really represents the end of the opening act of our story. It is a pretty significant moment." Vincennes went on to say how proud he was of what the federation has accomplished in such a short amount of time. "On Monday it'll be exactly one year since we announced that we'd be staging a World Championship tournament," Vincennes said reflectively. "It's hard to believe how much has happened since then. Boxing was little more than an afterthought for most people but now, just twelve months later, it's one of the premier sports in the world. The HBF is regarded as one of the most exciting international sporting organisations in the world and I don't mind saying, that's quite an accomplishment." The federation president also spoke of how much he had looked forward to seeing Sonny Liston's Madison Square Garden debut. "He's one of the biggest superstars in the HBF," Vincennes said. "There's absolutely no doubt about that. I think the people of New York are going to see something pretty special tonight and I can tell by the crowd that's already here that the atmosphere will be electric." Asked about the behaviour of HBF debutants David Kane and Dre Linton during Thursday night's Buenos Aires fight card, Vincennes was understandably not as cheerful. "Obviously, I was disappointed by their behaviour," he said. "There's exuberance over winning and then there's basic, foul language. Both men crossed the line between the two on Thursday and even though their words were censored when broadcasted, I'm sure everyone would have understood what they had said. Our sport has a lot of young children watching it and they, in particular, shouldn't have to be exposed to that type of thing. Mr Kane and Mr Linton will be spoken to about their actions during the coming days." Vincennes left the broadcast booth soon after, taking up a ringside seat moments before the opening bout of the evening... __________________ MLB: 1958 and Beyond... The Greatest Prize in Sports Last edited by kenyan_cheena : 12-18-2007 at 11:09 PM.