Mammoth Blog

The people of Nicaragua and the international boxing world woke up to the shocking news Wednesday morning that three-time world champ and mayor of Managua Alexis Argüello, 57, is dead.

Early media reports said Argüello, a born-again Sandinista, apparently shot himself in his Managua home in the early morning hours. Forensic medical specialists were still conducting the autopsy to determine cause of death.

Known in the boxing world as ''The Explosive Thin Man'' and the ''Gentleman of the Ring,'' Argüello came from a humble background and turned to the boxing gym at the age of 14, after being thrown out of school for not being able to pay tuition.

In the ring, the skinny kid from Managua found his calling and after only three years of training traveled to Costa Rica and knocked out their national champ in six rounds.

''I beat the crap out of him,'' Argüello said in a 2007 interview, laughing loudly with his infectious Yogi Bear chortle. Argüello went on to win his first world boxing title at 22, and then won two more in different weight classes.

In November 1982, Argüello challenged junior welterweight king Aaron Pryor in a fight billed as ''Battle of the Champions,'' attempting to become the first fighter to win titles in four divisions. More than 23,000 fans packed the Orange Bowl in Miami, and the two waged an epic battle in which Pryor knocked out Argüello in the 14th round.

After the triumph of the Sandinista revolution in 1979, the Sandinista Front confiscated Argüello's properties and bank accounts in Nicaragua while he was living in Miami. For a brief time, Argüello supported the Southern Front counterrevolutionary movement led by Edén Pastora, even traveling to the Rio San Juan and training with the guerrillas in the mid-1980s.

Argüello attempted a brief boxing comeback in the early '90s before finally hanging up the boxing gloves in 1995 with a record of 82 wins, eight losses and 65 KOs.

After his boxing career ended, Argüello fell into drugs and alcohol abuse, and said he would go on ''20-day binges.'' He said he felt trapped in the fast-paced lifestyle of Miami, a life of ``drugs, speedboats and parties.''

He said he eventually became suicidal. But in his despair, Argüello turned to God and says ''a voice'' told him to give back to his people. Then he turned to his former nemesis, Sandinista leader Daniel Ortega, who gave him a chance in politics.

After serving as vice mayor of Managua for three years, Argüello, a simple and good-hearted man known for his comic slips during press conferences, announced his bid for the mayor's office in 2008.

His victory in the November 2008 elections was highly contested. The opposition alleged fraud and the daily newspapers referred to Argüello as the ``mayor appointed by the Supreme Electoral Council.''

The allegations of electoral fraud have since cost the Nicaraguan government more than $160 million in lost foreign aid.

Argüello has been treated harshly in the Nicaraguan press, which has mocked him for incompetence and for saying foolish things in public. The Sandinistas handled him tightly, appointing administrators to run the mayor's office.

On Wednesday he was being remembered as one of the greatest boxers and the best Nicaraguan athlete ever.

First Lady Rosario Murillo said Argüello will be remembered as ``the champion of Nicaragua.'' source>>>