DETROIT -- Emanuel Steward, earnest yet easygoing, proved rough and tough wasnt the only way to win in boxing. With a twinkle in his eyes, a smile on his face and a soothing voice, Steward developed unique bonds in and out of the ring with a long line of champions that included Thomas Hearns, Canadian Lennox Lewis, Oscar De La Hoya and Wladimir Klitschko. Steward, owner of the Kronk Gym in Detroit and an International Boxing Hall of Fame trainer, died Thursday. He was 68. His executive assistant, Victoria Kirton, said Steward died Thursday at a Chicago hospital. She didnt disclose the cause of death. "It is not often that a person in any line of work gets a chance to work with a legend, well I was privileged enough to work with one for almost a decade," Klitschko said Thursday. "I will miss our time together. The long talks about boxing, the world, and life itself. Most of all I will miss our friendship." Steward, whose father was a coal miner and mother was a seamstress, was born in West Virginia. He got boxing gloves as a Christmas present at the age of 8, the start of what would become a long career in the sweet science. He moved to the Motor City just before becoming a teenager and trained as an amateur boxer at Brewster Recreation Center, which once was the home gym of Joe Louis. Steward, at the age of 18, won the national Golden Gloves tournament as a bantamweight. Instead of trying to make it as a professional boxer, he went to work for the Detroit Edison Co. and in 1971 accepted a part-time position as head coach -- for $35 per week -- of the boxing program at the Kronk Recreation Center. A dynasty was born. The Kronks first professional champion was Hilmer Kenty, a lightweight from Columbus, Ohio, who started training there in 1978 and won the WBA title two years later. But It was Hearns who really put Kronk -- and the trainer known as Manny -- on the map. The boxer known as Hitman was the first man to win titles in four divisions -- he won five overall -- and topped his 155-8 amateur record by going 61-5-1 with 48 knockouts as a pro. Even though Steward had a lot of success with Hearns, some of his setbacks from his corner were among the most memorable in the sport. Hearns was knocked out in the 14th round by Sugar Ray Leonard in 1981 -- Steward said that was the most painful experience of his life -- and Hearns was on the short end of a three-round fight with Marvin Hagler in 1985 that is considered one of the best bouts in boxing history. "He brought the very, very best out of me," Hearns once said of Steward. Hearns wasnt alone. Steward trained, helped train or managed some of the greatest fighters -- and some kids who just needed to get off the streets -- of the past 40 years out of Kronk and in other facilities across the globe, putting fighters from many countries in red and gold trunks. Before he fell ill, Steward also trained super-middleweight Adonis Stevenson, shaping the brawler from Longueuil, Que., into a more well-rounded boxer and helping him become a top contender in his weight class. "Lennox used to say when fighting as an amateur that everyone was afraid of the Kronk guys," Steward once said. "He saw the respect when they saw the colours." The gym for years was seen as a way to keep kids out of trouble in southwestern Detroit. "A lot of these kids would be in the streets," Steward once said. "They live for this." And, Steward lived for it, too. He loved boxing -- and boxers -- but like the Motor City, the gym he adored fell on hard times. The city closed the original Kronk Recreation Center -- a hot, sweaty basement gym -- after vandals stole its copper piping in 2006. It was allowed to remain open, but it put Steward in a difficult financial situation and he later rented space at a gym in Dearborn so his young fighters could train. "With the loss of Emanuel Steward, we have lost a true Detroit icon," Detroit Mayor Dave Bing said. "Emanuel Steward embodied our citys toughness, our competitive spirit, and our determination to always answer the bell. "We are grateful for Emanuel Stewards many contributions to our city and his impact on generations of young people." In the early years at Kronk, most of his fighters were black. In recent years, his melting pot of boxers included a Ukrainian heavyweight, an Irish middleweight and scores of young men from Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. Steward was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1996. He worked closely with Lewis during his title run, and with current heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko as recently as July when the boxer led 22,000 fans in singing "Happy Birthday," to the beloved trainer. Klitschko had to trained recently without Steward for his fight against Mariusz Wach next month in Germany "His spirit is always here," Klitschko said. "I can hear his voice in sparring while doing things, whispering in my ear. As the famous saying goes, The show must go on, and thats exactly the case." Steward also trained actor Wesley Snipes for his role as a boxer in "Undisputed" and appeared briefly with Lewis in "Oceans Eleven Steward worked since 2001 as a boxing analyst for HBO, sharing his rich knowledge of the sport and an adorable personality with a younger generation of fans. "Manny was a respected colleague who taught us so much not only about the sweet science but also about friendship and loyalty," HBO Sports President Ken Hershman said. "His energy, enthusiasm and bright smile were a constant presence. Ten bells do not seem enough to mourn his passing." HBO Sports commentator Jim Lampley -- a friend of Stewards since the early 1980s and broadcast partner for more than a decade -- said Stewards wisdom and common touch made him special. "He was the most loyal, generous, positive spirited, broadly accepting man Ive ever known," Lampley said. "He had a positive impact on everyone he encountered." http://www.rosheone... .com) - Former finalist Juan Martin del Potro and Swiss slugger Stanislas Wawrinka were Mondays round-robin winners at the $6 million ATP World Tour Finals. [url=http://www.rosheonedamen.de/]http://www.rosheonedamen.de/ . “Hes a guy that I can see sticking around here,” said pitching coach Pete Walker. “Theres no doubt about it.” “You dont take anything for granted,” said Wagner. “This is a game where nothings promised to you and you have to earn your keep every time you go out there. http://www.rosheonedam... . PAUL, Minn. [url=http://www.rosheonedamen.de/2015-nike-roshe-one-herren-high-anti-fur-waterp... . Prokhorov said the two met Monday, adding both have a tremendous desire to win which is something the Nets did not do enough this season. They are on the verge of missing the playoffs for the fifth straight season. In a wide-ranging interview Tuesday after he toured his nearly completed Barclays Center in Brooklyn, a hard-hat wearing Prokhorov said the Nets are like his building, a work under construction. [url=http://www.rosheonedamen.de/commemorative-edition-nike-roshe-one-2015-herre... . He was on the ground in misery. The Detroit Lions (6-2) sacked Tebow seven times and turned his two turnovers into touchdowns as they snapped a two-game skid with a 45-10 victory over the Denver Broncos.NEW YORK -- No 62-point game for Carmelo Anthony on Sunday. He didnt even match his first-half total from Friday night. He didnt have to, with the Knicks offering him plenty of support for a change. Anthony scored 35 points, four teammates had at least 13, and New York beat the Los Angeles Lakers 110-103 on Sunday. "I dont think they just wanted to watch me out there playing offensively," Anthony said. "They wanted to be a part of it and they did." Anthony finished with two points fewer than he had at halftime of his record-setting night, but he scored six straight New York points down the stretch after the Lakers cut the Knicks lead to two with just over 5 minutes left. Raymond Felton scored a season-high 20 points, rookie Tim Hardaway Jr. had 18 and J.R. Smith 16 for the Knicks, who won their second straight following a five-game losing streak. Tyson Chandler had 13 points and 14 rebounds. "Hes a guy that, he just wants to win," Felton said about Anthony. "Sometimes he likes to take it on his shoulders, so we have to take some of that pressure off of him by hitting shots, by making plays offensively." Jodie Meeks scored 24 points for the Lakers, but he was shut out in the fourth quarter after scoring 16 in the third. Pau Gasol had 20 points and 13 rebounds as the Lakers dropped their fourth straight to finish 2-5 on their Grammy Awards road trip. "Can we turn it around? I think we will," Gasol said. "If we stick together, continue to work hard and get a couple of bodies back that are key, we can be a lot better and we can get much better results." Anthonys 62 points against Charlotte were a career high, most in the NBA this season and most at the current Madison Square Garden, one more than Kobe Bryant scored five years ago. Lakers coach Mike DAntoni, who coached Anthony in New York, said the key for the Lakers was to contain everyone else, knowing Anthony would score. They didnt. "Melo is going to do that against anyone. Thats what he does," DAntoni said. "Where they killed us was Hardaway was (4 for 5) for 3s and Felton didnt miss his shots.dddddddddddd We made some mistakes on guys on rotations and stuff." Bryant is still unable to play as he recovers from a broken left knee. He said he called to congratulate Anthony after Fridays game, and though he stressed his appreciation for MSG, said having the building record wasnt particularly important to him. He also noted that Anthony, who will become a free agent this summer, may have to tell the Knicks he wont settle for being on a non-contender, as Bryant did with the Lakers, and that the talent around him needed to be upgraded. It was good enough Sunday until Anthony took over. "Last year we had five guys that averaged in double figures and Ive always wanted a team where you just didnt know where it was going to come from," Knicks coach Mike Woodson said. "And we know Melos going to get his, but we need everybody to be a part of the offence and touch the ball and feel good about themselves." He followed his own missed shot with 4:52 left, made a jumper and then scored on a drive that pushed the Knicks lead to 105-98 with 2:33 to play. Manny Harris scored a season-high 18 points for the Lakers, who stayed in it until late by making 12 of 18 shots in the third quarter, including 6 of 7 from behind the 3-point arc. But they gave up 21 second-chance points to lose despite shooting 52 per cent from the field. "It kind of oozed away. It wasnt one thing. It was a lot of little things," DAntoni said. The Lakers scored the final nine points of the first quarter, shooting 57 per cent in the period to lead 25-22. It was tied at 45 late in the second before Anthony made a 3-pointer and a jumper, and the Knicks led 51-47 at the break. Notes: Bryant is due to have his knee examined after the Lakers return to Los Angeles. He said he was anxious to do something besides ride the stationary bike. ... The Knicks still have home games remaining against Boston on Tuesday, Cleveland on Thursday and Miami on Saturday to finish their eight-game homestand. [url=http://www.cheapnfljerseys2015.us.com/]cheap nfl jerseys wholesale jerseys cheap jerseys cheap jerseys wholesale jerseys Ra... Ramos Jersey ' ' '