IN a surprise move unified light-heavyweight world champion Andre Ward has announced his retirement.
Ward remains the last male American boxer to win and Olympic gold medal. He dominated at super-middleweight, beating Mikkel Kessler and Carl Froch among others to win the Super Six tournament, before stepping up to light-heavyweight to win three world titles from Sergey Kovalev. He leaves with an unblemished legacy. By Boxing News‘ estimation he is currently the best pound-for-pound in the world today.
In a statement he said, “To the sport of boxing – I love you. You’ve been by my side since I was 10-years-old. You’ve taught me so much. You’ve humbled me. You’ve promoted me. I’ve sacrificed a lot for you, but you’ve given me more than I ever thought possible. You gave me a platform, made me a champion and helped me provide for my family. I am forever grateful to you. You and I will always be synonymous, connected at the hip. Thank you for all the wonderful people I’ve come in contact with because of you. I’ve made friends for life. As I walk away from the sport of boxing today, I leave at the top of your glorious mountain, which was always my vision and my dream. I did it. We did it.
“From the bottom of my heart, thank you to everyone who has played a part in my journey. You know who you are. I could not have done this without you. I want to be clear – I am leaving because my body can no longer put up with the rigors of the sport and therefore my desire to fight is no longer there. If I cannot give my family, my team, and the fans everything that I have, then I should no longer be fighting. Above all, I give God the Glory, for allowing me to do what I’ve done, for as long as I have.”
