Thanks to misinformation spread by anti-vaxxers and a former rival, the grieving widow of boxing legend “Marvelous” Marvin Hagler felt the need to explain that her husband’s unexpected death was not caused by a COVID-19 vaccination is not.
Kay Hagler, the boxer’s wife of more than 20 years, issued a statement by the same Facebook fan group on Monday announcing her husband’s death. After thanking fans for their love and supportive messages, Hagler denies the speculation that the death was caused by COVID-19 vaccine complications, calling such comments ‘stupid’ and ‘nonsense’.
Hagler’s response is that she admits that her English is not perfect:
I was the only one closest to him until the last minute, and I’m the only person who knows how things went, not even his family knows all the details, and I do NOT accept to read a stupid comment without really to know what is happening. The vaccine that caused his death was definitely not. My baby left in peace with his usual smile and now is not the time to talk nonsense.
Hagler then announced that there would be no funeral because Marvin hates funerals, but she plans ‘something special’ in line with his wishes.
How Marvin Hagler’s death turned into an anti-vaccine cry
The death of ‘Marvelous’ Marvin Hagler was announced on Saturday, and no cause of death was announced. It did not take long before reckless speculation spread.
Much of the speculation was prompted by an Instagram message from Hagler’s rival, Thomas Hearns, in which he claims Hagler was in the ICU to fight the effects of the vaccine. Hearns later denounced in another post anti-vaccine messages that sprang from his post. From The Ring magazine:
“Allow us to have peace. Our love and respect for Marvin and his family, this is not an anti-vaccine campaign … It is outrageous to keep this in mind during the passing of a king, legend, father, husband and so much more. ‘
Outlets like The Daily Mail and Fox News quickly passed on Hearns’ message to their readers. Other figures, such as former MLB player and well-known Twitter agitator Aubrey Huff, en rapper RA the Rugged Man was also spreading the story. Numerous anti-vaccine accounts on Twitter can be seen (and can still be seen) pushing the narrative. Some, like Huff, likened the situation to the false story of Hank Aaron who presumably died for the same reason.
Snopes has since hailed the Hagler rumor as false.
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