Sports

FITTING TRIBUTE FOR ‘AMERICA’S HERO’

Harlem now features quite a tribute to Joe Louis.

Yesterday at the PAL Harlem Center, the renovated Joe Louis Boxing Gym was unveiled, featuring upgrades to the facility provided by HBO Sports and Everlast. The gym was renovated for the first time since the center opened in 1999, and on a red-painted wall inside, it reads in white: JOE LOUIS Boxing Gym.

For the boys and girls ages 10-to-21 who are involved in the boxing program, they’ll be able to avail themselves of a renovated ring that took approximately a week to finish.

Everlast provided the equipment – including a black canvas for the ring with blue-and-red ropes (the old ones appeared a little ragged). HBO, which has the movie “Joe Louis: America’s Hero . . . Betrayed” premiering tomorrow night, took care of the room’s paint job.

The renovation also includes an impressive piece of art designed by artist Duhirwe Rushemeza, which hangs on the wall inside the center’s main entrance. The art is wood and acrylic-based with an image of Louis in the ring, and next to the piece is an inscription that says, “Joe Louis: An American Hero . . . Forever.”

Asked what Louis means to this area, Angela Williams – the Harlem Center director – said, “I think for this area in general it’s a sense of continued hope and revitalization and positive effort.”

Louis certainly appears to be a fine person to pay tribute to. Indeed, there were banners and signs at the center yesterday advertising the HBO movie and written on top of them was the quote from former Post columnist Jimmy Cannon about Louis, “He was a credit to his race – the human race.”

Yesterday at the gym, kids hit the heavy bag as Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin – who will be fighting tomorrow night before the Wladimir Klitschko-Sultan Ibragimov bout at MSG – provided instruction. Already the renovations were paying dividends.

mark.hale@nypost.com