All About His 12 Youngsters and Why He Named All 5 of His Sons George

George Foreman held many titles: Olympic gold medalist, two-time heavyweight boxing champion, and grill entrepreneur.

However the title that Foreman, who died March 21, 2025 on the age of 76, held closest to his coronary heart was father.

The late athlete was married a complete of 5 instances, to Adrienne Calhoun (from 1971 to 1974); Cynthia Lewis (from 1977 to 1979); Sharon Goodson (from 1981 to 1982); Andrea Skeete (from 1982 to 1985) and to Mary Joan Martelly, his spouse since 1985.

By his relationships, he welcomed 5 sons and 7 daughters.

All 5 of his sons share the identical identify, George Edward Foreman — one thing the boxer mentioned he did to unite the lads collectively.

“I named all my sons George Edward Foreman so they’d all the time have one thing in frequent,” Foreman beforehand wrote on his web site. “I say to them, ‘If one in all us goes up, then all of us go up collectively. And if one goes down, all of us go down collectively!’ ”

He additionally famously mentioned one time: “I inform individuals, ‘If you are going to get hit as many instances as I have been hit by Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, Evander Holyfield, you are not going to recollect many names.'”

After all, calling everybody “George” could be a little complicated, so Foreman’s sons have all earned nicknames for themselves. There’s George Jr., George III (“Monk”), George IV (“Huge Wheel”), George V (“Pink”) and George VI (“Little Joey”).

In the meantime, along with his boys, Foreman has 5 daughters: Natalia, Leola, Michi, Georgetta and Freeda. The latter died by suicide on the age of 42 in March 2019, per The Florida Instances-Union.

Based on Blavity, Foreman adopted his daughter Isabella in 2009 and in 2012 welcomed one other one in all his adopted daughters named Courtney.

Like their brothers, most have stayed out of the general public eye. Natalia tried a profession as a singer, whereas Georgetta has labored as a tv producer, placing out exhibits like 1999’s Divorce Courtroom and 2001’s Past the Glory).

“He has 10 youngsters, however rising up he made positive that all of us had our particular time,” Georgetta informed CBN of her dad. “There was even a time once we all had our personal days. There was a Georgetta day, or George the second day, or no matter. And he took that point out to guarantee that that day you had no matter you wished to eat, no matter you wished to do and he took out time to get to know who we have been and who we are actually.”

Earlier than her demise, Freeda tried her hand at skilled boxing, taking up the game in 2000 earlier than retiring in 2001 with a report of 5-1. She was additionally a mom to 2 youngsters together with her husband. She additionally had three grandchildren.

In 2008, Foreman revealed a ebook about fatherhood, fittingly titled, Fatherhood by George: Laborious-Gained Recommendation on Being a Dad. In it, he doled out parenting recommendation, usually relating his knowledge again to scripture from his Christian religion.

Foreman informed CBN that he wished to put in writing the ebook to ensure his youngsters did not make “the identical errors” he made early on with fatherhood.

“In elevating youngsters life brings forth these issues the place you do what it’s best to by no means have completed and what I taught you by no means to do. And when my youngsters have completed these issues, I simply form of have a look at them and say, ‘Now life,'” Freeman mentioned, with fun.

“You have to search for all of the issues, the qualities in a single child. The worst factor on this planet is to assume, ‘I’ve obtained one other daughter, I’ve one other son.’ Every are completely different individuals,” Foreman mentioned. “You may’t use the identical cures. You may’t use the identical harshness or the identical slackness. You have to perceive that every baby is completely different and you have to deal with them in a different way.”

In the end, he mentioned being a dad is one thing he treasures. “One factor I am most pleased with, in my coronary heart, are my youngsters,” he informed CBN. “They’ve gone on, a few of them, to face the check, to get school schooling, and that is the toughest factor on this planet to realize; however most of all they’re good dad and mom, and that is what I am pleased with.”