Irie Fm Sports

Jamaican former world middleweight boxing champion Otis Grant on Monday night made history in Canada becoming the first athlete to be inducted into the Quebec sports hall of fame under 5 years of retiring.
Grant a former World Boxing Organization (WBO) middleweight world champion has also held the World Boxing Council (WBC) intercontinental super middleweight, WBC international super middleweight, Canadian middleweight, Canadian super middleweight and North American Boxing Federation (NABF) middleweight titles, he was inducted into the Quebec sports hall of fame just two years after retiring from boxing.
In a ceremony at the Casino de Montreal he was inducted alongside Canadian sporting greats Graham Cooke, (Golf), Anna Pelletier (Diving), Guy Lapointe (Hockey), Lucie Lemay-Goyette (Archery) and Marcel Aubut (Builders category).
Grant who received three standing ovations for his acceptance speech told Observer sports that it was a very special moment for him, "It was a special moment for me because had it been a boxing hall of fame I would expect to get there, but this is a hall of fame that recognizes the best of the best in all sports, in my speech I mentioned that when someone retires from a sport they usually wait some 5 years before they are inducted in case they come back, but they put me in right away its been two years since I retired after my comeback, so that is way special the fact that I got in early, although my kids weren't there (too young to be in the casino) but at least its something special for them , they will grow up knowing their father was inducted into a hall of fame very early, a lot of people in there are way my senior".
The St. Ann born makes the cut at only 41 years old and he feels even more special to be inducted with the other four persons, "To be inducted with famous hockey players in a huge hockey town was great, seeing the guys that came before me all these guys are idols in this part of the world." Grant added that he never expected this type of honour, "When I first entered a boxing gym at age 7 with my brother Howard I never I would have had the career I've had, I never thought it would cap off with something like this and I have to lift my cap to the people who selected me for this honour, they also took into consideration that I am a good community guy and I work in a high school, that they took bits and pieces from my life, the comeback from the accident, my work in the boxing ring they took all that I think that is what saw them put aside the five year rule".
Grant along with his brother Howard runs one of the top boxing gyms in Canada, he also does charity work through the Otis Grant foundation and is a high school administrator.
An induction to the boxing hall of fame could be looming and Grant while acknowledging that that would be great nothing will top this one, "You know if I was inducted to the boxing hall of fane that would be great but this one I think means more, two of the guys who got inducted here with me were already inducted into the National Hockey League (NHL) hall of fame and both said this induction is better to them, so why this means more to me while boxing only looks at what you do in the ring this one looks at me as a boxer, as a community guy as a guy who did everything for and in the community in which I live and they recognized me for that and that is why I've always carried myself as more than just a prizefighter and this induction confirms that people know that about me so, that's what makes it so special and even if I get into the boxing hall of fame one day I think I'll not love it as much as I love this one".
Grant's moniker in the ring was "Magic" and it just might be magic that a man who retired only two years ago finds himself inducted with athletes whom he grew up watching, and it's a first that anyone received the honour in only his/her second year of retirement. The Montreal based Jamaican retired with a record of 38-3-1 (17 Kos).
He was forced into retirement back in 1998 -- after he lost a bid for WBC/WBA light heavyweight belts against Roy Jones Jr. in Connecticut -- due to a terrible motor vehicle accident that left him so badly injured that doctors said he would not live let alone box again. Like a true Jamaican however grant defied those odds and returned to the ring in 2003 and won the Canadian super middleweight title in only his third fight back. He racked up a seven fight unbeaten streak claiming the WBC International Super middleweight title. He lost a title eliminator against Librado Andrade (now trained by Howard) and then decided to call it a day.