Rocky Marciano twice defeated Ezzard Charles during the final stages of his career, defending his world heavyweight title both times. AP Photo
Rocky Marciano twice defeated Ezzard Charles during the final stages of his career, defending his world heavyweight title both times. AP Photo
Rocky Marciano twice defeated Ezzard Charles during the final stages of his career, defending his world heavyweight title both times. AP Photo
Rocky Marciano twice defeated Ezzard Charles during the final stages of his career, defending his world heavyweight title both times. AP Photo

On this day, April 27, 1956: Heavyweight world champion Rocky Marciano retires and enters the history books


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When the never-ending debate about the greatest boxers in history gets discussed, Rocky Marciano is rarely near the top of the list.

Not that he is  totally ignored, he just is not talked about in the same regard as the likes of Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, Joe Louis, or Sugar Ray Robinson.

Even if the debate was narrowed down just to the greatest heavyweights, Marciano would, instinctively, be mentioned by many after Ali, Louis, Jack Dempsey, Jack Johnson, and possibly even Mike Tyson by the younger generation.

Yet, Marciano, whose knockout punch packed "more explosive energy than an armour-piercing bullet" according to a study, deservedly earned his place in the annals of boxing history.

The only heavyweight world champion to end his career undefeated, Marciano decided, after 49 fights and 49 wins (with 43 knockouts), to retire at the age of 32 on this day - April 27, 1956.

The first 16 of those professional fights ended in knockout wins for Marciano, all before the end of the fifth round and nine inside the opening round.

It was not until his 26th fight did the Brockton, Massachusetts native get truly challenged when, in March 1950, he earned a split decision win over Roland La Starza. It was the closest any fighter would get to beating Marciano.

Marciano's first major high-profile fight came in October 1951 when he fought the great Joe Louis and stopped the former world champion in the eighth round in what would be Louis' final fight.

Four more wins would follow before Marciano earned his first world title shot, where he would face Jersey Joe Walcott in September 1952. Walcott dropped Marciano in the first round and began to build a points lead, only for the challenger to produce a devastating right hook in the 13th round to claim the title.

An immediate rematch was granted but this time the outcome was far more emphatic, Marciano delivering a first-round KO to send Walcott into retirement.

Marciano defended the world title five more times, defeating La Starza again - this time by 11th-round KO - twice beating Ezzard Charles - first on points then by eighth-round stoppage - taking out Don Cockell in the ninth round, and completing his career with another ninth round stoppage of Archie Moore.

Around six months later, Marciano decided to call it quits and walked away from boxing as the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.

Just over 13 years later, on August 31, 1969 - the day before his 46th birthday - Marciano was killed in a plane crash.

A member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame, Marciano holds a number of records and accolades that have earned him his place among the sport's greatest.

He was named The Ring fighter of the year three times, holds the highest knockout percentage (87.76%) of any heavyweight champion in history over the course of a completed career, and his 1952 KO of Walcott has been named in a poll as the greatest knockout in boxing history.

The Bio

Amal likes watching Japanese animation movies and Manga - her favourite is The Ancient Magus Bride

She is the eldest of 11 children, and has four brothers and six sisters.

Her dream is to meet with all of her friends online from around the world who supported her work throughout the years

Her favourite meal is pizza and stuffed vine leaves

She ams to improve her English and learn Japanese, which many animated programmes originate in

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Fines for littering

In Dubai:

Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro

Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle. 
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle

In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches 

If you go:
The flights: Etihad, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin all fly from the UAE to London from Dh2,700 return, including taxes
The tours: The Tour for Muggles usually runs several times a day, lasts about two-and-a-half hours and costs £14 (Dh67)
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is on now at the Palace Theatre. Tickets need booking significantly in advance
Entrance to the Harry Potter exhibition at the House of MinaLima is free
The hotel: The grand, 1909-built Strand Palace Hotel is in a handy location near the Theatre District and several of the key Harry Potter filming and inspiration sites. The family rooms are spacious, with sofa beds that can accommodate children, and wooden shutters that keep out the light at night. Rooms cost from £170 (Dh808).

Desert Warrior

Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley

Director: Rupert Wyatt

Rating: 3/5

The President's Cake

Director: Hasan Hadi

Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem 

Rating: 4/5

Last-16 Europa League fixtures

Wednesday (Kick-offs UAE)

FC Copenhagen (0) v Istanbul Basaksehir (1) 8.55pm

Shakhtar Donetsk (2) v Wolfsburg (1) 8.55pm

Inter Milan v Getafe (one leg only) 11pm

Manchester United (5) v LASK (0) 11pm 

Thursday

Bayer Leverkusen (3) v Rangers (1) 8.55pm

Sevilla v Roma  (one leg only)  8.55pm

FC Basel (3) v Eintracht Frankfurt (0) 11pm 

Wolves (1) Olympiakos (1) 11pm 

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Cofe

Year started: 2018

Based: UAE

Employees: 80-100

Amount raised: $13m

Investors: KISP ventures, Cedar Mundi, Towell Holding International, Takamul Capital, Dividend Gate Capital, Nizar AlNusif Sons Holding, Arab Investment Company and Al Imtiaz Investment Group 

Jetour T1 specs

Engine: 2-litre turbocharged

Power: 254hp

Torque: 390Nm

Price: From Dh126,000

Available: Now

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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Who is Mohammed Al Halbousi?

The new speaker of Iraq’s parliament Mohammed Al Halbousi is the youngest person ever to serve in the role.

The 37-year-old was born in Al Garmah in Anbar and studied civil engineering in Baghdad before going into business. His development company Al Hadeed undertook reconstruction contracts rebuilding parts of Fallujah’s infrastructure.

He entered parliament in 2014 and served as a member of the human rights and finance committees until 2017. In August last year he was appointed governor of Anbar, a role in which he has struggled to secure funding to provide services in the war-damaged province and to secure the withdrawal of Shia militias. He relinquished the post when he was sworn in as a member of parliament on September 3.

He is a member of the Al Hal Sunni-based political party and the Sunni-led Coalition of Iraqi Forces, which is Iraq’s largest Sunni alliance with 37 seats from the May 12 election.

He maintains good relations with former Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki’s State of Law Coaliton, Hadi Al Amiri’s Badr Organisation and Iranian officials.