|
Click
HERE for Termite IN
THE NEWS...
If you liked Rudy...
If you liked The Rookie...
If you liked Hoosiers...
If you liked Remember The Titans...
...then you will love TERMITE’S PATH!
|
|
|
TERMITE'S
BIO
Maurice “Termite” Watkins always loved a
good fight. At ten years of age and a scrawny 65
pounds, he already knew what he wanted – to be
a champion. With very little natural athletic
ability, he reached his goals through sheer
determination and perseverance. At age sixteen,
Termite became the nation’s youngest national
Golden Gloves champion. He was an astounding
amateur, with 128 wins and only ten losses.
Termite turned pro his senior year in high
school, and set his sights on a world title. His
58 professional wins included 48 knock-outs. In
1980, he fought in Caesar’s Palace for the
coveted world title in a double main event that
featured Muhammad Ali and Larry Holmes. In a
fifteen-round brutal fight, Termite lost to
champion Saoul Mamby.
Retired from boxing and enjoying a successful
sales career, Termite was settled into a
suburban life with his family in Deer Park,
Texas until the events on 9/11 changed his life.
Termite felt an overwhelming desire – he
believed it was a calling of God – to serve
his country. He asked what he could do for his
country. The surprising answer was pest control,
the business he’d learned as a child from his
father. The coalition needed someone to go into
Iraq to rid military camps of snakes, scorpions
and bugs. Over his family’s strong objections,
Termite headed to Iraq.
Termite’s patriotic service soon spread beyond
vipers and flies – he offered boxing classes
to soldiers, officers, and aid workers. News
spread of this high-energy boxer with the
infectious “can-do” attitude. Visionary
coalition leader Mike Gfoeller presented an
amazing challenge to the Texan: build an Iraqi
Olympic boxing team in the middle of war and get
them into the Olympics in Athens. Ousted for the
unspeakable crimes against its athletes, Iraq
had not been in the Olympics in decades. “It
was a slim-to-nothing chance, maybe one in a
million,” Termite said.
Meeting his team of forgotten, rusty athletes in
Baghdad, Termite was unimpressed with their
skills but amazed by the hearts of these
twenty-four Iraqis. Some arrived without shoes;
none had headgear or mouthpieces. “It took
tremendous courage for these men to show up on
that soccer field to meet an American,” said
Termite.
He fell in love with them and put his life at
risk every day to help them reach their Olympic
dreams. Termite’s incredible perseverance and
total devotion to a goal was called upon to
overcome daunting obstacles. The quest of this
unlikely team and their colorfully charismatic
coach inspired the world. At a time of tanks and
the toppling of Hussein statues, Termite’s
team sent the message of hope and freedom in a
war-torn nation. CNN, Fox, NBC, ABC, CBS, The
New York Times, Sports Illustrated, and every
other major news outlet heralded the triumph of
spirit represented by Termite and his men.
|
|
|
|
