MONTREAL -- George Chuvalo wants the world to know he was more than just a big lug who could stand in a boxing ring and take punches all night. Tommy Bohanon Jersey . The Toronto native was a top 10-ranked fighter in the golden age of heavyweights, taking on the best of his era, including Muhammad Ali, George Foreman and Floyd Patterson. He inflicted more damage than he absorbed in his 22-year career, but the perception lives on of the plodding boxer with the iron chin that was formed during dramatic bouts in 1966 and 1972 with Ali, perhaps the greatest heavyweight of all time. There was also the misery he endured after his retirement in 1978, losing three sons and his wife to drugs and suicide, perhaps the most painful blows of all. He addresses those issues in "Chuvalo: A Fighters Life", an autobiography released on Tuesday that was written with veteran boxing writer Murray Greig. It is a chronological recounting of his fight career, but Chuvalos voice, his love of storytelling and his frankly expressed opinions on the good and terrible things in his life are all over it. That is what makes it a better read than your average as-told-to book by an ex-athlete. It also describes a boxers early life, before the headline bouts at Madison Square Garden, of being broke most of the time and leaving a wife and young children at home to drive a shaky jalopy to fight for too-little money in a small-town arena. And it recalls the glory days of heavyweight prize fighting, when major bouts were front-page news and the stars were not like todays six-foot-eight giants who jab and do little else in the ring. That Chuvalo emerged from it all without a slurred tongue and with his memory and sense of humour intact may be his biggest victory. "I wanted to leave something for my grandchildren to read about their grandfather and know about me," the 76-year-old Chuvalo said of the book in a recent interview. But he also would like them to know that he was more than just one of the many victims of Alis flair and skill. "When people think of me, they think of me fighting Muhammad," he said. "Its hard for them to think of anything else. "But I had close to 100 fights. The perception of me is as a tough guy who could take a shot. I was supposed to have the best chin in boxing. It clouds my other abilities." From his first fight in 1956, a second-round knockout of Gordon Baldwin, to his third-round KO of George Jerome in 1978, Chuvalo compiled a record of 73 wins (64 by knockout), 18 losses and two draws. Although he was stopped short of the distance by Foreman and Joe Frazier, he was never knocked down in the ring. It is one of the first issues he deals with in the book. "Today, most people think I was a tough guy who took a good rap, which is fine," he writes. "But I was a much better defensive fighter than I ever got credit for. I didnt get hit with half the punches people think I did. If that were true, Id be walking around on my heels today. Nobodys that tough." Chuvalo never won a world title, losing to Ernie Terrell in his only attempt in 1965, a fight he feels was fixed by mobsters. But he was Canadian champion for most of 17 years, back when that title still mattered. And one of his favourite funny stories was about how he became champion of Haiti in 1972. He was voted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1997. There was also a statue of him erected in his ancestral hometown in Bosnia. But his defining moment was in Toronto on March 29, 1966, when he stood up to Alis brilliance for 15 rounds and became a national hero simply for not going down. He did the same over 12 rounds in a rematch in Vancouver six years later. Perhaps ironically, Chuvalo feels Ali had the best chin of any opponent he faced, along with being the best boxer of all time. He names Foreman and Mike DeJohn as the hardest punchers he encountered. He left the painful stories of his family for last. No blood in the ring was quite as gruesome as finding a son dead in a hotel room with a needle in his arm, or of his first wife Lynne succombing to dispair and taking her own life. He spares no details. Chuvalo has since remarried, and he visits schools across Canada to deliver an anti-drug message. Somehow, he maintains a positive approach to life, concentrating on his two remaining children and his grandkids. Even then, he dedicates the book to his granddaughter Rachel Chuvalo, who died of cancer last year. The fighters life has been a tough one indeed, in and out of the ring. Myles Jack Jersey . Lack replaced an injured Roberto Luongo late in the first period then watched defenceman Chris Tanev score the winning goal midway through the third as the Vancouver Canucks defeated the Jets 2-1 in a tight NHL game. Discount Jacksonville Jaguars Jerseys .com) - Maria Sharapova reached her 10th career grand slam final after beating Ekaterina Makarova in straight sets at the Australian Open on Thursday. http://www.cheapjaguarsjerseyssale.com/?tag=leonard-fournette-jersey-sale . This time, it was Eric Chavezs turn. Stuck in a rut since coming off the disabled list, Chavez hit the first pitch he saw in the ninth inning for a run-scoring single, sending the Diamondbacks to another walk-off victory, 4-3 over the San Francisco Giants on Saturday night.WOODBRIDGE, N.J. -- Pitcher Carl Pavano is retiring after 14 major league seasons. The 38-year-old right-hander didnt pitch after June 1 in 2012 because of a strained right shoulder. His spleen was removed in January 2013 after he was injured when he fell in the snow at his home in Vermont. Pavano had been hoping to return to the major leagues this year. "Despite my strong desire to compete and hard work in preparing for the upcoming season, I feel that the amount of time lost from my spleen injury, coupled with the recovery from my complications from that injury, preclude me from continuing to compete at my highest level, which is necessary to perform in the major leagues," Pavano said in a statement released Wednesday by his agent, David Pepe. "I have achieved many things as a major league pitcher of which I am very proud. However, I feel at this time, I am simply not able to continue to pitch at the major league level, and these last three months of rigorous training have failed to produce the results that I was looking for to allow me to continue my major league career. Eli Ankou Jersey. " Pavano, an All-Star in 2004, was 108-107 with a 4.39 ERA for Montreal (1998-02), Florida 2002-04), the New York Yankees (2005, 2007-08), Cleveland (2009) and Minnesota (2009-12). He was an All-Star in 2004, going 18-8 with a 3.00 ERA and earning a $39.95 million, four-year contract with the Yankees. Injuries limited Pavano to 26 starts, 145 2-3 innings and a 9-8 record during his Yankees contract. He rebounded after leaving New York and went 17-11 for the Twins in 2010, when he tied for the AL lead in complete games with seven. "It has been an honour and a privilege to have been a major league baseball player, and the gratitude I have for being able to do that is profound and beyond any expression I can make in words," he said. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap Adidas Hockey Jerseys Wholesale Nike Baseball Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys From China Wholesale Jerseys China Wholesale NFL Jerseys China Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Free Shipping Cheap Nike NBA Jerseys Authentic Cheap NHL Jerseys Canada Cheap Nike MLB Jerseys Cheap Soccer Jerseys China NCAA Jerseys Cheap Nike NHL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys Store Cheap Football Jerseys Store Wholesale Soccer Jerseys Jerseys NCAA China Jerseys NFL Cheap Cheap Nike NBA Jerseys ' ' '