1976 Olympic champion boxer Howard Davis Jr of US dies at 59

Olympic champion boxer Howard Davis Jr., who won the 1976 gold medal and was named over U.S. teammate Sugar Ray Leonard as the most outstanding fighter in the Montreal Games, has died of cancer, his wife said on Friday.

Davis, 59, died on Wednesday at his Plantation home, surrounded by family, Karla Guadamuz-Davis said.

His diagnosis of stage four lung cancer in February just before his birthday came as a shock because he had never smoked, she said. The cancer spread to his liver, and the family chose to discontinue treatment in a hospital this week.

"We decided to bring him home," Guadamuz-Davis said. "He was in my arms."

In the 1976 Olympics, Davis was voted the outstanding boxer, out-polling his teammates Leonard, and Michael and Leon Spinks.

His mother died three days before the Montreal Games, and he considered withdrawing. Instead, he stayed, and dedicated his lightweight gold medal to his mother's memory.

"It was devastating," Davis told the New York Post in August.

"But I remembered her pointing her finger in my face and telling me, 'You'd better win the gold medal.' I wasn't going to be denied. There was no way I was going to lose."

Davis was considered by many to be better than Leonard on the star-studded 1976 American team. As a pro, however, his career never matched his Olympic exploits.

The gold medal awarded to Davis was a story unto itself. According to Olympic historian David Wallechinsky, the medal was stolen in 1981 from Davis' Long Island home but the robber apparently tossed it from his car while fleeing police.

Ten years later, a highway landscaper came across a piece of metal while at work. He cleaned it up and used it for a paperweight for the next four years. In 1991, a visitor to the landscaper's home recognized the paperweight for what it was. The landscaper, Jake Fiesel, tracked down Davis and called him. The boxer was finally reunited with his medal.

Davis retired from boxing in 1996 with a professional record of 36-6-1 with 14 knockouts, according to his biography on the Howard Davis Jr. Foundation's website.

Davis went on to train mixed martial arts fighters, including Chuck Liddell, who posted an image of an undated Polaroid showing him with Davis on his Instagram account on Thursday. "A great coach and good friend. Rest in peace my brother," Liddell wrote.

Davis had signed the picture and added, "Hard work always pays off!"

He and his wife promoted mixed martial arts fights through their Florida-based company, Fight Time Promotions.

Davis continued to offer coaching advice even as a promoter, heading into the locker room after a bout in his suit to sit with a bloodied fighter and talk about boxing technique, Guadamuz-Davis said.

"I could hear him saying, 'You've got to keep your hands up,' or, 'Listen, this is your last fight.' Promoters don't usually do that," she said. "He thought it was his duty to make sure the fighters take care of themselves."

Davis was born on Feb. 14, 1956, in Glen Cove, New York. He was the eldest of 10 children, and his father ran a local youth center and trained amateur and professional boxers.

According to his foundation, Davis was inspired to become a boxer after seeing the documentary "AKA Cassius Clay" as a teenager.

As an amateur, Davis was trained by his father, a former boxer. He had an outstanding amateur career.

Davis turned professional in 1977. After winning his first thirteen fights, he challenged Jim Watt for the WBC lightweight title in 1980. Watt won by a fifteen-round unanimous decision. In 1984, with a record of 26–1, Davis fought Edwin Rosario for the WBC lightweight title. Rosario retained his title with a twelve-round split decision.

He finished with a professional record of 36–6–1 with 14 KO's.

Davis' family has scheduled a public memorial service in Fort Lauderdale on Jan. 7. He is survived by his wife and numerous children and siblings.