Hometown: Norfolk
Sport: Boxing
Rank: 3 (ahead of Alonzo Mourning and behind Bruce Smith)
Born: 1964
Claim to fame: Six-time world champion, Olympic gold medalist, boxing's best pound-for-pound fighter
Harder to hit than a lottery jackpot. Human vapor. Capable of vanishing in plain sight. Whitaker was all of those things and more, the finest defensive fighter of his day, if not all-time. An artist working in leather, Whitaker threw punches from crazy angles, peppering foes with countershots before slipping out of harm's way. His signature style carried him to Olympic gold in 1984. As a pro, he campaigned in four divisions, from 135 to 154 pounds, and claimed six world title belts, leaving a trail of frustration in his wake. Ironically, his finest moment might have come in a 1993 fight he didn't win. Whitaker outclassed Mexican legend Julio Cesar Chavez in his own backyard in San Antonio. Even Chavez supporters conceded that Whitaker won. Judges called it a draw. ÒRobbed!Ó declared the screaming headline on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Whitaker ended a career that began at age 8 in Norfolk's Young Terrace in 2001. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2007.
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