In a Yahoo! Sports article by Kevin Iole, world champion boxer Oscar de la Hoya admits to being an alcoholic, cheating on his wife, and considering suicide. Read the article here.
But in an act that may take more courage than getting in the boxing ring, de la Hoya says he’s chosen to seek help because he is selfish, which he regards as a virtue, not a vice. As 38-year-old de la Hoya, who admitted himself for addiction treatment into the Betty Ford clinic, said: “I did this for myself…I’ve learned the hard way [that] being an addict isn’t easy, especially for a public person like me. I’ve had people of all walks of life coming up to me and crying and telling me about their lives and problems. I’m happy if I could help them and get them some relief, but I did what I did for me.”
Good for de la Hoya, who announced his retirement in 2009 and is the president of Golden Boy Promotions. Everyone knows that cleaning up and overcoming addiction is enormously difficult. Not everyone knows that being selfish is the first step.