Former presidential candidate Mitt Romney and World Heavyweight Champion fighter Evander Holyfield faced off in the boxing ring at a charity night event in Salt Lake City, Utah Friday.
The 179-pound Romney, 68, and the 236-pound Holyfield, 52, landed gentle blows on one another at the "Fight for Sight" of the century for two rounds of a fun tickle-fight-like boxing match before Romney sprinted away from his opponent and his corner threw in the proverbial towel, giving up a round early in the friendly affair for charity. The event also featured several other preliminary matches by professional boxers sanctioned by the World Boxing Council and a live auction that sold tickets for the TV show Dancing With the Stars and the next Super Bowl, among other items.
The two barely threw any hits and mostly just hopped around, with some occasional light jabs in the midsection, which turned out to be more of a comedic episode than a real match at the Rail Event Center. Attendees appreciated the cheerful atmosphere and the chance to see Romney wearing boxing garments in the ring. Of course, Holyfield got the win in this boxing bout against the former governor of Massachusetts, but the five-time boxing champion let Romney get in a few hooks midway and was "knocked down" before the second round ended.
Romney trained with Holyfield's assistance at the Fullmer Brothers Boxing Gym in preparation for fight night. Ann, Romney's wife, highlighted his extensive workouts, which included lifting some of his many grandchildren. At the main event, he marched into the boxing ring wearing a red robe while the song "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor boomed over the sound system.
The black-tie event raised money for Charity Vision International, a nonprofit organization that helps eye surgeons from developing nations in restoring vision to patients with curable blindness.
Romney's son Josh Romney, a Utah resident, serves as a volunteer president for Charity Vision. He stated that, with the proceeds from Friday's event, the organization hopes to provide 40,000 eye surgeries this year, all performed by local doctors in the countries being served. Commercial sponsorships for the occasion ranged from $25,000 to $250,000. Coordinators say they collected at least $1 million.
Meanwhile, Ann Romney has a set of charitable foundations on her own account, including the Ann Romney Center for Neurologic Disease. Mrs. Romney has a target goal of $50 million for the benefit of the center and is set to publish a memoir this fall, with the earnings to be donated to the center as well.
