Thank You, Brian Nielsen!

Joe Calzaghe (left) and Mikkel Kessler will meet again in one of the year's biggest fights on November 3rd at the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales.

You know who’s responsible for getting Mikkel Kessler interested in boxing don’t you?

Well, it was none other than the “Danish Pastry” of a heavyweight, the cream puff himself, Brian Nielsen. Yes, the same Brian Nielsen that was pole-axed by Mike Tyson. The same Brian Nielsen who made it all the way to a record of 48-0 to threaten Rocky Marciano’s mark, and the same Brian Nielsen who was once the benefactor of a fight allegedly ‘thrown’ by Jeremy Williams.

“After I had seen Brian Nielsen on television when I was about 13 years old, I thought it would be fun to try boxing,” says Mikkel, pronounced like ‘nickel’.

“My mother took my two friends and I over to C.I.K., which was the local boxing club, and I remember clearly my first impression of the gym. It stank of sweat and the trainer was a rough, old, bowlegged man who cursed and swore and liked to smoke cigars. I didn’t know it then, but that was actually the day that would change my life forever.”

That crotchety old trainer turned out to be Richard Olsen, and through the cigar smoke and the curse words he has led Kessler, over the past 15 years, to two world boxing titles in the 168-pound division, an undefeated record of 39-0 (29)KO and to the brink of a world-wide mega-fight against fellow undefeated champion Joe Calzaghe.

“Richard was the one that taught me to box,” says the handsome Kessler, whose piercing blue eyes and white smile make him look more like a model that you might see on the pages of ‘International Male’ than a fighter.

“Richard is my second father and we get along really well, which is one of the main reasons why I’ve been so successful,” says Kessler. He’s very good at exploring new training methods and together we figure out how we’re going to defeat my opponents.”

Olsen and Kessler will have to come up with a doozy of a plan to beat Welshman Joe Calzaghe at the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales on November 3rd. Calzaghe is the universally recognized champion of the 168-pound division and he has held the WBO Super Middleweight title since he beat Chris Eubank way back in 1997.

Kessler, whose father was a former sailor and pub owner and whose mother, Mikkel says, “makes the best meatballs in the world” is keeping secret what he plans to do to be victorious against Calzaghe and the 60,000 people that will pack the stadium.

“I can’t tell you what I’ll do in training because that’s all a secret,” he says in a coy way with a hint of a smile. “But, I can tell you that my training is varied and weight lifting has become an important part of my training program.”

In the other corner in less than two weeks will be Joe Calzaghe. You won’t find a fighter that takes his work more seriously than “The Pride of Wales”. Calzaghe has shown all the grit and determination that you would ever want to see a fighter display in rising from knockdowns and fighting through broken hands to win all forty-three of his pro fights and defend his title 20 times.

Calzaghe has been trained by his father Enzo for his entire life and he doesn’t ever wallow in self-doubt. He confidently says of the fight against Kessler, “I believe I’m going to win. I’ve seen him fight and he’s very good with a European style, upright fighter. Very good power with either hand.”

And more importantly, Calzaghe thinks he has Kessler and his style all figured out.

“What you see on one tape, you see on two tapes - he looks the same,” says Joe. “He basically always boxes the same and I believe that he’s not adaptable. I don’t think he looks to adapt to what I have to give him. He’s never faced anybody remotely in my league with regards to my ability and my adaptability. He’s confident, of course he’s going to be confident. He remains undefeated so he’s going to be confident but like I say, on November 3rd, I win - simple as that.”

Kessler, who goes by the nickname “The Viking Warrior” was voted the 2006 Danish Athlete of the Year and has a penchant for speedy motorcycles that go fast. The right side of his upper body is covered in intricate, colorful tattoos. His outlaw need for speed and the body art seem to go against his clean-cut looks.

“I have some tattoos with the Vikings because in Scandinavia we conquered all of Europe- but not France,” he laughs. “Because they paid us not to conquer there. Now I want to conquer all of America.”

Aside from the WBA and WBC Super Middleweight titles that he currently holds he’s won a European championship, the Danish championship five times and as a youth he was Nordic champion. He only lost three times in nearly 50 fights as an amateur.

When asked to assess Calzaghe’s chances against him, Kessler was dismissive.

“Calzaghe is an awkward fighter who throws lots of punches, but slaps a lot,” said Kessler. “I’m a more intelligent fighter than him and I’m going to kick his ass.”

Calzaghe, a southpaw, who has been known to overwhelm opponents with swarms of stinging, yet light punches, has other detractors and those who say that he doesn’t have power when he unloads his flurries.

“Calzaghe’s a southpaw, he’s got fast hands, he’s a good offensive fighter,” says veteran trainer and ESPN boxing commentator Teddy Atlas. “But he’s not a real big banger. He even slaps with his punches a little bit.”

There is no question that this is a huge fight. Since it was first announced back in July, boxing enthusiasts from around the world have been frothing at the mouth at the prospect of seeing this fight come off.

The match-up sees two undefeated champions at or near the top of their game fighting each other for the championship slot in a division that has been dominated by Europeans since it’s very inception. Even though their names are not well known by mainstream American sports fans, the fight is being televised in Europe by Setanta Sports and live on HBO in the United States. It is also receiving loads of press in Europe and even in U.S. newspapers that have been anemic when it comes to boxing coverage in recent years.

Frank Warren, the English promoter behind the fight is glowing in his praise of the fight. “It’s the biggest fight I’ve put together in the past 20 years,” claims Warren. “This is likely the biggest fight in the world at the moment and one of the most important involving a British fighter since I began promoting.”

And don’t forget, we’ve got Brian Nielsen to thank for all of it.


October 2007

Strange Things You Likely Didn't Know

1. A rat can last longer without water than a camel.

2. Your stomach has to produce a new layer of mucus every two weeks or it will digest itself.

3. The dot over the letter "i" is called a tittle.

4. A raisin dropped in a glass of fresh champagne will bounce up and down continuously from the bottom of the glass to the top.

5. A female ferret will die if it goes into heat and cannot find a mate.

6. A duck's quack doesn't echo. No one knows why.

7. A 2 X 4 is really 1-1/2" by 3-1/2".

8. During the chariot scene in "Ben Hur," a small red car can be seen in the distance (and Heston's wearing a watch).

9. On average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily! (That explains a few mysteries... .)

10. Donald Duck comics were banned from Finland because he doesn't wear pants.

11. Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.

12. The number of possible ways of playing the first four moves per side in a game of chess is 318,979,564, 000.

13. There are no words in the dictionary that rhyme with orange, purple and silver.

14. The name Wendy was made up for the book Peter Pan. There was never a recorded Wendy before.

15. The very first bomb dropped by the Allies on Berlin in World War II killed the only elephant in the Berlin Zoo.

16. If one places a tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion, it will instantly go mad and sting itself to death. (Who was the sadist who discovered this??)

17. Bruce Lee was so fast that they actually had to s-l-o-w film down so you could see his moves. That's the opposite of the norm.

18. The first CD pressed in the US was Bruce Springsteen' s "Born in the USA."

19. The original name for butterfly was flutterby.

20. The phrase "rule of thumb" is derived from an old English law which stated that you couldn't beat your wife with anything wider than your thumb.

21. The first product Motorola started to develop was a record player for automobiles. At that time, the most known player on the market was Victrola, so the called themselves Motorola.

22. Roses may be red, but violets are indeed violet.

23. By raising your legs slowly and lying on your back, you cannot sink into quicksand.

24. Celery has negative calories. It takes more calories to eat a piece of celery than the celery has in it to begin with.

25. Charlie Chaplin once won third prize in a Charlie Chaplin look-alike contest.

26. Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying.

27. Sherlock Holmes NEVER said, "Elementary, my dear Watson."

28. An old law in Bellingham, Washington, made it illegal for a woman to take more than three steps backwards while dancing!

29. The glue on Israeli postage is certified kosher.

30. The Guinness Book of Records holds the record for being the book most often stolen from public libraries.

31. Astronauts are not allowed to eat beans before they go into space because passing wind in a spacesuit damages them.

32. Bats always turn left when exiting a cave!

Expression of a Woman

Click image to enlarge

KINDNESS PAY

One day, a poor boy who was selling goods from door to door to pay his way through school, found he had only one thin dime left, and he was hungry.

He decided he would ask for a meal at the next house. However, he lost his nerve when a lovely young woman opened the door.

Instead of a meal he asked for a drink of water. She thought he looked hungry so brought him a large glass of milk. He drank it slowly, and then asked, "How much do I owe you?"

"You don't owe me anything," she replied "Mother has taught us never to accept payment for a kindness." He said... "Then I thank you from my heart."

As Howard Kelly left that house, he not only felt; stronger physically, but his faith in God and man was strong also. He had been ready to give up and quit.


Years later that young woman became critically ill. The local doctors were baffled. They finally sent her to the big city, where they called in specialists to study her rare disease.

Dr. Howard Kelly was called in for the consultation. When he heard the name of the town she came from, a strange light filled his eyes.

Immediately he rose and went down the hall of the hospital to her room.

Dressed in his doctor's gown he we nt in to see her. He recognized her at once. He went back to the consultation room determined to do his best to save her life. From that day he gave special attention to the case.

After a long struggle, the battle was won. Dr. Kelly requested the business office to pass the final bill to him for approval. He looked at it, then wrote something on the edge and the bill was sent to her room.

She feared to open it, for she was sure it would take the rest of her life to pay for it all. Finally, she looked, and something caught; her attention on the side as She read these words.....

"Paid in full with one glass of milk." (Signed) Dr. Howard Kelly.

True Love

This is what True Love is all about:

It was a busy morning, approximately 8:30 a.m., when an elderly gentleman in his 80's, arrived to have stitches removed from his thumb. He stated that he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9:00 am.

I took his vital signs and had him take a seat, knowing it would be over an hour before someone would to able to see him. I saw him look at his watch and decided, since I was not busy with another patient, I would evaluate his wound.

On exam, it was well healed, so I talked to one of the doctors, got the needed supplies to remove his sutures and redress his wound.

While taking care of his wound, we began to engage in conversation. I asked him if he had another doctor's appointment this morning, as he was in such a hurry. The gentleman told me no, that he needed to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife.

I then inquired as to her health. He told me that she had been there for a while and that she was a victim of Alzheimer' s Disease.

As we talked, I asked if she would be upset if he was a bit late. He replied that she no longer knew who he was, that she had not recognized him in five years now.

I was surprised, and asked him, "And you still go every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?"

He smiled as he patted my hand and said, "She doesn't know me, but I still know who she is." I had to hold back tears as he left, I had goose bumps on my arm, and thought, "That is the kind of love I want in my life."


True love is neither physical, nor romantic. True love is an acceptance of all that is, has been, will be, and will not be.

Why bicycle shorts should always be black?-Joke Time

Why bicycle shorts should always be black?

BLACK

RED

Will Power

An old man lived alone in Minnesota. He wanted to spade his potato garden, but it was very hard work.

His only son, who would have helped him, was in prison. The old man wrote a letter to his son and mentioned his situation.

Dear Son, I am feeling pretty bad because it looks like I won't be able to plant my potato garden this year.

I hate to miss doing the garden, because your mother always loved planting time. I'm just getting too old to be digging up a garden plot.If you were here, all my troubles would be over. I know you would dig the plot for me, if you weren't in prison.
Love, Dad

.........

Shortly, the old man received this telegram:

"For Heaven's sake, Dad,don't dig up the garden!! That's where I buried the GUNS!" At 4a.m.

the next morning,

A dozen FBI agents and local police officers showed up and dug up the entire garden without finding any guns.

Confused, the old man wrote another note to his son telling him what happened, and a sked him what to do next.

His son's reply was: "Go ahead and plant your potatoes, Dad. It's the best I could do for you from here."


********

- Moral Of the Story


NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE IN THE WORLD,


IF YOU HAVE DECIDED TO DO SOMETHING DEEP FROM YOUR HEART, YOU CAN DO IT.


IT IS THE THOUGHT THAT MATTERS NOT WHERE YOU ARE OR WHERE THE PERSON IS.