(Photo: Wikicommons)

Known as “Little Chocolate,” featherweight boxer George Dixon, born on July 29, 1870, made a giant impact on the sport, becoming the first Black person to win a title.

Despite his small stature of only 5 feet 3 1/2 inches tall and weighing around 120 pounds, Dixon is credited with developing many of the hallmark boxing training techniques still used today, including the suspended punching bag and shadow boxing. He died penniless on Jan. 6, 1909.

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