Dressed in the pink that she became identified with, Christy Martin — the “Coal Miner’s Daughter” — puffed her chest and glared from the cover of the April 15, 1996 Sports Illustrated.
“The Lady is a Champ” trumpeted the headline.
Richard Hoffer’s story told of not only her fledgling boxing career, but her unique marriage to her trainer, Jim Martin, and her hesitance to be the face of women’s boxing.
But it was too late for that.
She fought on undercards of Mike Tyson fights, did a memorable SportsCenter commercial with Charley Steiner and Mike Golic and ran the gamut of talk shows and appearances.
Now, more than 15 years since that cover story, Martin again finds herself as a centerpiece of a national magazine: This time on ESPN’s award-winning E:60 news magazine which debuts in its fifth season tonight at 8 p.m. ET (ESPN).
She is once again boxing, but it’s her life outside the ring that has garnered the most attention in recent months.
In November, Jim Martin allegedly tried to kill her.
She survived the brutal attack in which she was both stabbed and shot.
In the riveting E:60 interview with Lisa Salters, Martin discusses that awful night as well as her cocaine use.
She also discusses her new relationship with a woman who is now her partner as Jim Martin awaits trial in a Florida prison.
For the first time, he speaks on camera in a jailhouse interview conducted by Salters last week.
E:60‘s season premiere also includes a Michael Smith feature with Philadelphia Eagles defensive back Nnamdi Asomugha and Jeremy Schaap’s compelling visit with ex-Cincinnati Bengal Ickey Woods.
There is also a brief segment on the making of ESPN The Magazine’s “Body Issue,” which hits newsstands on Friday.
