Oscar de la Hoya's life at 'rock bottom'
Battling addictions to cocaine and alcohol and is seeking to rebuild his relationship with his wife after being unfaithful
It's the biggest fight of my life
Former boxing champ and Olympic gold medallist Oscar De La Hoya says he is battling addictions to cocaine and alcohol and seeking to rebuild his relationship with his wife after being unfaithful.
De La Hoya, in his first interview since leaving a Malibu rehabilitation clinic, told the Spanish-language network Univision in an interview broadcast on Tuesday that his life was "a big mess".
"Rock bottom was recently, within a couple of years. Just, thinking, 'Is my life even worth it?,'" De La Hoya said.
The 38 year-old former boxer, who won a gold medal in the 1992 Olympic games in Barcelona, said that he thought about committing suicide, but does not "have the courage" to take his own life.
De La Hoya, a Mexican-American fighter with matinee idol good looks, said that he has been sober for three months.
He also discussed his difficulties with wife Millie Corretjer, a Puerto Rican-born singer with whom he has two children.
"I've been unfaithful to my wife," De La Hoya told Univision.
He added that he had cheated more than once, and that he was separated from his wife for a time.
"I don't want to explain to her anymore that I'm doing well, I want to show her," he said. "It's like they say, you have to walk the walk, and that's what I'm doing."
De La Hoya said he abused alcohol and cocaine, and that he began using cocaine about two and a half years ago, about the time he retired from boxing in 2009.
The boxer also said that before he left the rehabilitation centre in Malibu, he paid for another three weeks of treatment in case he needs to return in the future.
"It's the biggest fight of my life," he said.
He described his addiction problems as a "monster," and compared it to the top boxers he has fought in the past.
"I've been up against, you name it, everybody. I can put Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather, (Fernando) Vargas, I can put all of my opponents in one ring and battle all of them, but this monster is going to be the toughest fight of my life."
De La Hoya ended his career with a win-loss record of 39-6 including 30 knockouts.
Since retiring from the ring, he has remained involved in boxing as a promoter with his Golden Boy Promotions company.
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Comments
Livelifemolefe
Fame+money= Drugs and women or drugs and men.Report Abuse
dre10
That's what happens when u don't pay your Tithes in church and u become boostful, forgetting that it is god who gave u your talent,Report Abuse
Mahlol'adibona
C'mon Oscar, what went wrong in your life? I used to follow your fights morena. drugs are a danger to our society.Report Abuse
OMG-girl
The world has knocked his a.ss off its axis and NOW he wants to return to the wife?!!Report Abuse
Tazwai
dre10That's what happens when u don't pay your Tithes in church and u become boostful, forgetting that it is god who gave u your talent,
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@dre10....your Pastor must be a Ngerian, he's got u good with stories about tithes neh? Tithes go to greedy priest and not God
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Vhamsanda
Drugs and women are a rich man's greatest enemies.Report Abuse
Mahlol'adibona
@ Vhamsanda, DRUGS are killing our people. I'll beg to differ on women. Check the below extract:"IS IT BETTER TO SETTLE FOR LESS OR BE ALONE" POST FROM A BLACK MAN ON BLACKVOICES. HE'S DEFINITELY TELLING IT LIKE IT IS. READ ON... BOTTOM LINE-IF I SLEEP WITH A WOMAN I DON'T KNOW OR CARE ABOUT SEX IS NOT GOING TO MAKE ME CARE. THAT KIND OF SEX IS LIKE SCRATCHING AN ITCH. ONCE A MAN SCRATCHES, HE'S THROUGH. HE AIN'T SITTING AROUND THINKING ABOUT THAT SPOT THAT ITCHED OR HOW GOOD IT FELT SCRATCHING IT. HE'S MOVING ON WITH HIS LIFE UNTIL THAT SPOT ITCHES AGAIN AND IT DON'T MATTER WHICH HAND HE SCRATCHES IT WITH, JUST AS LONG AS HE GETS RID OF THE ITCH.
TOO MANY WOMEN PRETEND THEY CAN HANDLE A SEXUAL FLING, BUT WIND UP GETTING CAUGHT UP AND WANTING US TO ROMANCE AND WINE AND DINE THEM AND PRETEND WE'RE HAVING A "RELATIONSHIP" WHEN IT'S NOTHING BUT A BOOOTY CALL. COME ON, LADIES, Y'ALL KNOW I'M TELLING THE TRUTH. UNFORTUNATELY, LADIES, YOU ARE PART OF OUR PROBLEM. YOU SLEEP WITH US BEFORE YOU KNOW US OR WHAT WE'RE ABOUT.
HAVING SEX WITH A MAN DOES NOT AUTOMATICALLY MAKE THAT A "RELATIONSHIP".
MANY WOMEN WILL DENY THEY THINK LIKE THIS BUT I'M SPEAKING FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE. ALSO, LADIES KNOW WHEN THEIR MEN ARE FOOLING AROUND AND STILL TURN A BLIND EYE BY GETTING MAD AT THE OTHER WOMAN. NOW WHAT KIND OF SENSE DOES THAT MAKE? WHY SHOULD THAT WOMAN MAKE YOU(A TOTAL
STRANGER) A PRIORITY IN HER LIFE? IF HE DID NOT MARRY YOU HE IS STILL SINGLE.
THE "OTHER WOMAN" IS NOT BREAKING UP A "HAPPY HOME". MANY WOMEN MARRY MEN WHO WERE CHEATING BEFORE THEY WALKED DOWN THE AISLE AND THEN ARE SHOCKED THAT A FANCY WEDDING DRESS OR AN EXPENSIVE WALK DOWN THE AISLE DIDN'T CHANGE WHO HE WAS. WHY SHOULD HE CHANGE? YOU LET HIM KNOW IT WAS ACCEPTABLE BY STICKING AROUND THAT LONG. LADIES, START LIVING WITH YOUR EYES OPEN.
MOST SHADY MEN GIVE THEMSELVES AWAY ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, USUALLY BEFORE THE FIRST 30 DAYS. WOMEN HAVE TO STOP "REWARDING" UNFAITHFUL MEN BY PRETENDING IT AIN'T HAPPENING.
ALL OF US BLACK MEN (BM) DO NOT CHEAT. I DO NOT CHEAT ON MY LADY SO DON'T BUY THE HYPE. I KNOW OTHER BM WHO DO NOT BUT MANY MEN WILL CHEAT IF THERE ARE NO REAL PENALTIES FOR IT. STOP JUMPING INTO BED WITH BROTHERS YOU DON'T KNOW.
THAT MEANS FEWER OPPORTUNITIES FOR MEN TO CHEAT. WOMEN HAVE TO STOP BEING SO AFRAID TO ASK THE IMPORTANT QUESTIONS THAT WOULD REVEAL HIS TRUE LIFESTYLE. WORRY LESS ABOUT WHAT KIND OF JOB HE HAS AND WHAT KIND OF CAR HE DRIVES AND ENCOURAGE HIM TO TALK ABOUT HIS PAST, PARTICULARLY HIS PAST WITH WOMEN.
OPEN THOSE EARS AND LISTEN. DOES HE PUT DOWN HIS EX-WOMEN AND BLAME THEM FOR EVERYTHING? AND DON'T BE SO VAIN. YOU ARE NOT A BETTER WOMAN THAN HIS LAST. IF HE DOGGED HER OUT, YOU WILL PROBABLY BE NEXT. OBSERVE HIM WHEN YOU ARE WITH HIM. DO YOU HAVE HIS HOME NUMBER? WORK NUMBER? HAVE YOU SEEN WHERE HE LIVES? WHERE HE WORKS? IS HE SECRETIVE? DID YOU ASK IF HE'S MARRIED OR ENGAGED?
HOW DOES HE TREAT OTHER PEOPLE? LISTEN TO WHAT HE SAYS, NOT WHAT YOU WANT TO HEAR. STOP INTERPRETING THE MEANING OF WHAT HE SAYS TO FIT YOUR PURPOSE. IF HE SAYS, "I'M NOT LOOKIN' FOR NOTHING RIGHT NOW" - DON'T TELL YOURSELF, "AW, HE IS JUST SCARED OF GETTING HURT. I CAN CHANGE HIS MIND.." NO YOU CAN'T.
HE SAID EXACTLY WHAT THE H3LL HE MEANT. BM (Black Men) DON'T HAVE TO LIE WHEN SO MANY BW (Black Women) ARE ALREADY DEAF. IF YOU CAN'T ANSWER BASIC QUESTIONS ABOUT A MAN DON'T OPEN YOUR LEGS. I COULD KINDA UNDERSTAND BACK IN THE DAYS WHEN SEX WOULDN'T KILL PEOPLE BUT NOW? THERE'S NO EXCUSE AND IF A BW TAKES THAT HUGE RISK OF SLEEPING WITH A STRANGER THEN SHE BETTER PROTECT HERSELF - SEXUALLY AND EMOTIONALLY.
SHOW OUR D*CK TO THE DOOR IF WE PRESSURE YOU FOR SEX TOO SOON. DON'T BE AFRAID TO BE ALONE. AFTER YOU GIVE OUR D*CK SOME YOU WILL PROBABLY BE ALONE ANYWAY BUT NOW YOU FEEL LIKE A FOOL. IN OTHER WORDS, TAKE YOUR TIME AND CHECK US OUT. IF WE REALLY LIKE YOU, WE'LL STICK AROUND. BUT IF YOU DECIDED TO SLEEP WITH A MAN YOU HARDLY KNOW, PROTECT YOURSELF AND KEEP YOUR EXPECTATIONS TO ZERO. WE DO NOT OWE YOU A RELATIONSHIP OR ANOTHER DATE JUST BECAUSE YOU HAD SEX WITH US.
THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS, BABY YOU ARE TOTALLY RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN SEXUAL BEHAVIOR THE SAME AS I AM. BLAMING THE MAN WON'T CHANGE A DAMN THING. BW HAVE TO LOOK IN THE MIRROR AND TAKE SOME OF THE BLAME FOR WHAT'S WRONG WITH BM/BW RELATIONSHIPS. LET ME END BY SAYING....
SEX DOES NOT EQUAL A RELATIONSHIP. GIVING A MAN A READY-MADE FAMILY WILL NOT MAKE HIM COMMIT IF HE DOESN'T WANT TO. A MAN WILL NOT RESPECT A WOMAN WHO DOES NOT RESPECT HERSELF OR HER BODY, IF YOU TRADE SEX FOR MATERIAL THINGS YOU ARE PROSTITUTING YOURSELF. IF HE DOESN'T TAKE CARE OF HIS OTHER CHILDREN WHY WOULD YOU HAVE A BABY WITH HIM? IF YOU REWARD A DOG WHY SHOULD MEN STOP BEING DOGS? BRING MORE TO THE TABLE THAN YOUR BODY. NO, YOUR VAG!NA IS NOT MADE OF GOLD. IT IS ONLY AS GOOD AS I THINK IT IS. BELIEVE THAT.
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ChildofGod
It is said to hear this about Oscar, this world is absolutely void of role models and he was once. Obviously he has come clean and one hopes his relations are restored. The only people hurting are those that love and care for him. But this shows us that without godly principles we are doomed (Not that Christians are holier than thou). This world is crying out to upright men and women of honour, I hope all of us reading hear can stand up to be counted.Let us be people of integrity and raise sons and daughters who are upright morally.
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Masheleng
@ Maholadibaona,Chief, you are supposed to just make your point as briefly as you possibly can. We don't have the whole day, some of us have jobs. Be brief, chief.
And.... take it easy. Geesus, channel your passion onto something beneficial to your well being.
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Mahlol'adibona
@ Masheleng, you must start to adopt a culture of reading. It is none of my business on wether you have time to read or not. Just don't make your problems my problems. Okay?@ Childof God, drugs are just bad for any nation. I wonder why our govt is doing little to eradicate the drug-lords from the face of our beautiful country. I know of families that have suffered a lot because of a drug addict in their midst.
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