A Colorado man has been inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame without ever throwing a professional punch.
GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo. — When the words “Colorado” and “boxing” appear in the same sentence, it's usually because of Jack Dempsey, the “Manasa Maurer” who was world heavyweight champion for seven years in the 1920s and was one of the first recipients of induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990.
Now he runs a state corporation celebrating its 100th anniversary.
Fred Sternberg has never thrown a professional punch, but the Greenwood Village resident was recognized with this year's class for his efforts outside the ring.
“I'm not a promoter, because the promoter is the one who takes the risk and provides all the funding, so what I do is help promote these fighters and, essentially, tell their story,” he said.
One of them is about boxing legend Manny Pacquiao.
“He had a great personality, his English improved a lot and before he knew it he'd been on Jimmy Kimmel seven times, sang with Kimmel and other celebrities and done a skit on the cover of Time magazine,” Sternberg said.
Sternberg began working as a public relations man in Washington, D.C., in the 1980s and fell in love with the business after calling a press conference for a “super fight” between Sugar Ray Leonard and the Marvelous Marvin Hagler.
“Every network TV station in Washington and Baltimore was broadcasting it live, and they were doing interviews beforehand before this big event, and I thought, if this is boxing, I want to be a part of it,” he said. “So all the big media stars were flying in from all over the world for this announcement.”
Shortly thereafter, he went to work for America Presents in Denver, and three years later he started his own company, Sternberg Communications.
He's worked with all kinds of fighters, including Olympians, but Pacquiao is the most famous name in his CV, and he considers them family.
“To me, all of these warriors are my kids,” he said. “I enjoy going to their camps and telling their stories and things that people don't know. [them]”
Ask Sternberg where some of his best PR ideas come from and he’ll tell you:
“My wife and kids have been very involved in this project too – Lauren, Sam and David – they've all pitched in,” Sternberg said. “They're always giving me ideas, and I steal their ideas and run to the bank with them.”
Sternberg isn't done boxing yet: He's currently in Las Vegas promoting his upcoming fight on June 15th.
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