It’s been a terrible time for former middleweight champion David Lemieux.
On August 2, in a tragic and senseless act, her father, André, was shot and killed while standing at a bus stop in Montreal. The 64-year-old man was one of three people killed by the lone assailant who was later shot dead by police.
“It was horrible news and something I never thought I would have to deal with in my life,” Lemieux told The Ring last Friday. “It’s not just the step [of my father], it’s a murder. It was a terrible shock. It was the biggest knockout punch I’ve ever taken.
“It’s part of life and we have to deal with it. I have a family to take care of and I have to move on. The guy who did it is dead now, so I can move on. It’s a tragedy”.
Lemieux saw his father a week before the shooting.
“He came to see my newborn son,” said the former champion. “He had a good memory before he died. He was very happy that he held his grandson.”
Andre Lemieux. Photo via Instagram
The mighty Lemieux regularly thrilled fans with standout knockouts on the reels. The Canadian star won the IBF 160-pound title and shared the ring with Hassan N’Dam, Curtis Stevens, Gennadiy Golovkin, Billy Joe Saunders, Gary O’Sullivan and most recently David Benavidez.
However, after losing to Benavidez in May, Lemieux decided the time was right to retire from professional boxing after a 15-year career.
“Boxing put my energy to good use instead of creating problems at school,” Lemieux said. “Being world champion and where I am today from where I could have been, it’s a nice achievement.
“I had a good race. I fought some of the best fighters. My goal was to fight the best fighter out there (Canelo Alvarez), but unfortunately Benavidez’s result [prevented that.] I’m not ready to go back and rebuild. I did my best. I’ve come a long way and I’m proud of what I’ve done. I was okay with turning the page on that.”
The 33-year-old father of three is not the only athlete in his household. His wife, Jennifer, who recently retired from diving, competed in four Olympics, winning bronze at London 2012 and silver at Tokyo 2020.
“She wasn’t satisfied with Rio, it didn’t go according to plan, so she did another cycle and got a silver medal in Tokyo,” Lemieux said proudly. “We are still young, active and [there are plenty of] opportunities. We don’t have anything concrete, but we have ideas for the future. I know I’m going to be close to Eye of The Tiger.
“It’s still too early [to decide what is next]. Right now we are enjoying our time with our new son.”
Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at [email protected] and you can follow him on Twitter @AnsonWainwright
