Bodog MMA Fighters Donate to Orphanage

A Russian orphanage in dire need of repairs will receive close to $170,000 US due in part to the fundraising efforts of Bodog Fight founder Calvin Ayre and some of the world's most famous mixed martial arts fighters.

The top-ranked heavyweight in the sport, Fedor Emelianenko, along with fellow fighters Aleksander Emelianenko, Roman Zentsov, Matt Lindland, and actor Jean Claude Van Damme autographed a pair of gloves worn during Bodog Fight's April 14th Pay-Per-View event held at the ICE Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia. Following the main event, the pair of gloves was auctioned off to the thousands of fans in attendance. The bidding started at 100,000 RUB ($3,886 US), and was eventually won by Arthur Kirilenko, who bid 3,000,000 RUB ($116,572,000 US).

The Lomonosovskiy Orphanage, which houses close to 100 children under four-years-old with psychological problems and deficiency of the central nervous system, will receive an additional $50,000 US from The Calvin Ayre Foundation.

"When I saw the living conditions the kids there had to endure, I knew we had to do something to help out," said Ayre, who visited the orphanage during the filming of Bodog Fight: St. Petersburg.

"Thanks to the fighters and Mr. Kirilenko, the Calvin Ayre Foundation is now able to help do this by reconstructing the old wooden building and the playground these kids have been calling home."

"We are very grateful to Mr. Ayre and these fighters for their kind generosity," said orphanage director Antonina Ivanovna Petrova. "It is comforting to know they share in our belief that these children are also worth fighting for."

The Calvin Ayre Foundation is a philanthropic organization focusing on promoting greater equity in five broad areas: Environment, Education, Social Development, Child Welfare and Animal Welfare.

Source: www.gambling911.com