MAX SCHMELING

Max Schmeling was a German boxer who was heavyweight champion of the world between 1930 and 1932. His two fights with Joe Louis in 1936 and 1938 were worldwide cultural events because of their national associations. During World War II (WWII), Schmeling served with the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) as an elite paratrooper. After the war, Schmeling mounted a comeback, but retired permanently in 1948. Schmeling passed away in 2005 at the age of 99