The time Smokin' Joe Frazier visited Athlone
The sad passing of former world heavyweight boxing champion Joe Frazier on Monday sparked memories of the time, in June 1971, when he visited Athlone and stayed at the Shamrock Lodge Hotel.
'Smokin' Joe' came to town as the reigning world champion, just three months after he defeated his great rival Muhammad Ali in the first of their three epic encounters.
In a bout billed as 'The Fight of the Century,' Frazier knocked to Ali the canvas in the fifteenth and final round, before winning a unanimous points decision in New York's Madison Square Garden.
When he wasn't training for a fight, Frazier loved to sing and perform soul/R&B music. It was this hobby which prompted his stay in Athlone.
Frank Colgan, the manager of the Shamrock Lodge Hotel at the time of Frazier's visit, explained that the star was undertaking a singing tour in Ireland and was booked to perform a concert at a venue in Roscommon.
'He decided to stay in Athlone with his entourage and group of female backing singers. They nearly booked out the whole hotel at the time,' said Mr Colgan yesterday (Tuesday). It was his recollection that tickets to Frazier's concert in Roscommon were overpriced, and as a result the show was not a success.
However, Mr Colgan has fond memories of Frazier's visit. 'He was a very nice man and was really approachable. You expect someone like him to be huge but he actually didn't look as big as I was expecting,' he said.
'He spoke to everyone and was very nice towards our staff at the time. The following morning there were crowds outside the hotel and we got a picture taken with him for the Westmeath - Offaly Independent.'
Muhammad Ali famously described himself as The Greatest, but the photo reveals that a banner was put up at the Shamrock Lodge which read: 'Welcome Joe - You're The Greatest.'
Frazier had 37 bouts in his career and was only ever beaten by two men - Ali and George Foreman. In his later years he continued to train fighters at his gym in Philadelphia. He died on Monday, just weeks after being diagnosed with liver cancer.
'I was very sorry to hear of his death, Lord rest him,' said Mr Colgan. 'I didn't hear that he was unwell until last weekend.'
Mr Colgan is currently the proprietor of the Spa Hotel in Lucan. His successor in charge of the Shamrock Lodge Hotel, Paddy McCaul, also has a vivid memory of Frazier's visit. 'It was a huge thing at the time,' said Mr McCaul.
'Boxing was a huge sport and his visit caused great excitement. I wasn't in the hotel at that time but like everyone else I remember trying to catch a glimpse of him as he was coming and going. It's not very often that a world champion would come to Athlone.'