Former heavyweight champion Spinks, 67, dies
THE DAY IN SPORTS staff and wire reports
Leon Spinks, who won Olympic gold and then shocked the boxing world by beating Muhammad Ali to win the heavyweight title in only his eighth pro fight, has died. He was 67.
Spinks was battling prostate and other cancers. His wife and a few friends and family members were by his side Friday when he died.
Spinks beat Ali by decision in a 12round fight in 1978 to win the title. He was unranked at the time and picked because Ali was looking for an easy fight. The unorthodox Spinks swarmed Ali on his way to a split decision. The two met seven months later at the Superdome in New Orleans, with Ali taking the decision.
Spinks fought for the title only once after that, when he was stopped in the third round in 1981 by Larry Holmes. He continued fighting on and off into the mid-1990s, finishing with a record of 26-17-3.
Charlie Krueger,
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It will be the second time this season Durant, who had the virus in the spring, sat out because of the protocols. He had a three-game absence.
Friday, he was held out at the start of a game and then removed from it early. Though he tested negative, he is a close contact of a team employee who tested positive, driving in a car with the employee three times Friday, according to a person with knowledge of the details. Neither appeared to be wearing masks, the Associated Press reported.
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