1. the times | Wednesday December 11 2013 1GM 7
News
Beckham: ‘I can’t keep up with 11-year-old Romeo’
Mike Tyson barred from UK
book tour over prison record
Mike Tyson, the former world heavy-
weight boxer and convicted rapist, has
been barred from entering Britain.
Tyson is in Paris, from where he was
to fly into London yesterday as part of
a promotional tour for his autobiogra-
phy Undisputed Truth.
It is understood that he was warned
that he would be refused entry because
of immigration rules introduced last
year, making it more difficult for con-
victed criminals to enter Britain.
Tyson was convicted in 1992 for the
rape of a teenage beauty queen, and
served three years of a six-year
sentence. He also has convictions for
assault, cocaine possession and driving
under the influence.
The new rules have reduced officials’
ability to use discretion. Refusal of
entry is now mandatory for anyone
whohasbeensentencedtofouryearsor
more in prison at any time.
Tyson, 47, had been tweeting about
his planned visit to Britain asking on
December 6: “So, UK fans, who is brave
enough to get in the ring and ask me a
question?”
He had been booked to take part in a
Times+ question and answer session-
during his visit, but that has now been
cancelled. A spokesman for Harper-
Collins, which was organising the Brit-
ish part of the tour, said: “There was a
change in the UK immigration law in
December 2012 of which we were una-
ware. For this reason Mike had to
change location to Paris to salvage his
press obligations.”
The Home Office refused to com-
mentspecifically,butaspokesmansaid:
“In December 2012 we toughened up
the rules on entering the UK, replacing
the previous discretionary approach
with a clearer, stronger framework in-
cluding mandatory refusals based on
the length of, and time since, sentence.”
Tyson became the youngest heavy-
weight champion in history at 20 in
1986, and his stellar career made him
one of the most famous boxers in histo-
ry. But his reputation in the ring was
overshadowed by his equally extreme
behaviour outside of it.
Sonia Elks
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John Westerby
Beckham was speaking about his his retirement to readers at a Times+ event
As he comes to term with his retire-
ment from professional football, David
Beckham is given a reminder of his
advancing years by his 11-year-old son
before dawn on the streets of London.
Oneofthefittestplayersofhisgener-
ation, Beckham told an audience of
Times readers last night of his struggle
to keep up with Romeo, his second son,
below,onmorningrunsneartheirLon-
don home.
As part of his preparations for a
three-mile run, Beckham Jnr was told
by his famously dedicated father on
Monday evening to set his alarm for a
training run at 6am. Expecting his son
to need rousing at such an early hour,
Beckham then suggested to his wife,
Victoria, that she set their own alarm
for 6.30am.
“At 6am on the dot, I felt a tug on my
arm and I heard, ‘Daddy, it’s time to get
up’,” Beckham said. “He’s one of those
annoying runners who always want to
beonestepinfrontofyou.Weranthree
and a half miles and the third mile was
thequickestofallofthem.Iwasbreath-
ing hard. He was a step ahead of me the
whole way. My drive must have rubbed
off on him. I was very proud of him.”
Speaking at the Times Plus event at
theNationalFootballMuseuminMan-
chester, Beckham spoke of his desire to
bring up his four children – Brooklyn,
14, Romeo, Cruz, 8, and Harper, 2 – in
the same way that he was
raised by his own par-
ents.
“Iwaslucky,”hesaid.
“My dad pushed me
and pushed me, but he
gave me a lot of sup-
port.Somekidsdon’tre-
act well to that, but I was
one of the lucky
ones. He’d put
an arm
round me
when it
was
need
ed.
“I just like to win, even if it’s
playing in the garden with my
kids. I take it easy on them
to a certain point, but
they have got to learn
to win. They do actu-
ally win most of the
time, certainly
when there are three
of them against me.
My parents had a great
work ethic. It’s about sac-
rifice and dedication.”
Brooklyn Beckham has am-
bitions of following his father into pro-
fessional football.
He has had trials with a number of
English clubs and recently played for
Fulham’s under-15 team. Beckham, 38,
retired from professional football in
May after a short stint playing in the
French league for Paris Saint Germain.
Last night he was returning to the city
in which he made his name as a player,
with Manchester United.
Asked how he dealt with pressure
during his football career, especially
when he was vilified after being sent off
in the 1998 World Cup, Beckham said
that he reminded himself to enjoy his
job. “Pressure is going to Afghanistan
and fighting,” he said. “Playing football
is fun, simple as that.”
One of Beckham’s projects in retire-
ment is to establish a new franchise in
Major League Soccer, the leading club
competition in the United States, in
which he played for LA Galaxy. “It’s a
league I think will grow to become one
of the biggest in the world,” he said. “I
haven’tannouncedwheremyfranchise
is going to be yet, but it’s something I’m
very excited about.”
His plans will not, however, involve a
move into management. He said: “I’m
passionate about coaching kids; but be-
ingmanagerofateam,Idon’tthinkthat
will ever happen.”
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER, BRADLEY ORMESHER