"I'd label myself as a Russian-Israeli-Jewish boxer living in America," Yuri Foreman told a crowd of about 45 in Rapaporte Treasure Hall last on the night of Feb. 8 at an event hosted by the Brandeis-Genesis Institute for Russian Jewry.Foreman shared the unique story of his journey from his hometown in Gomel, Belarus in the 1980s all the way to Yankee Stadium in June 2010, where he defended his super welterweight title from the World Boxing Association.

Foreman's career began at the early age of 7, when his parents wanted him to become a swimmer. His swimming career, however, was short-lived. "I got bullied. ... I came home with a shiner, and my mom took me the next day to the boxing gym and told them to 'make a man out of him,'" Foreman told the crowd.

This was the first of the many tales that Foreman told in a humorous and inspiring narrative that portrayed the life of someone who overcame many obstacles in order to reach his potential and, on the way, found a new life that motivates him through his stressful and exciting career.

At the age of 10, Foreman and his parents moved to Israel and settled in Haifa, where there were no boxing gyms to be found. After giving up the sport for a few years, an opportunity to revamp his would-be career appeared. He heard about a boxing gym in an Arab village close to where he lived, and although he knew that he "[might] not be very welcome there ... [he] came and starting fighting the Arabs."

From there, he just kept fighting. He won three national titles in Israel, but despite the victories, he felt that he would not reach his potential until he competed on the international stage. "I figured I [had] reached [my] potential [in Israel]. I figured I needed to go to a place where I could achieve more."

That place was America. "In Israel there were no role models for me," he explained. "There was no Israeli boxer that I was looking up to. When I was starting, all the boxers were from America. Muhammad Ali [and] Mike Tyson [were the] big names."

A year after tragically losing his mother when he was only 17, Foreman made his way to Brooklyn, N.Y. to follow his dream of being the best. Leaving his home, his family and his friends, Foreman traveled alone to a big city which he knew was prone to swallowing up the weak and allowing the strong to flourish. "Since I was a little kid, I knew in New York you could make anything happen. ... I went to Ben Gurion [International Airport] with [just] the American dream and a backpack. ... After that I was pretty much trying to grab the bull by the horns," he said.

Once in America, Foreman found that attempting to fend for himself while simultaneously training to become a professional boxer was not exactly the American dream he had pictured.

"I needed to find a place to live, to find a job to pay for a place to live and to put some food in my belly," Foreman said. After working 9 hours a day at a garment store, he would force himself to train, knowing that his goal was not just to make it in America but to make it as a professional. Both mentally and physically drained, Foreman contemplated going back to Israel. While dealing with these hardships, something unexpected occurred that sparked a new life within him-he met a rabbi.

Meeting the rabbi initiated a progression of events that led Foreman to where he is now-in his third year of studying in a rabbinical school. While attending a class on mysticism, Foreman was hooked from the first piece of advice the rabbi shared: "Life is like a boxing match. Sometimes you're lying on your back and looking at the light. Judaism helps you dodge the punches."

The concept of Judaism and observance was very foreign to Foreman when he first encountered the rabbi. Born in the Soviet Union in 1980, Foreman had no exposure to Judaism because religion was forbidden. "If Christianity was like Judaism, even Jesus would not have gotten a visa," Foreman joked about his religious experience in the Soviet Union.

With a childhood devoid of religion, Foreman felt that "Judaism was something of a very abstract piece of art. I'm not great with abstract art," he admitted. "I was ignorant,] ... but that shaped me in many ways." The deeper he delved into Judaism, the easier it became to connect his career with his newfound spirituality. He expressed that he thinks Judaism "goes hand in hand with boxing."

"Young kids can achieve their potential by pursuing their goals and dreams," Foreman emphasized."Each of us has tremendous unique potential. The potential we can achieve is something we can't even imagine. Most of humanity never even achieves [this] potential; it's possible to do all this with hard work," Foreman said, sending an inspirational spirit rippling through the crowd. "We are all fighters, no matter what we do.