Big George Foreman, the former heavyweight boxing champion, was given as huge a reception as he ever received at the ringside when he arrived at the Limerick housing estate of Southill yesterday afternoon.
He was accompanied by his wife and his friend George Kemble, the Boston journalist and Irish Times sports columnist.
Their host, Father Joe Young, chairman of the local boxing club who first suggested the visit nine years ago when he was in the US, said: "Every man, woman and child is here today to honour George. It is a milestone in the history of the community that has been devastated in so many different ways, mainly by unemployment."
The community, he said, was unfortunately identified with the 1 per cent of culprits responsible for the bad things. "This is an opportunity for the other 99 per cent to show that they are committed to a better quality of life."
The "Rumble in the Jungle" boxing legend said he was bringing the youngsters a message to "get high on life not on drugs. Clean up your lives as I did. I myself came from the impossible and have dedicated my life to physical fitness. From a once hopeless position I have found it possible to reach happiness, become rich and famous and somebody my dear mother was proud of."
He said he first fell in love with Ireland when he saw the film Ryan's Daughter. George Foreman has been a Baptist preacher since 1977, but Father Young said he had not known that until after they had both placed their hands on the head of George Kemble, who at the time was very depressed because of the illness of his wife. That was when they first met after Foreman had defeated Gerry Cooney in the world title fight in Atlanta in 1990.
The first stop yesterday was at Sarsfield Barracks, Limerick, where the group was welcomed by Lieut Col Mathew O'Brien, O/C 12th Battalion. Pte Tony Loughney, the former Irish international boxer who is trainer to the Southill Boxing Club, presented a statuette to Mr Foreman "on behalf of all the soldiers in the barracks".
Later, without ceremony, the former world champion gave Pte Loughney a cheque for $20,000 (£14,600) for his juvenile boxing club.
After visiting the boxing club and Hogan Park, where Father Young is chairman of Limerick FC, the final engagement of the day was at the Holy Family Church, Southill. Today, the party will visit blood-stock centres on their way to Dublin.