Scott LeDoux Passes

[SparrowHawk]

Boxer Scott LeDoux never won the world heavyweight title. But "for a guy with no talent and a big smile, I did OK," he once said.

The Crosby, Minn., native, who fought for the championship in 1980, died Thursday at his home in Coon Rapids after a long battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). He was 62.

LeDoux was the only man to step into the ring with 11 heavyweight champions, including Muhammad Ali in an exhibition.

His overall record was a respectable 33 wins, 13 losses and four draws, but his power transcended the ring. The man who once knocked sportscaster Howard Cosell's toupee askew on national TV was executive director of the state commission that oversees boxing and related sports. He also was twice elected Anoka County commissioner -- by overwhelming margins -- before resigning last year because of his illness.

"A real-life fairy tale," former NHL goalie Glenn "Chico" Resch said of the close friend he met when both were students at the University of Minnesota Duluth.

"I remember when he fought at Madison Square Garden, pointing at the marquee, and shouting, 'It says Scott LeDoux up there in lights. Scotty, it doesn't get any bigger than this!'"

But LeDoux, a poor miner's son who grew up milking cows, always put things into perspective with a quip that came as quickly as his overpowering right hand.

Scott came from the Iron Range and he fought his way to the "Big Time". Short on skills and long on heart he was the living breathing embodiment of American Exceptionalism and the America Spirit. When Scott went in the ring, he carried a warriors heart and oft times got carried out on his shield as a result.

He was to his dying breath all that is right with America. County Commissioner, Family Man, Community Leader, tireless worker for charity He literally fought his way out of the stark existence of life on the Iron Range to become a world heavyweight title contender and that's what America is all about. The opportunity to start at the bottom and work your way to as far as your abilities and heart can take you. Rest In Peace Scott LeDoux.


"When I was ranked seventh in the world, I was still ranked 25th at Tommy Byrnes' bar in Duluth," he joked.