SPREADING THE WORD

Chuvalo continues to tour the world talking about the effects of drug
addiction: 'You can't lose three kids and be normal.'

Once they reach the age of 70, most boxers would give up the fight and
settle into a cozy retirement.

For former heavyweight George Chuvalo, that isn't an
option.

Chuvalo, who held the Canadian heavyweight title for over 20 years and
fought for versions of the world heavyweight championship on three
occasions, hit the milestone birthday on Sept. 12, but plans to
continue touring the world talking about the effects of drug
addiction, as he has been doing since 1996.

"If I didn't, I would feel like my kids died in vain," said Chuvalo,
who was in Regina on Wednesday to speak at the Big Brothers' annual
dinner and auction. "It would hurt me emotionally if I wasn't out
there talking to kids. When I do start slowing down, I'll probably
feel guilty."

Chuvalo lost three sons because of heroin. The youngest, Jesse,
committed suicide in 1985 -- a year after developing an addiction to
the drug. Jesse's older brother, Georgie Lee, the second youngest,
overdosed eight years later. Chuvalo's first wife, Lynne, committed
suicide four days after Georgie Lee's death, overcome by the grief of
losing two sons.

Steven Chuvalo, then 35, died of an overdose in 1996. Only a year
earlier he had appeared in a CBC documentary about the family's
struggles, speaking of losing his brothers and conquering his own addiction.

George Chuvalo still shows that clip during his presentations.

"I try not to see it," said Chuvalo. "It's bittersweet when I do see
it. It's nice to see them talking and to actually see them. But in
another way, it's hard."

Staying away from the video screen is just part of the almost-nightly
routine for Chuvalo. He admits he is "on automatic" during his
speeches and therefore able to relay his message to his audience
matter-of-factly.

But that doesn't mean he has become numb to his family's tragic
past.

"I think about them all the time," said Chuvalo. "The worst time for
me is just before I go to bed every night. I'm in bed by myself or
with my wife and I just lie there and talk to myself. I have a hard
time sleeping sometimes -- it's tough. It weighs heavily on your mind.

"You can't lose three kids and be normal. I wouldn't be normal if I
was normal. If I was normal like nothing bothered me, I wouldn't be
normal. It's impossible to be normal. But you do the best you can. I'm
OK for not being OK."

Though Chuvalo still battles the tough memories as he travels the
country, there are plenty of good moments as well. A few years ago a
friend of Chuvalo's was told by an Ontario police officer that a
12-year-old boy, who had seen the boxer's presentation at his school,
told authorities that his brother was going to rob a warehouse and use
the proceeds on drugs.

"After arresting the guy, the police went to his house and asked the
brother, 'Why did you call the police?' " said Chuvalo. "He said,
'After hearing George Chuvalo speak, I didn't want what happened to
George's family to happen to my brother.' "

These days, Chuvalo's family life is much more stable. He lives in
Toronto with his wife, Joanne, and has two step children with her as
well as two children from his marriage to Lynne. He also has six
grandchildren.

With so much family to see, Chuvalo plans to slow down sometime soon,
but needs to make a few more dollars on the road first. There was no
such thing as a pension for a man who made his living in the ring in
the 1950s, '60s and '70s.

Plus, he occasionally gets to talk about his boxing days when he
fought Muhammad Ali (twice), George Foreman and Joe Frazier, among
others, but was never knocked down in his professional career. Those
fights, all Chuvalo losses, are the ones people most often remember,
but they forget that he accumulated a 73-18-2 record in his career (it
should be 77 wins, he says, but the official total is missing four
fights).

He'd like to start training again and take on a hungry, young fighter,
but there just isn't the time.

"Training's the next-most fun you can have besides actually being in
the ring," Chuvalo said.

While he could slow down, Chuvalo still has the energy in the seventh
decade of his life. He could pass for a man in his 50s, his arms look
like they could still knock more than a few opponents to the ground
and he keeps himself in peak shape (he was working out in the hotel
gym at midnight Tuesday).

With all that going for him, Chuvalo isn't feeling like a 70-year-old
and will continue his fight to keep young people away from drugs.

"If I didn't do it, I'd feel like I was cheating young people," said
Chuvalo. "As long as I have the steam, I'll do it."