Status:  Top 10 heavyweight contender. Has a pro record of 12-0 with 7 KO’s.

Ht: 6-6 1/2  Wt: 243

DOB: Janury 2, 1984  In: Stockholm, Sweden

Nickname: The Nordic Nightmare.

Boxing Inspiration: My father.

Childhood Heroes: My brothers, because they helped me a lot.

Hobbies/Leisure Activities: Reading books, playing with my kids.

Favorite Movie: Into The Wild, Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas.

Last Book Read: Marilyn Manson.

Musical Tastes: Everything, Cypress Hill.

Favorite TV Show:  Madventures.

First Job: Selling potatoes at a marketplace.

Current Car: Saab.

Favorite Meal: Now it´s sushi.

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Vanilla.

Pre-Fight Feeling: Confident and focused.

Pre-Fight Meal: Sushi or noodles.

Childhood Dream: To fly.

Early Boxing Memory: When I won the bronze medal at the Youth European Championship in Greece 2000.

Greatest Sports Moment (so far): To beat Lamon Brewster.

Most Painful Moment of Your Career: I broke my left thumb in 2006 and could not travel to the World Championships.

Funny Boxing Memory: Every day has to be funny.

Embarrassing Boxing Memory: When I was 18 I lost by TKO against Andreas Berghall.

Favorite Fighters To Watch: Lennox Lewis.

Favorite Fights: Lewis against Tyson and Klitschko. There were a lot!

Last Vacation: I don´t remember [smiles].

Favorite Sport Outside Boxing: Ice hockey.

Which Fight Did You Feel At Your Very Best/Your Finest Performance: Against Brewster in January, 2010 (won by TKO 8).

Toughest Opponent:  Gbenga Oloukun. Because I broke my right hand in the fourth round of the fight and had, of course, to go on.

People Qualities Most Admired: To have the right discipline in this hard business and sport.

Status: ATP #102. Reached his second ATP quarterfinal in 2010 in Newport. Reached second round at this year’s Wimbledon.

Ht: 6-5 Wt: 180

DOB: December 8, 1984 In: Celle, Germany

First Tennis Memory: “The courts back at home where I started playing in Germany. It’s a long time ago.”

Nicknames: “Just one – Dreddy.”

Hobbies/Leisure Activities: “Listen to music all day basically. I’m on my computer a lot. Catching up with friends online.”

Tennis Inspirations: “As in idols? Early on, when they were still playing – Noah, Safin. Mainly those two. Agassi.”

Last Book Read: “Dan Brown, Illuminati.”

Favorite Movies: “I watched Karate Kid this week. Pretty good movie. Pretty much everything Denzel Washington was in. He’s a really good actor, so.”

Favorite TV Show: “Californication.”

Musical Tastes: “Hip-hop, R&B, Lil Wayne, Drake.”

First Job: “Tennis [laughs].”

First Car: “Camper Volkswagen.”

Current Car: “Camper (white).”

Pre-Match Feeling: “It always varies. Never the same. It always varies, depends on where I am, who I have around me, who’s with me.”

Favorite Meal: “No favorite meal actually.”

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “Vanilla.”

Childhood Dream: “I was always tennis. Never been anything else.”

Greatest Sports Moment: “Winning the $100,000 Challenger in South Africa, Soweto (d. Izak van der Merwe 76 63). This year. (Why?) It’s the biggest win of my career, that got me closest to the top 100. And it’s a really great feeling winning there in Soweto, with the whole thing going on there with blacks and whites.”

Most Painful Moment: “Probably losing 0-0 to Jerome Haehnel in Basel on center court, three years ago. 0-0 indoors. Shouldn’t be 0-0 with my serve. (What happened that day?) I have no idea. Everything. And nothing [smiles].”

Which Matches Did You Feel At Your Very Best: “Under all the terms, the Querrey match in Newport. It’s a grass court, short match (64 63 in 47 minutes). Definitely served unbelievable – first serves won – 33 out of 34 – 97%. One point that when I put a first serve in that he made a point on my serve. First serve percentage 66%. That’s very good. I don’t think I’m going to have a day where I serve 80 or 90%. That’s probably not going to happen. I’m pretty happy to serve 60-70%, especially on these courts.”

Closest Tennis Friends: “American guys, Armitraj family, Rajeev Ram and a bunch of German guys – Stadler, Phau, Bozo (Bozoljac).”

Funniest Players Encountered: “Probably that’s some of the guys you hang around with. If you don’t hang around with anyone, the guy can’t be funny.”

Toughest Competitors Encountered: “I would say everybody. Because no one wants to lose, everybody wants to win. So they’re basically always fighting. No one gives it easy to you.”

Embarrassing Tennis Memory: “Nope.”

Strangest Match: “No, none of that Mahut stuff [smiles].”

Favorite Players To Watch: “Watching my friends at a tournament. There’s not anyone I would say that I would prefer to watch. The guys that I hang around with at the tournaments.”

Favorite Sport Outside Tennis: “Nothing.”

Last Vacation: “Never vacation. I would say tennis. Although I wouldn’t say it’s a vacation. Or I could say it’s always a vacation [smiles].”

The Long Journey: “It’s been a really long journey. Basically started – I was living two years in Jamaica where I was gonna play Futures. My parents were thinking of ways of how they can keep me going and playing. My parents aren’t rich or anything, they were like, What can we do? My mom came up with the idea about the camper. Now the investment has paid off. It was hard just traveling with a camper the whole time, living in there, practicing. It’s not easy when you’re beginning your 20′s and you’re still young. It’s not exactly the ideal way to play tennis. But it definitely worked out and got me through a couple of tough times which definitely helps me on the court.”

People Qualities Most Admired: “Nice, friendly people who like to have fun.”

Ht: 6-4 Wt: 238

Born On: January 5, 1968 In: Warsaw, Poland

Childhood Hero: “Muhammad Ali. I saw him on TV – his fight with Foreman. Amazing knockout. Both fighters looked like gigantic creatures fighting each other. From that moment boxing was amazing for me. ”

Inspiration: “George Foreman. He came back at 45 and won the championship.”

Childhood Dream: “Be somebody, you know? Be noticed. Champion of the world. Be great at something.”

Hobbies/Interests: “I like to travel. Discover things, land, vacations, nice places. Try new sports like kite surfing, have you ever tried that? (No). Oh my god, it’s something else. I play tennis – tennis is good. Very similar movements to boxing, good for footwork. I play basketball once or twice a week. Skiing. After the fight we’re going skiing in Austria.”

Favorite Movies: “Heat. Forrest Gump. Godfather. Scarface. Rocky.”

Musical Tastes: “Any kind of music, except jazz. Alicia Keys, 50 Cent, Kanye West.”

Favorite TV Shows: “I don’t watch much TV.”

Last Book Read: “By George, the autobiography of George Foreman.”

Early Boxing Memory: “When I came to box at the gym when I was 13. I sparred with a guy who was 20. Big difference, he was a man, bigger, taller, stronger. I beat him up. I trained a few months before he did, so I knew some technique, some punches, how to throw them. That day gave me some great feelings, made me feel like a hero, like I did something.”

Favorite Meal: “Steak.”

Favorite Breakfast Cereal: “Eggs – I believe that without the eggs, breakfast has no meaning. Gotta have eggs.”

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “Vanilla.”

Current Car: “Lexus 460 (silver).”

Pre-Fight Feeling: “Scared [laughs]. No, think what I need to do to win. Do everything in my power to win the fight. (Look at opponent upon entering ring?) You have to break him – not by visual – you have to break him by your hands. Think about breaking him psychologically.”

Pre-Fight Superstition: “I won’t tell you.”

Greatest Sports Moment: “Well, not yet. It hasn’t happened yet.”

Most Painful Moment: “Oh, the loss. Every loss. When you lose in boxing it’s the most painful. You lose mentally, physically, you are sore. All losses are the most painful thing.”

When Were You At Best?: “I think the best fight I had was with (Samson) Pou’ha. It was supposed to be easy fight for me. Turned into a nightmare. I was taking a beating. Then I won, pretty amazing.”

Hardest Punchers: “They’re all heavyweights you have to remember.”

Toughest Opponent: “It may be ironically, but toughest opponent was Riddick Bowe. He took so much beating and he still want to fight. Didn’t give up. It was amazing. It amazed me, boxing, you know? (How good was Bowe?) Well, in the first fight he wasn’t ready. In the second one, he understood he wish he was never ready.”

Toughest Part Of Boxing: “Pressure from you guys (media). You’re watching every step.”

Favorite Boxers To Watch: “Especially impress me was Bernard Hopkins. Really slick fighter, very smart fighter. Fun to watch him. Hopkins surprised me against De La Hoya. He didn’t rush, he stayed in his gameplan. He was unbelievable, like a professor. He boxes like a professor. I like his way he fought. He stuck with his gameplan. It was easy, step by step. He threw his punches one at a time. He didn’t try to take big steps, just little steps. One step at a time.”

Funny Boxing Memory: “The ring is not a place to laugh, to make fun of [smiles]. Maybe with the fight with Pou’ha, was in Atlantic City in ‘95 I believe. He claimed to the referee that I bit him. The ref said, What are you saying? Fight again! And after the fight, one of the reporters came to my locker room and said to one of my cornermen, He bit him, he really bit him! (My cornerman was like) What are you talking about [smiles]? Later, on Tuesday Night Fights – they record this fight and they showed bite on TV again. They showed it on the TV all over again, all night long. All week long on shows. So that’s pretty much a funny one I can recall. Nobody believed it in the first place, but it happened. Nobody saw it in the first place.”

Favorite Vacation Spot: “Well, for example, I love where it’s nice.”

People Qualities Most Admired: “Just to be fair, be fair – one to the other. And people that never give up…people that try to do something in life.”

Status: Professional boxer. #7 WBO Cruiserweight contender. Member of 2000 Brazilian Olympic Team. Pro record is 32-2 (29 KO’s).

Ht: 6-1 Wt: 200

DOB: June 29, 1976 In: Matogrosso, Brazil

Boxing Inspirations: “Sugar Ray Leonard, Roy Jones Jr., Mike Tyson.”

Hobbies/Leisure Activities: “Soccer. Go out with friends, enjoy life.”

First Boxing Memory: “Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Marvin Hagler. I was nine or ten. I remember one of the rounds they kept fighting after the bell. Both exchanging punches in the middle of the ring. Hagler to the body, Leonard to the head. Wow. Nice. Beautiful. I loved it. Momentous forever. Leonard was a little smarter, with speed. Hagler was stronger.”

Favorite Movie: “Mel Gibson Braveheart. I like the heart of a warrior. The way a warrior is suppsed to go out.”

Last Book Read: “I’m not Muslim but I like to read the Qoran.”

Musical Tastes: “Samba, 50 Cent, Akon, R&B, I like the beats, the way they sing, to hear the words.”

First Job: “Worked on a farm with father. Cutting sugar canes.”

Current Car: “Pilot (red).”

Favorite Meal: “Hot, spicy rice. No, correct that – shredded beef loin with peppers, onions.”

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “Banana.”

Greatest Career Moment (so far): “In Miami. I fought a Latin American champion, Freddy Moore, light heavyweight (in 2003). I knocked him out in the fifth round with a right hook. Fedelatin title.”

Most Painful Moment: “In Germany, I wasn’t mentally prepared. 2007. I lost a fight (by KO 8 to Grigory Drozd in 2007). That was the most sorrow moment. I felt like I could have done better if I was mentally prepared better.”

Funny Boxing Memory: “A guy said, Let’s spar! Come, let’s get it on! I hit him with a body shot. The kid lost his breath and started crying [smiles].”

Favorite Boxers To Watch: “Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather.”

Childhood Dream: “I always wanted to be a champion, since I was a kid.”

Toughest Opponent: “Freddy Moore. He had one loss in 30 fights, 25 knockouts. He gave me the fight of his life.”

People Qualities Most Admired: “It doesn’t matter what state of mind they’re in. It’s what’s in their heart that matters.”

Status: Hall of Fame Boxing Referee.

DOB: January 27, 1926 In: Brockton, MA

Passed Away: April 10, 2010

(Note: This Biofile was originally done in 1995 and was published in an issue of Boxing 95 magazine.)

First Boxing Memory: “My uncle Joe fought James J. Braddock three times. They each won one and drew one. He also fought Max Schmeling at The Garden. He was my mother’s brother and I idolized him. I was in awe. We used to go to Ernie Schaaf’s gym together. Jack Sharkey would be there.”

Childhood Heroes: “Joe Louis – I met him. He was a very down-to-earth fellow, very easy to talk to. Joe Di Maggio. Jackie Robinson.”

Childhood Dream: “I always wanted to be a physical education teacher. They always seemed well built and well dressed, so I went into the field. And I’m still in. I’m Deputy Commissioner of Parks & Recreation in Hempstead.”

Pre-Fight Feeling: “It doesn’t matter to me anymore. After being in the ring for 50 years, there’s no situation I haven’t encountered. After the bell sounds, the boxer’s nervousness and butterflies are all over. It’s the same with referees.”

Greatest Sports Moment: “Refereeing Ali-Frazier I (the “Fight of the Century” in 1971 at Madison Square Garden). It was a great honor and a great feeling. And I only got paid $750!”

Most Painful Moment: “It was the second Patterson-Johansson fight at The Polo Grounds in 1960. Johansson went down in the fifth from a great left hook. He was bleeding from the mouth and his legs were quivering. I was definitely afraid, very concerned. It could have been the end. It wasn’t that I let the fight go too long. It was just one punch. Now, if I see a fighter winning every round, I stop it.”

Toughest Boxers Encountered: “My feeling is that they’re all tough or they wouldn’t be in boxing. Still, some of them stand out in my mind. Joe Frazier was a bull, a tough, tough guy. You’d have to hit him with a sledgehammer to knock him out. George Foreman knocked him down six times, but he was up and ready to go when I stopped the fight.”

Favorite Boxers To Watch: “Ray Robinson – my all time selection as best fighter. I worked his last fight at The Garden versus Denny Moyer. Muhammad Ali – he was very clever and a great jab. Roy Jones – he’s going to be tough to beat. Alexis Arguello. Julio Cesar Chavez. Frankie Randall.”

Favorite Fights: “Hagler-Hearns. Ali-Frazier I, III. Benny Kid Paret-Federico Thompson II.”

Favorite Movies: “Requiem for a Heavyweight, The Informer.”

Musical Tastes: “Opera, Madam Butterfly, Traviata.”

Closest Boxing Friends: “Gil Clancy. He was here yesterday for breakfast.”

Hobbies/Interests: “Woodworking. I always get the urge to go down to the basement and make something, like a birdhouse. Gardening. I get a great thrill seeing seeds come out of the earth. It’s very soothing.”

Little-Known Fact: “When I was at NYU, I got an athletic letter in diving. I was metropolitan champion.”

Embarrassing Boxing Memory:  “I don’t remember any. Nothing comes to mind.”

You Refereed Ali vs. Frazier I and Tyson vs. Tubbs – who do you see winning Tyson or Ali?  “I think Ali would have beaten Tyson because, Ali, he gets in and he gets out and moves. Throws beautiful jabs. I think he would outclass him. I really do.”

Strange Fight Memory:  “There was the fight between Arguello and Escalera in Puerto Rico, where Escalera received a tremendous beating and in Puerto Rico, the doctor was able to stop the fight only. And he wouldn’t stop the fight. So it went to the 12th round. So I finally overruled him by outsmarting him. I got in the middle of the ring and raised my arm – the doctor just stopped the fight. And I was saved – otherwise they would have killed me.”