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Hes the 6-foot-5 super-heavyweight boxer with a degree in fine art. A former lifeguard, rugby prospect and Sacramento State cheerleader whose most cherished work is a Muhammad Ali painting.Meet Team GBs Joe Joyce, one of the favourites to land a gold in the ring at the Rio Olympics.The 30-year-old is as happy waxing lyrical about Picassos Cubism as Cubas pugilists and appears to have lived a more-than-full life already. Hes almost as intriuiging as his inspiration, Ali, was, and a talented artist, in a very different way.I wasnt really a boxing fan as a kid but everyone loves Ali, dont they? Joyce said.It was the messages he brought across, the way he spoke, the courageous stances he took on things and then, of course, his boxing skills. To me, hes been a great icon to look up to, a real role model.Talking at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield, Joyce was among the British Olympians preparing for the Rio Games in a boxing gym dominated by two vast photographs of Ali.One features the young Cassius Clay receiving his light-heavyweight gold medal in Rome 1960. Joyces own portrait of the Greatest is a fiery image of him holding up his hand swathed in boxing tape, with passion in his eyes and a mouth in overdrive.To me, that [guy is a] real inspiration. Every day, said the Englishman.Ali would have liked Joyce, you suspect, even if personality-wise, they would have taken up opposite corners.Celebratory back flips in the ring apart, there is little of the Americans outrageous showmanship in Joyces make-up.However, there is a quiet charisma and the sort of imposing presence that only a 17-stone colossus can radiate.Reflective and laid back when interviewed, Joyce the fighter was called a beast by?Anthony Joshua, Britains holder of the Olympic super-heavyweight title who has gone on as a professional to own the IBF version of the world heavyweight title.Outside the ring I can be very laid back, he said. Yet if youre trying to beat me, to take away what Ive got, my success, Ill want to beat you and Ill leave it all out there in the ring. Im all business there.Theres no great artistic flair with me in the ring. Im probably more mechanical than Ali but Ive only been boxing since I was 22. Sometimes I wish maybe Id started at 18.The reason Joyce didnt start 12 years ago was because his intelligent, artistic bent and all-round sporting talent sent him on so many other journeys of experimentation.Oh, you heard about the cheerleader stuff? he said, when asked to reflect on the semester, during his final year studying at Middlesex University, when he went on exchange to Sacramento State.I wasnt waving pom-poms! he promptly protested. I was chatting to this cheerleader there and she said, Oh, you should come to practice with us.It turned out they were looking for strong blokes and it was a bit like gymnastics. I learned about tumbling and I had to throw the girl up in the air and catch her by her feet.The worst thing about cheerleading is the actual cheerleading bit, all the clapping and cheering lets go team and all that. At the basketball, the players on court were all looking at me, this tall English guy, like, Mate, shouldnt you be out here with us?Joyce probably could have been a decent basketball player, too, such has been his all-round sporting prowess. He was good at karate and kung fu -- Bruce Lee was another of his best paintings -- played under-18s county rugby for Surrey as a lock forward, long jumped and triple jumped to a high standard. He also acted as a swimming instructor.When he saw some guys playing American Football at Londons Lee Valley athletics track during his track and field training, he couldnt resist having a go at that, too, until he got bored with chasing balls around.Nothing on the sporting front, though, tickled Joyce like the moment he had a go at thumping a punchbag in the Middlesex University gym; it was love at first thwack.Asked whether he believes he really is a talented artist, Joyce shrugged: Yeah, Im pretty good actually.Artistically, he is into abstract works and symbolism. The work of Jean-Michel Basquiat, the young American street artist became a pop icon before his death at 27 from a heroin overdose, he admires.Joyce is fascinated by iconography, too. Indeed, he once painted a series of portraits of modern-day icons. As well as Ali and Lee, he chose Beyonce, Michael Jackson and the Williams sisters, Venus and Serena.The common thread? They got to the very peak of their professions, he said. Boxings the vehicle to take me to the top of a profession.Good judges believe he has a chance. Hes won gold in the Commonwealth Games and European Games; hes beaten Cubas best in Cuba and has stood on the podium at the world championships.Like Joshua and so many others before him, Joyce sees an Olympic gold as the last stop before a lucrative pro career in the heavyweight division.Heavyweights peak in their late 30s so it might be the ideal time to start a pro career after the Games, he said. Ill be well-experienced then, ready to take on the pros and as its a really exciting time for the heavyweight division at the moment -- it could be perfect timing.Inevitably, and maybe a bit tiresomely for Joyce, his name always has seemingly always been linked to that of Joshua, with whom he has enjoyed plenty of lively sparring sessions.Maybe he can punch his way out of the brilliant young world champs shadow, especially after he qualified for Rio by defeating Azerbaijans Magomedrasul Majidov, the last man to beat Joshua, in the European qualifying tournament in Turkey.For the moment, Joyces art ambitions are on hold. He would normally work from a little studio at the flat he shares with his art-loving mum in south London.While he was training and living in the northern English city of Sheffield, though, he admitted: I get ideas for painting and sketches and I even bought a canvas and some paints the other day but then thought, Nah ... I cant have oil paint going on the carpet when Im renting a place!I can continue my career in boxing while Im still young but when thats over and my body cant take the punishment any more, I could still do my masters degree to get my art back going again. Even a beaten up old boxer, he added with a shrug, is able to lift a paint brush.Joyce only had one of his oil paintings put on public display when he was at university. But there was a gallery interested in exhibiting my work somewhere in Europe; it would have been too much to get the paintings there and take myself there too, he said. But, one day, who knows?Its quite hard to make something of yourself in art, sell paintings, make the big bucks. So maybe I could use the success I have in boxing as a vehicle to promote my art.Masterpieces from the hand that knocked over opponents on the road to Olympic and world titles? Maybe people might want to own a Joyce, he said. I might be able to auction it off to the highest bidder. 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"Im proud of the way Im playing just now, because I had to do a lot of work to get back to where I want to be," Murray said after celebrating with his teammates on the red clay court in a temporary stadium in left field of the downtown home of baseballs San Diego Padres. SEATTLE -- Scooter Gennett kept watching and wondering if the pitch he didnt think he hit that well just might carry far enough. Getting an assist from Seattle right fielder Michael Morse certainly helped. "Us little guys need all the help we can get," Gennett said. Gennett capped Milwaukees six-run seventh inning with a three-run homer off Morses glove, and the Brewers ruined the Mariners night honouring former star Ken Griffey Jr. with a 10-0 win on Saturday night. Griffey was inducted to the team Hall of Fame before the game, then saw his old club give up two big innings to the Brewers. The first three Brewers reached in the seventh without the ball leaving the infield, but Gennetts homer was the big blow. The Brewers added four more in the ninth against Seattles bullpen. "I think when the offence is doing that all the way through, hopefully you have a chance to score in more innings," Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke said. "I know we busted out with the one, but then we added on, which I thought was really good." Tom Gorzelanny had his best performance of the season for the Brewers. Making his seventh start after beginning the season in the bullpen, Gorzelanny (3-4) gave up just three hits in seven innings. It was the first time Gorzelanny threw at least seven innings and gave up zero earned runs since July 1, 2011, when he was pitching for the Washington Nationals. He struck out seven and allowed only one batter to reach third base. "Im not calling it a renaissance. Im just trying to do my best out there and have a good effort each time," Gorzelanny said. "Im not really thinking about what could happen or how things will shake out." Gorzelanny also pitched through two unique circumstances. The first came right at the start, as the beginning of the game was delayed by 17 minutes because the ceremony honouring Griffey ran long. Gorzelanny ran up into the batting cage underneath the stadium to make a few extra throws, but wasnt bothered by having to wait. Then he sat through the Brewers big seventh inning, but was able to finish the inning. "Its great just to get through the sixth inning, which Ive had trouble with this year a few times," Gorzelanny said. Seattle starter Hisashi Iwakuma (10-6) matched Gorzelanny for the first six innings, but quickly fell apart in the seventh. Carlos Gomez started the inning with a bunt single, diving around the tag atttempt of Justin Smoak at first base to reach safely.dddddddddddd Iwakuma said he tweaked his back on the play and struggled to get the ball down in the strike zone from then on. Caleb Gindl then chopped a grounder to the left side as Gomez was running on the pitch. Shortstop Brad Miller fielded the ball, but made the mistake of throwing to first when it was clear he wouldnt get Gindl. That allowed Gomez to reach third and put runners on the corners with no outs. Khris Davis then hit a shot down to third base that Kyle Seager backhanded. He tried to get Gomez at the plate but his throw was slightly high and Gomez was safe after crashing into catcher Humberto Quintero and knocking the ball free. Quintero stayed down briefly as the inside of his right knee collided with Gomezs right knee, but he remained in the game. Gomez said Quintero was unhappy being run into and let him know it when he came up for his next at-bat. "I dont mean to hurt any player, but if he is in front of the plate, what am I going to do?" Gomez said. "You dont have a second to think." Juan Francisco then doubled to left-centre on Iwakumas next pitch to score Gindl and give the Brewers a 2-0 advantage. Yuniesky Betancourt added an RBI single before Gennetts second homer of the season. Morse had a shot at pulling back the drive, but it deflected off his glove and over the fence. "I got it a little off the end. I thought it had a chance, but all I was trying to do was get a pitch up and put it in the outfield somewhere," Gennett said. Said Morse: "I felt like I had a good chance on it till I hit the wall and it kind of jarred my wrist back." Griffey became the seventh member of the teams Hall of Fame. It was an emotional ceremony that brought the first sellout crowd of the season for the Mariners. The ceremony was supposed to last about 30 minutes, but Griffeys speech was nearly 25 minutes itself and the entire ceremony went for nearly an hour. Notes: Milwaukee scored 10 or more runs in consecutive games for the second time this season. ... Griffey joined late Hall of Fame broadcaster Dave Niehaus, and former teammates Alvin Davis, Randy Johnson, Dan Wilson, Jay Buhner and Edgar Martinez being honoured by the club. ... Gorzelanny improved to 2-0 all-time against Seattle as a starter. ... Seattle had committed seven errors in its previous three games before staying clean defensively on Saturday. ' ' '