Born: 17 January 1942
Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky
Best Known As: Heavyweight boxing champ called "The Greatest"
Name at birth: Cassius Marcellus Clay
Charismatic, outspoken and nicknamed "The Greatest," heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali was the dominant heavyweight fighter of the 1960s and 1970s. A fighter of exceptional speed, cunning and flair, Ali won the world heavyweight title on three separate occasions over a span of 15 years. He was born Cassius Clay, and under that name he won a gold medal at the 1960 Olympics in Rome. After claiming his first title by defeating Sonny Liston in 1964, Clay joined the Nation of Islam and changed his name to Muhammad Ali. Citing his Islamic faith, Ali refused to serve in the U.S. military during the war in Vietnam; his title was revoked and he was sentenced to five years in prison for draft evasion. (The U.S. Supreme Court reversed the conviction in 1971.) He had a long-running rivalry with fellow heavyweight Joe Frazier, whom he fought three times: Ali lost the first match in 1971, but won rematches in 1974 and 1975. Ali also defeated George Foreman in the famous 1974 "Rumble in the Jungle" held in Kinshasa, Zaire. Ali retired from boxing in 1981, but in the decades since has remained one of the world's best-known athletes.
In retirement Ali has suffered from Parkinson's Disease, a motor-skills illness which has slowed his movement and left him mostly unable to speak in public... In 1996 he was selected to light the ceremonial flame at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta, bringing him again into the public eye... Ali was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990... He won his three titles by defeating Sonny Liston (1964), George Foreman (1974) and Leon Spinks (1978)... Ali's managers sometimes refer to him as GOAT -- the Greatest Of All Time... Sprinter Wilma Rudolph won three gold medals at the 1960 Summer Olympics, the same games at which Ali won his boxing gold.
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International Boxing Hall of Fame
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Courier-Journal: The Making of a Champ
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Pop Artist Library > People > Pop Artists
Born:
Jan 18, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky
Cassius Clay
Genre: Spoken Word
Active: '60s, '70s
Instrument: Vocals
Representative Album: "I Am the Greatest!"
Biography
The world's best-known boxer was quick with the wit and was a natural for the comedy recording genre, especially in the less controversial days before he became Muhammad Ali. His albums include I Am the Greatest.~ Larry Lapka, All Music Guide
Similar Artists:
William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Sebastian Cabot, Paul Robeson
Performed Songs By:
Gary Belkin, Peter Matz
Discography
I Am the Greatest!
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Actors Library > People > Actors Muhammad Ali
Born: Jan 17, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky
Occupation: Actor
Active: '60s-'80s, 2000s
Major Genres: Sports & Recreation, History
Career Highlights: Requiem for a Heavyweight, When We Were Kings, Muhammad Ali: Through the Eyes of the World
First Major Screen Credit: Requiem for a Heavyweight (1962)
Biography
Muhammad Ali was once one of the world's greatest and most flamboyant boxers, and during the course of his long career, he also became known as an eloquent statesman for peace as well as a generous man who devoted much of his considerable earnings to charity. Because of his many achievements and extraordinary athletic career, Ali has been the subject of numerous documentary features, including the Oscar-winning When We Were Kings (1996). Ali has appeared as himself in several feature films, but has also tried his hand at acting, most notably in the highly regarded biography of his life, The Greatest (1977). ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
Filmography
Muhammad Ali: Through the Eyes of the World
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America: A Tribute to Heroes
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Fidel
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When We Were Kings
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Boxing's Best: Muhammad Ali
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Champions Forever: World Heavyweight Champs!
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Doin' Time
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Body and Soul
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Freedom Road
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The Greatest
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Ali's Greatest Fights: Thrilla in Manilla - Ali vs. Frazier III, 1975
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Ali's Greatest Fights: Rumble in the Jungle - Ali vs. Foreman, 1974
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Muhammad Ali a.k.a. Cassius Clay
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Ali's Greatest Fights: I Shook up the World - Clay vs. Liston, 1964
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Requiem for a Heavyweight
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Dictionary Library > People > Dictionary - People Ali, Muhammad (Originally Cassius Marcellus Clay (klÄ) ) Born 1942.
American prizefighter who won the world heavyweight title in 1964, 1974, and 1978.
Muhammad Ali
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Britannica Library > Reference > Britannica Concise Muhammad Ali
(click to enlarge)
Muhammad Ali (right) fighting Ernie Terrell, 1967. (credit: UPI)(born Jan. 17, 1942, Louisville, Ken., U.S.) U.S. boxer. Cassius Clay took up boxing at the age of 12 and rose through the amateur ranks to win the Olympic light heavyweight crown in 1960. His first professional heavyweight title win was against Sonny Liston in 1964. After defending the title nine times between 1965 and 1967, he was stripped of it for refusing induction into the armed forces following his acceptance of the teachings of the Nation of Islam. It was then that he changed his name to Muhammad Ali. In 1974 Ali regained his title after defeating the former champion Joe Frazier and the then-current champion George Foreman. He lost to Leon Spinks in 1978 but later that year regained the title a third time, becoming the first heavyweight champion ever to do so. He retired in 1979, having lost only three of 59 fights. Attempted comebacks in 1980 and 1981 failed. Throughout his career Ali was known for his aggressive charm, invincible attitude, and colourful boasts, often expressed in doggerel verse. "I am the greatest" was his personal credo. Ali's later years have been marked by physical decline. Damage to his brain, caused by blows to the head, has resulted in slurred speech, slowed movement, and other symptoms of Parkinson disease.
For more information on Muhammad Ali, visit Britannica.com.
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American History Library > Reference > American History Ali, Muhammad
(1942- ), boxer and spokesman for the Nation of Islam. The increasing militancy of African-American politics during the 1960s coincided with the transformation of Olympic gold medalist Cassius Marcellus Clay into Muhammad Ali, the most controversial and widely known of all heavyweight boxing champions. Born into a black working-class family in Louisville, Kentucky, Clay experienced the racial restrictions that fueled the civil rights protests of the late 1950s and 1960s. As a youngster, he resented being named after a white man, albeit an abolitionist. When he read news of the 1955 racial murder in Mississippi of Emmett Till, a black youngster about his age, he reacted angrily, hurling stones at an uncle sam wants you poster.
He learned to box while a teenager, and his exceptional skills quickly became evident. By 1959 he had won a national Golden Gloves championship. Following his success as a member of the 1960 U.S. Olympic boxing team, he signed a professional contract with Louisville promoters and soon became a contender for the heavyweight boxing crown. Brashly outspoken about racial issues, he also bragged about his pugilistic ability, often proclaiming, "I am the greatest." His facile rhymes and sometimes accurate knockout predictions attracted the attention of boxing fans.
As he was perfecting his boxing and promotional skills, he became affiliated with the Nation of Islam, an all-black religious group, often labeled the Black Muslims, led by Elijah Muhammad. He became close friends with the Nation's best-known spokesman, Malcolm X, but remained loyal to Elijah Muhammad after Malcolm's 1964 break with him. Recognizing that the Nation of Islam was notorious because of its advocacy of black self-defense and racial separatism, Clay kept his affiliation with the group secret until February 1964, when he defeated Sonny Liston and became heavyweight champion. He then announced his religious ties and stated that he had rejected his "slave" name in favor of the new name Muhammad Ali.
For a decade thereafter, Ali remained at the center of controversy. Many reporters and boxing officials continued to refer to him as Cassius Clay and some even demanded that his title be withdrawn. The hostility increased when he refused in 1967 to be inducted into the army, citing the fact that his religion forbade him from doing so. Government officials were unwilling to accept his claim that he was a lay Islamic minister, especially when he made clear his lack of sympathy for the war in Vietnam. "I ain't got no quarrel with the Vietcong," he explained. Although he indicated that he was simply responding to religious imperatives, Ali became a widely admired symbol of black pride and militancy because of his consistent unwillingness to back down in the face of threats from white authorities. Stripped of his title after being indicted for refusing induction, he was later convicted and sentenced to five years in prison. In June 1970, however, the Supreme Court overturned his conviction. In 1974, Ali gained further vindication when he defeated George Foreman and regained the title that had been taken from him.
Although Ali's activities in the years after 1974 were not as controversial as they had once been, he remained an internationally known public figure. After his retirement from boxing during the late 1970s, he developed Parkinson's syndrome, a condition that severely restricted his once extensive public-speaking activities.
Bibliography:
Muhammad Ali, with Richard Durham, The Greatest: My Own Story (1975); Henry Hampton and Steve Fayer, Voices of Freedom: An Oral History of the Civil Rights Movement from the 1950s through the 1980s (1990).
Author:
Clayborne Carson
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Spotlight Library > Reference > Spotlight of the Day From our Archives: Today's Highlights, January 17, 2005
Happy 63rd birthday to boxing great Muhammad Ali. Three-time winner of the world heavyweight title (1964, 1974 and 1978), Ali said his boxing strategy was to "float like a butterfly and sting like a bee."
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Encyclopedia Library > People > Encyclopedia - People Ali, Muhammad (mÉhÄm'Éd älÄ') , 1942–, American boxer, b. Louisville, Ky. Born Cassius Marcellus Clay, he was a 1960 Olympic gold medalist. Shortly after upsetting Sonny Liston in 1964 to become world heavyweight champion, he formalized his association with the Nation of Islam (see Black Muslims) and adopted the Muslim name Muhammad Ali.
Ali's flamboyant boxing style and outspoken stances on social issues made him a controversial figure during the turbulent 1960s and early 1970s. After beating Liston, he defended his title nine times, brashly proclaiming himself the “greatest of all time.” In 1967 he refused induction into the armed services and became a symbol of resistance to the Vietnam War. The boxing establishment stripped Ali of his title and prevented him from fighting until the U.S. Supreme Court in 1971 upheld his draft appeal on religious grounds. Before retiring in 1981 Ali compiled a 56–5 record and became the only man to ever win the heavyweight crown three times. His fights with Joe Frazier and George Foreman were among boxing's biggest events.
In retirement, Ali has remained one of the most recognized of all world figures. The 1984 revelation that he suffered from Parkinson's disease renewed debate over the negative effects of boxing. His appearance at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, to light the Olympic flame, moved an international audience.
Bibliography
See T. Hauser, Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times (1991); D. Remnick, King of the World (1998).
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Biography Library > People > Biographies Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Clay, 1942) was the only professional boxer to win the heavyweight championship three times. With his outspoken political and religious views he has provided leadership and an example for African American men and women around the world.
Born Cassius Marcellus Clay on January 17, 1942, at Louisville, Kentucky, Muhammad Ali began boxing at the age of 12. A white policeman named Joe Martin featured Ali on his early television show, "Tomorrow's Champions," and started him working out at Louisville's Columbia Gym. An African American trainer named Fred Stoner taught Ali the science of boxing, instructing him to move with the grace and subtlety of a dancer.
"Float Like a Butterfly, Sting Like a Bee"
Ali built an impressive amateur record which led him to both the national Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) and Golden Gloves championships. At the age of 18 he competed in the 1960 Olympic games held at Rome, Italy, and won the gold medal in the light-heavyweight division. This led to a contract with a twelve member group of millionaires called the Louisville Sponsors Group, the most lucrative contract negotiated by a professional in the history of boxing. He worked his way through a string of professional victories, employing a style that combined speed with devastating punching power, described by one of his handlers as the ability to "float like a butterfly, and sting like a bee."
Ali's flamboyant style of boasting and rhyming and out-spoken self-promotion garnered considerable media attention as he moved toward a chance to contend for the world heavyweight boxing championship. When he began to write poems predicting the outcome of his many bouts he became known by the another name: "The Louisville Lip." Both the attention and his skill as a fighter paid off, and on February 15, 1964, at Miami, Florida, when he was only 22 years old, he fought and defeated Sonny Liston for the heavyweight championship of the world.
"Beloved of Allah"
Meanwhile Ali, inspired by human rights activist Malcolm X, embraced the Black Muslim faith and announced that he had changed his name to Cassius X. This was at a time when the struggle for civil rights was at a peak and the Muslims had emerged as a controversial but major force in the African American community. Later he was given the name Muhammad Ali, meaning "beloved of Allah," by the Muslim patriarch Elijah Muhammad.
In his first title defense, held at Lewiston, Maine, on May 25, 1965, he defeated the now challenger Sonny Liston with a first round knockout that many called a phantom punch because it was so fast and powerful that few in attendance saw it. Ali successfully defended his title eight more times.
On April 28, 1967, Ali was drafted into military service during the Vietnam War. As a Muslim and a conscientious objector he refused to serve, claiming an exemption as a minister of the Black Muslim religion. The press turned against him, calling him "unpatriotic, loudmouthed, bombastic." Although he had not been charged or convicted for violating the Selective Service Act, the New York State Athletic Commission and World Boxing Association suspended his boxing license and stripped him of his heavyweight title in May of 1967. Ali's comment to Sports Illustrated at the time was, "I'm giving up my title, my wealth, may be my future. Many great men have been tested for their religious beliefs. If I pass this test, I'll come out stronger than ever." Eventually Ali was sentenced to five years in prison, released on appeal, and his conviction overturned three years later by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Vindication and Victory
The vindicated Ali returned to the ring in a victorious bout with Jerry Quary in Atlanta in 1971. Four months later he was defeated by Joe Frazier in Manila, who had replaced him as heavyweight champion when the title had been vacated. He regained the championship for the first time when he defeated George Forman (who had beaten Frazier for the title) in a bout held in Zaire in 1974. Ali fought Frazier again in the same year, and in 1975 won both matches and secured his title as the world heavyweight champion. In that year, to welcome Ali back, Sports Illustrated magazine named him their "Sportsman of the Year."
Ali began to employ a new style of boxing, one that he called his "rope-a-dope." He would let his opponents wear themselves down while he rested, often against the ropes; then he would lash out in the later rounds. During his ensuing reign Ali successfully defended his title ten more times. Ali held the championship until he was defeated by Leon Spinks on February 16, 1978, in a bout held in Las Vegas, Nevada. Seven months later, on September 15, 1978, Ali regained the heavyweight title by defeating Spinks in a bout held at New Orleans. Ali thus became the first boxer in history to win the heavyweight championship three times. At the end of his boxing career he was slowed by a neurological condition related to Parkinson's disease. His last fight, the 61st, took place in 1981.
Role as Statesman
As his career wound to a close, Ali became increasingly involved in social causes, diplomacy and politics. He has campaigned for Jimmy Carter and other Democratic political candidates and taken part in the promotion of a variety of political causes addressing poverty and children. He even played the role of diplomat, attempting to secure the release of four kidnapped Americans in Lebanon in 1985. As a result, his image changed from gadfly to highly respected statesman.
At the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta, the world and his country honored Ali by choosing him to light the Olympic torch during the opening ceremonies.
Further Reading
There are numerous books about Muhammad Ali. Some of the best include Thomas Conklin, Muhammad Ali: The Fight for Respect (1992), Thomas Hauser's three books, Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times (1992), Muhammad Ali in Perspective (1996), and Muhammad Ali: Memories, with photographer Neil Leifer. Other supplementary texts include Barry Denenberg, The Story of Muhammad Ali: Heavyweight Champion of the World (Famous Lives) (1996), The People's Champ (Sport and Society), edited by Elliott J. Gorn (1995), Arlene Schulman, Muhammad Ali: Champion (Newsmakers) (1996), Jack Rummel, Muhammad Ali (Black Americans ofAchievement) (1989), William R. Sanford, Carl R. Green, Muhammad Ali (Sports Immortals) (1993), John Stravinsky, Muhammad Ali: Biography (Biographies from A&E) (1997). Outstanding accounts of particular events in Ali's life and career are Norman Mailer's book about the return bout with Forman in Zaire, The Fight (1997), and Suzanne Freedman, Clay v. United States: Muhammad Ali Objects to War (1997). Recent articles on Ali have appeared in The Boston Globe (Oct. 1, 1984, Jan. 17, 1992), Newsweek (June 22, 1987), New York Daily News (Feb. 2, 1989), New York Post (July 14, 1987), New York Times Magazine (July 17, 1988), Philadelphia Inquirer (Aug. 12, 1990), Spin (Oct. 1991), USA Today (Feb. 25, 1994), and Washington Post (June 9, 1991).
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Black Biography Library > People > Black Biographies Muhammad Ali
boxer
Personal Information
Born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr. on January, 17, 1942, in Louisville, KY; name changed to Muhammad Ali, 1963; son of Cassius (a piano player) and Odessa Clay; first wife, Sonji Roy; second wife, Belinda Boyd; third wife, Veronica Porche; married fourth wife, Yolanda "Lonnie" Williams, 1986; children: seven daughters, two sons.
Career
Boxer, 1960-81; humanitarian. Began professional boxing career, 1960; first became heavyweight champ, 1964; boxing record: 56 wins, 5 losses, with 37 knockouts.
Life's Work
Three-time world heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali, known for his lyrical charm and boasts as much as for his powerful fists, has moved far beyond the boxing ring in both influence and purpose. Ali won an Olympic gold medal in 1960 and later tossed it into a river because he was disgusted by racism in America. As a young man he was recruited by Malcolm X to join the Nation of Islam. He refused to serve in Vietnam--a professional fighter willing to serve time in jail for his pacifist ideals. He has contributed to countless, diverse charities and causes. And his later years have found him interested in world politics as he has battled to keep Parkinson's disease at bay.
Born to Box
Muhammad Ali was born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr., on January 17, 1942, and was raised in a clapboard house at 3302 Grand Avenue in middle-class Louisville, Kentucky. He began boxing at the age of 12. A white Louisville patrolman named Joe Martin, who had an early television show called "Tomorrow's Champions," started Ali working out in Louisville's Columbia Gym, but it was a black trainer named Fred Stoner who taught Ali the science of boxing. Stoner taught him to move with the grace of a dancer, and impressed upon him the subtle skills necessary to move beyond good and into the realm of great.
After winning an Olympic gold medal at 18, Ali signed the most lucrative contract--a 50-50 split--negotiated by a beginning professional in the history of boxing, with a 12-member group of millionaires called the Louisville Sponsoring Group. Later, he worked his way into contention for the coveted heavyweight title shot by boasting and creating media interest at a time when, by his own admission, he was only ranked number nine on the list of contenders. Even from the beginning, it was clear that Ali was his own man--quick, strong-willed, original, and witty. In 1961 he told Sports Illustrated's Gilbert Rogin, "Boxing is dying because everybody's so quiet.... What boxing needs is more...Clays." Ali knew that his rhymes and press-grabbing claims would infuse more interest and more money into the sport of boxing, and he was his own best public relations man. In February of 1964 he told readers of Sports Illustrated, "If I were like a lot of...heavyweight boxers...you wouldn't be reading this story right now. If you wonder what the difference between them and me is, I'll break the news: you never heard of them. I'm not saying they're not good boxers. Most of them...can fight almost as good as I can. I'm just saying you never heard of them. And the reason for that is because they cannot throw the jive. Cassius Clay is a boxer who can throw the jive better than anybody."
The following month Ali--then still known by the name Cassius Clay--fought Sonny Liston in a match of classic contenders for the heavyweight championship of the world. The Miami fight almost single-handedly restored intelligence and balance to boxing. Cassius Clay had been chanting the war cry "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee" for weeks; he beat Liston in a display of beautiful, controlled boxing. Liston could hit with deadly power, but Ali utilized his skills and courage with forethought and aplomb. He won the fight to become heavyweight champion of the world. At the tender age of 22 Ali knew that he was something above and beyond a great boxer: He had marketing sense, political finesse, and a feeling of noble purpose.
Committed to Political Ideals
Throughout his career and life, Ali has always professed to want to help other black Americans--and he has, time and time again. When he returned from Italy, having just won an Olympic gold medal, he was so proud of his trophy that he wore it day and night and showed it to everyone, whether they wanted to see it or not. In the Philadelphia Inquirer Ali's first wife remembered him saying "I was young, black Cassius Marcellus Clay, who had won a gold medal for his country. I went to downtown Louisville to a five-and-dime store that had a soda fountain. I sat down at the counter to order a burger and soda pop. The waitress looked at me.... 'Sorry, we don't serve coloreds,' she said. I was furious. I went all the way to Italy to represent my country, won a gold medal, and now I come back to America and can't even get served at a five-and-dime store. I went to a bridge, tore the medal off my neck and threw it into the river. That gold medal didn't mean a thing to me if my black brothers and sisters were treated wrong in a country I was supposed to represent."
While in Miami, at the age of 21, Ali was inspired by human rights activist Malcolm X to become a member of the Muslim faith. The following year Malcolm X said of Ali, as was quoted by Houston Horn in Sports Illustrated, "[He] will mean more to his people than any athlete before him. He is more than [first black major-league baseball player] Jackie Robinson was, because Robinson is the white man's hero. But Cassius is the black man's hero. Do you know why? Because the white press wanted him to lose [his heavyweight championship bout]...because he is a Muslim. You notice nobody cares about the religion of other athletes. But their prejudice against Clay blinded them to his ability." Twelve years later, on Face The Nation, Ali said "We don't have Black Muslims, that's a press word. We have white brothers, we have brown, red, and yellow, all colors can be Muslims.... I'm looking for peace one day with all people." Cassius Clay, Jr., was given the name Muhammad Ali by Muslim patriarch Elijah Muhammad; it was not just a name, but a title meaning "beloved of Allah," deity of the Muslim faith.
Ali retained his world heavyweight champion title in June of 1965 by again knocking out Sonny Liston, this time with a stunning right-hand punch to the side of the head. The knock-out blow was thrown with the astounding speed that separated Ali from other heavyweights; it had sufficient force to lift Liston's left foot--upon which most of his weight was resting--clear off the canvas.
As a Muslim and thus a conscientious objector, Muhammad Ali refused to even consider going to Vietnam when he was drafted in 1966. His refusal brought a tremendous public outcry against him. According to Jack Olsen in Sports Illustrated, "The governor of Illinois found Clay 'disgusting,' and the governor of Maine said Clay 'should be held in utter contempt by every patriotic American.' An American Legion post in Miami asked people to 'join in condemnation of this unpatriotic, loudmouthed, bombastic individual.' The Chicago Tribune waged a choleric campaign against holding the next Clay fight in Chicago.... The noise became a din, the drumbeats of a holy war. TV and radio commentators, little old ladies...bookmakers, and parish priests, armchair strategists at the Pentagon and politicians all over the place joined in a crescendo of get-Cassius clamor."
Although Ali had not been charged or arrested for violating the Selective Service Act--much less convicted--the New York State Athletic Commission and World Boxing Association suspended his boxing license and stripped him of his heavyweight title in May of 1967, minutes after he officially announced that he would not submit to induction. Ali said to Sports Illustrated contributor Edwin Shrake, "I'm giving up my title, my wealth, maybe my future. Many great men have been tested for their religious beliefs. If I pass this test, I'll come out stronger than ever." Eventually Ali was sentenced to five years in prison, released on appeal, and his conviction overturned three years later.
Became the Greatest
In November of 1970 Ali fought Jerry Quarry in Atlanta. His victory was a symbol of release and freedom to the 5,000 people watching the fight; Ali had personally survived his vilification by much of the American public, but more, he had reclaimed his professional reputation and prominence. Four months later Ali had the world as his audience when he went up against Joe Frazier in the Philippines city of Manila. There he fell from invincibility; suddenly Frazier reigned as heavyweight champ. "Man, I hit him with punches that'd bring down the walls of a city," Frazier said to Mark Kram in Sports Illustrated. Ali responded, "It was like death. Closest thing to dyin' that I know of." On September 10, 1973, Frazier won a rematch with Ken Norton and continued to reign as heavyweight champion. Returning with a vengeance, however, Ali fought Frazier again in 1974, won the match, and replaced his competitor as the world heavyweight champion. Ali fought Frazier once again in October of 1975, won that match, and secured his title. Taking time to reflect on the tumult of his fifteen-year boxing career, Ali co-wrote his autobiography--characteristically titled The Greatest: My Own Story--in 1975.
In 1982 Dr. Dennis Cope, director of the Medical Ambulatory Care Center at the University of California, Los Angeles, began treating Ali for Parkinson's syndrome. Cope and colleague Dr. Stanley Fahn later theorized in the Chicago Tribune that Ali was suffering, more precisely, from Pugilistic Parkinsonism, brought on by repetitive trauma to the head--and that only an autopsy could confirm their suspicions. After losing a 1980 title bout to Larry Holmes, Ali had exhibited sluggishness and was misdiagnosed as having a thyroid condition; he was given a thyroid hormone. When Dr. Cope made the connection between Ali's decreasing motor skills and Parkinson's disease, he prescribed Sinemet (L-dopa). Ali was shortly restored to his previous level of energy and awareness; as long as he took his medication regularly, he was able to keep the disease in check. In 1988 Ali told New York Times Magazine contributor Peter Tauber: "I've got Parkinson's syndrome. I'm in no pain.... If I was in perfect health--if I had won my last two fights--if I had no problem, people would be afraid of me. Now they feel sorry for me. They thought I was Superman. Now they can say 'He's human, like us. He has problems.'"
In 1984 another of Ali's medical confidantes, Dr. Martin D. Ecker, ventured in the Boston Globe that Ali should have quit boxing long before he finally did--for the second and final time--in 1981 after losing to Trevor Berbick. His bout with Berbick was his 61st and final fight. By then Ali had been showing signs of neurological damage for over a year. Ali's former doctor, Dr. Ferdie Pacheco, told the fighter to quit in 1977 when he first saw signs of Ali's reflexes slowing down. Seven years later, Pacheco, a consultant and boxing commentator for NBC-TV, explained to Betsy Lehman in the Boston Globe why he feels Ali didn't quit boxing in 1977: "The most virulent infection in the human race is the standing ovation. Once you've seen that, you can't get off the stage. Once you feel that recognition...the roar of 50,000 people, you just don't want to give it up." When Ali initially surrendered his title in 1979, he was paid $250,000 to quit, but he eventually returned to his sport, perhaps as Pacheco suggested, because the recognition had become habit-forming.
Elder Statesman of Boxing
Toward the end of Ali's boxing career, and afterward, his ambitions took a decided turn toward statesmanship. In 1980 he cast his lot with the Democratic Party, supporting then-Presidential candidate Jimmy Carter. In August of that year, while in intense training for the Holmes fight, he found time to work the floor of the Democratic National Convention in New York City. He also functioned as something of a diplomat in February of 1985 when he attempted to secure the release of four kidnapped Americans in Lebanon; unfortunately, he and his three advisers were not successful.
During his career in the ring Ali made more than $50 million, two thirds of which went to managerial expenses and taxes. He said to New York Times Magazine contributor Tauber in 1988, "I never talk about boxing. It just served its purpose. I was only about 11 or 12 years old when I said 'I'm gonna get famous so I can help my people.'" Indicating his continuing desire to help people, in 1990 Ali visited Our Children's Foundation, Inc., on Manhattan's 125th Street. According to Bill Gallo in the New York Daily News, he addressed the children there, saying, "The sun has a purpose. The moon has a purpose. The snow has a purpose. Cows have a purpose. You were born for a purpose. You have to find your purpose. Go to school. Learn to read and write.... What is your purpose, your occupation? Find your purpose.... What do you have to find?" "Purpose!," they shouted gleefully in unison. True to form, one of Ali's favored inscriptions when signing autographs is "Love is the net where hearts are caught like fish."
Although Parkinson's syndrome has slowed Ali down, he still remains active--raising money for the Muhammad Ali Foundation and frequently appearing at sports tributes and fund-raisers. Muhammad's wife Lonnie believes "Muhammad knows he has this illness for a reason. It's not by chance. Parkinson's disease has made him a more spiritual person. Muhammad believes God gave it to him to bring him to another level, to create another destiny," she stated in People.
During the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, 3.5 billion people watched on television as three-time heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali slowly ascended the stadium steps with trembling hands to ignite the Olympic Flame. Everyone was deeply touched, though no one more so than Ali himself. "He kept turning it [the torch] in his hands and looking at it. He knows now that people won't slight his message because of his impairment." said his wife Lonnie in People.
Ali has been blessed to meet with important dignitaries over the years, including with President Clinton, Queen Elizabeth II, Nelson Mandela, and the late Pope John Paul II. His travels are his main source of income, as he charges as much as $200,000 for appearances. He usually travels 275 days out of the year. Although he enjoys his missionary work and public appearances, Ali's greatest pleasure is when he is at home in Berrien Springs, Michigan, with his family--wife Yolanda and his adopted son Asaad Amin.
In Berrien Springs, he lives a modest life in a house at the end of the road on an old farm. He has a pool and a pond and a security gate with an intercom. According to Kim Forburger, Ali's assistant, "He's the only man I know where the kids come to the gate and say 'Can Muhammad come out and play?'" When asked if he has any regrets, Ali responds, "My children, I never got to raise them because I was always boxing and because of divorce," he said in People. When asked whether he is sorry he ever got into the ring, he responded, "If I wasn't a boxer, I wouldn't be famous. If I wasn't famous, I wouldn't be able to do what I'm doing now."
Even into the 2000s, Ali's legacy lives on in a number of ways. In November, 2005, after years of preparation, the Muhammad Ali Center was opened in Louisville, Kentucky. The MAC is both a museum celebrating Ali's life and career and--at Ali's request--a forum for sharing his ideals and beliefs, and for promoting respect, hope, and understanding. Ali has been the subject of numerous books and film tributes over the years, including the 1997 documentary When We Were Kings, but none were more spectacular than the 2003 publication GOAT: A Tribute to Muhammad Ali, a giant (20-inches square, weighing 75 pounds, and costing $3,000) tribute to Ali's entire career; the title GOAT stands for "Greatest of All Time." The work that is closest to Ali's own heart is his memoir The Soul of a Butterfly: Reflection's on Life's Journey, which he wrote with the help of his daughter, Hana Yasmeen Ali.
Awards
Olympic Gold Medal in boxing, 1960; six Kentucky Golden Gloves titles; National Golden Gloves titles, 1959-60; World Heavyweight Championship, 1964-67, 1974-78, 1978-79; U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame, inductee, 1983; named the greatest heavyweight champion of all time, Ring Magazine, 1987; International Boxing Hall of Fame, inductee, 1990; Jim Thorpe Pro Sports Award, Lifetime Achievement, 1992; Muhammad Ali Museum, Louisville Galleria, opened 1995; Essence Award, 1997; Arthur Ashe Award for Courage to All, ESPN (Espy) Award, 1997; Service to America Leadership Award, National Association of Broadcasters Foundation, 2001.
Works
Selected works
Books
(With Richard Durham) The Greatest: My Own Story, Random House, 1975.
Ali! Ali! The Words of Muhammad Ali, edited by Sultan Karim, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1979.
(With Thomas Hauser) Healing, Collins Publishers San Francisco, 1996.
I Am the Greatest: The Best Quotations from Muhammed Ali, Andrews McMeel, 2002.
(With Hana Yasmeen Ali) Soul of a Butterfly: Reflections on Life's Journey, Simon & Schuster, 2004.
Films
The Greatest, 1977.
Further Reading
Books
Early, Gerald, ed., The Muhammad Ali Reader, Ecco Press, 1998.
GOAT: A Tribute to Muhammad Ali, Taschen, 2003.
Kram, Mark, Ghosts of Manila: The Fateful Blood Feud between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier, HarperCollins, 2001.
Miller, Davis, The Tao of Muhammad Ali, Warner Books, 1996.
Muhammad Ali (photographs), Harry N. Abrams, 2004.
Myers, Walter Dean, The Greatest: Muhammad Ali, Scholastic, 2001.
Pacheco, Ferdie, Muhammad Ali: A View from the Corner, Birch Lane Press, 1992.
Remnick, David, King of the World: Muhammad Ali and the Rise of an American Hero, Random House, 1998.
Periodicals
Atlanta Journal and Constitution, December 13, 1988.
Boston Globe, October 1, 1984.
Chicago Tribune, October 9, 1984.
Ebony, April 1969.
Face the Nation (transcript of CBS-TV program), May 2, 1976.
Interview, February 1, 2004.
Jet, July 2, 2001.
Newsweek, June 22, 1987.
New York Daily News, February 2, 1989.
New York Post, July 14, 1987.
New York Times Magazine, July 17, 1988.
People, Jan 13, 1997, p. 40.
Philadelphia Inquirer, August 12, 1990.
Spin, October 1991.
Sports Illustrated, December 20, 1976; April 25, 1988.
Time, December 13, 2004.
Washington Post, June 9, 1991.
On-line
GOAT, www.taschen-goat.com/index1.html (June 8, 2005).
Muhammad Ali, www.ali.com (June 8, 2005).
Muhammad Ali Center, www.alicenter.org/heart/index.shtml (June 8, 2005).
Muhammad Ali: The Making of a Champ, www.courier-journal.com/ali/ (June 8, 2005).
Other
Ali (film), 2001.
When We Were Kings (documentary film), 1997.
Muhammad Ali
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History Library > Reference > History Ali, Muhammad (ah-lee)
An African-American boxer of the twentieth century, who was world champion in the heavyweight class for several years between 1964 and 1979. He was known in his boxing career for his flamboyant personality and aggressive self-promotion, as well as for his superior boxing ability and style. His boxing strategy, he said, was to “float like a butterfly and sting like a bee.” A Black Muslim, Ali was originally named Cassius Clay. After he refused for reasons of conscience to serve in the armed forces in the 1960s, several boxing associations revoked his title as world champion, but he regained it later. During his boxing career he was extremely popular in Africa, and after his retirement he traveled there as a goodwill ambassador.
WordNet Library > Reference > WordNet Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.
The noun Muhammad Ali has 2 meanings:
Meaning #1: Albanian soldier in the service of Turkey who was made viceroy of Egypt and took control away from the Ottoman Empire and established Egypt as a modern state (1769-1849)
Synonyms: Mohammed Ali, Mehemet Ali
Meaning #2: American prizefighter who won the world heavyweight championship three times (born in 1942)
Synonyms: Ali, Cassius Clay, Cassius Marcellus Clay
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Quotes By Library > People > Quotes By Muhammad Ali
Quotes:
I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was.
I figured that if I said it enough, I would convince the world that I really was the greatest.
Age is whatever you think it is. You are as old as you think you are.
Only a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his soul and come up with the extra ounce of power it takes to win when the match is even.
Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.
It's lack of faith that makes people afraid of meeting challenges, and I believe in myself.
It's just a job. Grass grows, birds fly, waves pound the sand. I beat people up.
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For more famous quotes by Muhammad Ali, visit QuotationsBook.
Wikipedia Library > Reference > Wikipedia Muhammad Ali
This article is the current U.S. Collaboration of the Week.
Muhammad Ali
Statistics
Name Muhammad Ali
Birth name Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr
Nickname The Greatest, Louisville Lip
Weight Heavyweight
Nationality American
Ethnicity African American
Birth date January 17 1942 (age 65)
Birth place Louisville, Kentucky, USA
Style Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights 61
Wins 56
Wins by KO 37
Losses 5
Draws 0
No contests 0
Olympic medal record
boxing
Gold 1960 Rome Light heavyweight
For other persons named Muhammad Ali, see Muhammad Ali (disambiguation).
"Cassius Clay" redirects here. For other uses, see Cassius Clay (disambiguation).
Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr. on January 17, 1942) is a retired American boxer. In 1999, Ali was crowned "Sportsman of the Century" by Sports Illustrated. He won the World Heavyweight Boxing championship three times, and won the North American Boxing Federation championship as well as an Olympic gold medal.
Ali was born in Louisville, Kentucky. He was named after his father, Cassius Marcellus Clay, Sr., who was named for the 19th century abolitionist and politician Cassius Clay. Ali later changed his name after joining the Nation of Islam and subsequently converted to Sunni Islam in 1975.
Biography
Early boxing career
Standing at 6'3" (1.91 m), Ali had a highly unorthodox style for a heavyweight boxer. Rather than the normal boxing style of carrying the hands high to defend the face, he instead relied on his ability to avoid a punch. In Louisville, October 29, 1960, Cassius Clay won his first professional fight. He won a six-round decision over Tunney Hunsaker, who was the police chief of Fayetteville, West Virginia. From 1960 to 1963, the young fighter amassed a record of 19-0, with 15 knockouts. He defeated such boxers as Tony Esperti, Jim Robinson, Donnie Fleeman, Alonzo Johnson, George Logan, Willi Besmanoff, Lamar Clark (who had won his previous 40 bouts by knockout), Doug Jones, and Henry Cooper. Among Clay's victories were versus Sonny Banks (who knocked him down during the bout), Alejandro Lavorante, and the aged Archie Moore (a boxing legend who had fought over 200 previous fights, and who had been Clay's trainer prior to Angelo Dundee).
Clay won a disputed 10 round decision over Doug Jones. The fight was named "Fight of the Year" for 1963. Clay's next fight was against Henry Cooper, who knocked Clay down with a left hook near the end of the fourth round. The fight was stopped in the 5th round due to a deep cut on Cooper's face.
Despite these close calls against Doug Jones and Henry Cooper, he became the top contender for Sonny Liston's title. In spite of Clay's impressive record, he was not expected to beat the champ. The fight was to be held on February 25, 1964 in Miami, Florida. During the weigh-in on the previous day, the ever-boastful Ali—who frequently taunted Liston during the buildup by dubbing him "the big ugly bear", among other things—declared that he would "float like a butterfly and sting like a bee," and, in summarizing his strategy for avoiding Liston's assaults, said, "Your hands can't hit what your eyes can't see."
Ali taunts Liston in their rematch, which lasted less than a round.
First title fight
Main article: Muhammad Ali versus Sonny Liston
Clay, however, had a plan. Misreading Clay's exuberance as nervousness, Liston was over-confident, and was unprepared for any result but a quick stoppage. In the opening rounds, Clay's speed kept him away from Liston's powerful head and body shots, as he used his height advantage to effectively beat Liston to the punch with his jab.
By the third, Clay was on top, and had opened a cut under Liston's eye. Liston regained some ground in the fourth, as Clay was blinded by a foreign substance. It is officially unconfirmed whether this was something used to close Liston's cuts, or applied to Liston's gloves for a nefarious purpose; however, author, boxing historian and insider Bert Sugar has recalled at least two other Liston fights in which a similar situation occurred, suggesting the possibility that the Liston corner deliberately attempted to cheat.
Whatever the case, Liston came into the fourth round aggressively looking to put away the fight. As Clay struggled to recover his vision, he sought to escape Liston's offensive. He was able to keep out of range until his sweat and tears cleaned the foreign substance from his eyes, responding with a flurry of combinations near the end of the fifth round. By the sixth, he was looking for a finish and dominated Liston. Then Liston shocked the world when he did not come out for the seventh round to continue the fight; he later claimed to have injured his shoulder.
Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. changes his name to Muhammad Ali
Ali at an address by Elijah MuhammadFollowing his ascension to champion, he also became famous for other reasons: He revealed that he was a member of the Nation of Islam (often called the Black Muslims at the time) and Malcolm X provided Clay with the name Cassius X, discarding his surname as a symbol of his ancestors' enslavement, as had been done by other Nation members. On Friday, March 6, 1964, Malcolm X took Clay on a guided tour of the United Nations building (for a second time). Malcolm X announced that Clay would be granted his "X." That same night, Elijah Muhammad recorded a statement over the phone to be played over the radio that Clay would be renamed Muhammad (one who is worthy of praise) Ali (fourth rightly guided caliph). Only a few journalists (most notably Howard Cosell) accepted it at that time. The adoption of this name symbolized his new identity as a member of the Nation of Islam.
Vietnam puts a pause in Ali's career
In 1964, Ali failed the Armed Forces qualifying test because his writing and spelling skills were subpar. However, in early 1966, the tests were revised and Ali was reclassified 1A. He refused to serve in the United States Army during the Vietnam War as a conscientious objector, because "War is against the teachings of the Holy Qur'an. I'm not trying to dodge the draft. We are not supposed to take part in no wars unless declared by Allah or The Messenger. We don't take part in Christian wars or wars of any unbelievers." Ali also famously said, "I ain't got no quarrel with those Vietcong" and "no Vietcong ever called me ******."
Ali refused to respond to his name being read out as Cassius Clay, stating, as instructed by his mentors from the Nation of Islam, that Clay was the name given to his slave ancestors by the white man. By refusing to respond to this name, Ali's personal life was filled with controversy. Ali was essentially banned from fighting in the United States and forced to accept bouts abroad for most of 1966.
From his rematch with Liston in May 1965, to his final defense against Zora Folley in March 1967, he defended his title nine times. Few other heavyweight champions in history have fought so much in such a short period. Ali was scheduled to fight WBA champion Ernie Terrell in a unification bout in Toronto on March 29, 1966, but Terrell backed out and Ali won a 15-round decision against substitute opponent George Chuvalo. He then went to England and defeated Henry Cooper and Brian London by stoppage on cuts. Ali's next defense was against German southpaw Karl Mildenberger, the first German to fight for the title since Max Schmeling. In one of the tougher fights of his life, Ali stopped his opponent in round 12.
Ali returned to the United States in November 1966 to fight Cleveland "Big Cat" Williams in the Houston Astrodome. A year and a half before the fight, Williams had been shot in the stomach at point-blank range by a Texas policeman. As a result, Williams went into the fight missing one kidney, 10 feet of his small intestine, and with a shriveled left leg from nerve damage from the bullet. Ali beat Williams in three rounds.
On February 6, 1967, Ali returned to a Houston boxing ring to fight Terrell in what became one of the uglier fights in boxing. Terrell had angered Ali by calling him Clay, and the champion vowed to punish him for this insult. During the fight, Ali kept shouting at his opponent, "What's my name, Uncle Tom ... What's my name." Terrell suffered 15 rounds of brutal punishment, losing 13 of 15 rounds on two judges' scorecards, but Ali did not knock him out. Analysts, including several who spoke to ESPN on the sports channel's "Ali Rap" special, speculated that the fight only continued because Ali chose not to end it, choosing instead to further punish Terrell. After the fight, Tex Maule wrote, "It was a wonderful demonstration of boxing skill and a barbarous display of cruelty."
Ali's actions in refusing military service and aligning himself with the Nation of Islam made him a lightning rod for controversy, turning the outspoken but popular former champion into one of that era's most recognizable and controversial figures. Appearing at rallies with Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad and declaring his allegiance to him at a time when mainstream America viewed them with suspicion — if not outright hostility — made Ali a target of outrage, and suspicion as well. Ali seemed at times to even provoke such reactions, with viewpoints that wavered from support for civil rights to outright support of separatism. For example, Ali once stated, in relation to integration:
“ We who follow the teachings of Elijah Muhammad don't want to be forced to integrate. Integration is wrong. We don't want to live with the white man; that's all.[1] ”
And in relation to inter-racial marriage:
“ No intelligent black man or black woman in his or her right black mind wants white boys and white girls coming to their homes to marry their black sons and daughters.[2] ”
Indeed, Ali's religious beliefs at the time included the notion that the white man was "the devil", and that white people were not "righteous". Ali claimed that white people hated black people.[3]
Near the end of 1967, Ali was stripped of his title by the professional boxing commission and would not be allowed to fight professionally for more than three years. He was also convicted for refusing induction into the army and sentenced to five years in prison. Over the course of those years in exile, Ali fought to appeal his conviction. He stayed in the public spotlight and supported himself by giving speeches, primarily at rallies on college campuses that opposed the Vietnam War.
In 1970, Ali was allowed to fight again, and in late 1971 the Supreme Court reversed his conviction.
The comeback
In 1970, Ali was finally able to get a boxing license. With the help of a State Senator, he was granted a license to box in Georgia because it was the only state in America without a boxing commission. In October 1970, he returned to stop Jerry Quarry on a cut after three rounds. Shortly after the Quarry fight, the New York State Supreme Court ruled that Ali had been unjustly denied a boxing license. Once again able to fight in New York, he fought Oscar Bonavena at Madison Square Garden in December 1970. After a tough 14 rounds, Ali stopped Bonavena in the 15th, paving the way for a title fight against Joe Frazier.
The Fight of the Century
Main article: Fight of the Century
Ali and Frazier fought each other on March 8, 1971, at Madison Square Garden. The fight, known as '"The Fight of the Century", was one of the most eagerly anticipated bouts of all time and remains one of the most famous. It featured two skilled, undefeated fighters, both of whom had reasonable claims to the heavyweight crown. The fight lived up to the hype, and Frazier punctuated his victory by flooring Ali with a hard left hook in the 15th and final round. Frank Sinatra — unable to acquire a ringside seat — took photos of the match for Life Magazine. Legendary boxing announcer Don Dunphy and actor and boxing aficionado Burt Lancaster called the action for the broadcast, which reached millions of people.
Frazier eventually won the fight and retained the title with a unanimous decision, dealing Ali his first professional loss.
In 1973, after a string of victories over top Heavyweight opposition in a campaign to force a rematch with Frazier, Ali split two bouts with Ken Norton (in the bout that Ali lost to Norton, Ali suffered a broken jaw), before beating Frazier (who had lost the title to George Foreman) on points in their 1974 rematch, to earn another title shot.
The Rumble in the Jungle
The Rumble in the Jungle
Main article: The Rumble in the Jungle
Ali regained his title on October 30, 1974 by defeating champion George Foreman in their bizarre bout in Kinshasa, Zaire. Hyped as "The Rumble In The Jungle", the fight was promoted by Don King.
Almost no one, not even Ali's long-time supporter Howard Cosell, gave the former champion a chance of winning. Analysts pointed out that Joe Frazier and Ken Norton had given Ali four tough battles in the ring and won two of them while Foreman had destroyed both in the second round.
The fight became a political symbol - Ali was taken to represent Black consciousness and the fight against white power, Foreman taken to represent US arrogance. Ali was massively popular in Zaïre and gained enthusiastic support of the crowd for the much-hyped fight.
During the bout, Ali employed an unexpected strategy. Throughout the build up he declared he was going to 'dance' and use his speed to keep away from Foreman and out box him. However in the first round Ali headed straight for the champion and began hitting him with a rarely used punch known as a right hand lead. This involves hitting first with your right, rarely done at professional level as it has to travel the extra distance across the shoulders. Ali caught Foreman nine times in the first round with this technique but failed to knock him out. He then decided to take advantage of the young champion's one weakness: staying power. Foreman had won 37 of his 40 bouts by knockout, most within three rounds or less, with Foreman's eight previous bouts not going past the second round. Ali saw an opportunity to outlast Foreman, and capitalised on it. In the second round, the challenger retreated to the ropes inviting Foreman to hit him, whilst counterpunching and verbally taunting the younger man. Ali's plan was to enrage Foreman and absorb his best blows in order to exhaust him mentally and physically. While Foreman threw wide shots to Ali's body, Ali countered with stinging straight punches to Foreman's head. The champion threw hundreds of punches in seven rounds but with decreasing technique and effect. This was later termed "The Rope-A-Dope".
By the end of the eighth round Foreman was clearly flagging and Ali made his move, turning Foreman off the ropes and executing a combination for the knockout. Allegedly asking the young champ "is that all you got" before launching the final knockout combination. Foreman failed to make the count, and Ali had regained the title.
This match was ranked seventh in the British television program The 100 Greatest Sporting Moments.
Ali becomes a Sunni Muslim
Ali converted from the Nation of Islam to orthodox Sunni Islam in 1975. In a 2004 autobiography, written with daughter Hana Yasmeen Ali, Muhammad Ali attributes his conversion to the shift towards Sunni Islam made by W.D. Muhammad after he gained control of the Nation of Islam upon the death of his father, Elijah Muhammad in 1975.
Rocky
Main article: Rocky
On March 24, 1975, Ali fought Chuck Wepner in Cleveland, a fight that was to inspire the Academy Award winning movie Rocky. Ironically, however, it was Ali's opponent who provided the inspiration for history's most famous fictional pugilist. Wepner was a journeyman fighter who had been earning his living as a liquor salesman and security guard. Wepner had been dubbed "The Bayonne Bleeder" and, although he was ranked, he was considered hapless. Wepner, however, trained for two months and although he lost on a technical knock-out in the 15th round, he managed to knock Ali down with a body shot in the 9th. Sylvester Stallone saw the match in person and the concept of Rocky Balboa — an unknown club fighter who goes 15 rounds with the heavyweight champion — was born. Heavyweight champion Apollo Creed, the character portrayed by Carl Weathers, was loosely based on Ali.
The Thrilla in Manila
Main article: Thrilla in Manila
In 1975, Ali was again slated to fight Joe Frazier. The anticipation for the fight was enormous for the final clash between these two great heavyweights. Ali's frequent insults, slurs and poems increased the anticipation and excitement for the fight. After 14 grueling rounds, Frazier's trainer Eddie Futch refused to allow Frazier to continue. Frazier felt betrayed and never talked to Futch again. Ali was quoted after the fight as saying "This must be what death feels like". Ring Magazine called this bout 1975's Fight of the Year, the fifth year an Ali fight had earned that distinction. This fight has been called the greatest fight of all time by many.[citation needed] Ali won many of the early rounds, but Frazier staged a comeback in the middle rounds. By the late rounds, however, Ali had re-asserted control, and the fight was stopped due to Frazier's eyes being closed.
Neither fighter was ever the same again. Frazier would permanently retire after two more fights, and a declining Ali would struggle with many opponents from then on, aided by some controversial victories.
1976 saw Ali knock out two largely unknown opponents, Belgian stonecutter Jean-Pierre Coopman and English boxer Richard Dunn. On April 30, 1976 Ali faced Jimmy Young in Landover, Maryland. Ali weighed in at 230 lbs, the heaviest of his career to that point. The judges, chosen by Don King, gave Ali a decision after 15 rounds. But it was widely believed that Young had outscored Ali; many called the decision one of the worst in the history of boxing.[citation needed] In September, Ali faced Ken Norton in their third fight, held at Yankee Stadium. In another highly-disputed decision, the judges unanimously declared Ali the victor.[citation needed]
In 1977 Ali's ring doctor, Ferdie Pacheco, left Ali's entourage, stating that Ali was damaging himself by continuing to fight for too long, and that he did not wish to be held responsible. Pacheco had advised Ali to retire after beginning to see signs of Ali's reflexes slowing down.
Ali would retain his title until a February 1978 loss to 1976 Olympic champion Leon Spinks. In losing to the novice Spinks, Ali became the first heavyweight champion in the entire history of boxing to lose his title to a novice who had had only seven professional fights. In the September rematch in New Orleans at the Superdome, Spinks' cornerman Georgie Benton walked out of the ring after the 6th round, later commenting that he did not think the fight was on the level. Ali was given a 15-round decision over the disoriented Spinks. Then on June 27, 1979, he announced his retirement and vacated the title.
Final comeback and retirement
That retirement was short-lived, however, and on October 2, 1980, he challenged Larry Holmes for the WBC's version of the world Heavyweight title. Looking to set another record, as the first boxer to win the Heavyweight title four times, Ali lost by technical knockout in round eleven, when Dundee would not let him come out for the round. The Holmes fight, promoted as "The Last Hurrah", was a fight many fans and experts view with disdain, because it was a fight that saw a "deteriorated version" of Ali. Holmes was Ali's sparring partner when Holmes was a budding fighter; thus, some viewed the result of the fight as a symbolic "passing of the torch." Holmes even admitted later that, although he dominated the fight, he held his punches back a bit out of sheer respect for his idol, and former employer. It was revealed after the fight that Ali had been examined at the Mayo Clinic, and the results were shocking. He had admitted to tingling in his hands, and slurring of his speech. The exam revealed he actually had a hole in the membrane of his brain. However, Don King withheld this report, and allowed the fight to go on.
Despite the apparent finality of his loss to Holmes and his increasingly suspect medical condition, Ali would fight one more time. On December 11, 1981, he fought rising contender and future world champion Trevor Berbick, in what was billed as "The Drama in the Bahamas." Because Ali was widely viewed as a damaged fighter, few American venues expressed much interest in hosting the bout, and few fans expressed much interest in attending or watching it. Compared to the mega-fights Ali fought in widely known venues earlier in his career, the match took place in virtual obscurity, in Nassau. Although Ali performed marginally better against Berbick than he had against Holmes fourteen months earlier, he still lost a 10-round unanimous decision to Berbick, who at 27 was twelve years younger.
Following this loss, Ali retired permanently in 1981, with a career record of 56 wins (37 by knockout) and 5 losses, and as a three-time World Heavyweight Boxing Champion.
Ali's legacy
The torch Ali used to light the flame at the 1996 Summer OlympicsMuhammad Ali defeated almost every top Heavyweight in his era, an era which has been called the Golden Age of Heavyweight boxing. Ali was named "Fighter of the Year" by Ring Magazine more times than any other fighter, and was involved in more Ring Magazine "Fight of the Year" bouts than any other fighter. He is an inductee into the International Boxing Hall of Fame and holds wins over seven other Hall of Fame inductees. He is also one of only three boxers to be named "Sportsman of the Year" by Sports Illustrated. He is regarded as one of the best pound for pound boxers in history. He was a masterful self-promoter, and his psychological tactics before, during, and after fights, were very effective. It was his supreme skill, however, that enabled him to scale the heights and sustain his position.
In 1978, three years before Ali's permanent retirement, the Board of Aldermen in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky voted 6-5 to rename Walnut Street to Muhammad Ali Boulevard. This was controversial at the time, as within a week of the city installing 70 street signs, 12 were stolen. Earlier that year, a committee of the Jefferson County Public Schools considered renaming Central High School in his honor, but didn't approve the idea. At any rate, the naming of Ali Boulevard as well as Ali himself, in time, came to be well accepted in his hometown.[4]
In retirement
Ali was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in the early 1980s, following which his motor functions began a slow decline. Although Ali's doctors disagreed during the 1980s and 1990s about whether his symptoms were caused by boxing and whether or not his condition was degenerative,[5] he was ultimately diagnosed with Pugilistic Parkinson's syndrome. By late 2005 it was reported that Ali's condition was notably worsening.[5] According to the documentary When We Were Kings, when Ali was asked about whether he has any regrets about boxing due to his disability, he responded that if he didn't box he would still be a painter in Louisville, Kentucky.
Despite the disability, he remains a beloved and active public figure. Recently he was voted into Forbes Celebrity 100 coming in at number 13 behind Donald Trump. In 1985, he served as a guest referee at the inaugural WrestleMania event. In 1987 he was selected by the California Bicentennial Foundation for the U.S. Constitution to personify the vitality of the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights in various high profile activities. Ali rode on a float at the 1988 Tournament of Roses Parade, launching the U.S. Constitution's 200th birthday commemoration. He also published an oral history, Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times with Thomas Hauser, in 1991. Ali received a Spirit of America Award calling him the most recognized American in the world. In 1996, he had the honor of lighting the flame at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia.
The Muhammad Ali Center, alongside Interstate 64 on Louisville's riverfrontHe has appeared at the 1998 AFL (Australian Football League) Grand Final, where Anthony Pratt recruited him to watch the game. He also greets runners at the start line of the Los Angeles Marathon every year.
In 1999, Ali received a special one-off award from the BBC at its annual BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award ceremony, which was the BBC Sports Personality of the Century Award. His daughter Laila Ali also became a boxer in 1999, despite her father's earlier comments against female boxing in 1978: "Women are not made to be hit in the breast, and face like that... the body's not made to be punched right here [patting his chest]. Get hit in the breast... hard... and all that."
On September 13, 1999, Ali was named "Kentucky Athlete of the Century" by the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame in ceremonies at the Galt House East.[6]
Ali's Presidential Medal of Freedom on display at the Ali CenterIn 2001, a biographical film, entitled Ali, was made, with Will Smith starring as Ali. The film received mixed reviews, with the positives generally attributed to the acting, as Smith and supporting actor Jon Voight earned Academy Award nominations. Prior to making the Ali movie, Will Smith had continually rejected the role of Ali until Muhammad Ali personally requested that he accept the role. According to Smith, the first thing Ali said about the subject to Smith was: "You ain't pretty enough to play me".
He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom at a White House ceremony on November 9, 2005,[7] and the prestigious "Otto Hahn peace medal in Gold" of the United Nations Association of Germany (DGVN) in Berlin for his work with the US civil rights movement and the United Nations (December 17 2005).
On November 19, 2005 (Ali's 19th wedding anniversary), the $60 million non-profit Muhammad Ali Center opened in downtown Louisville, Kentucky. In addition to displaying his boxing memorabilia, the center focuses on core themes of peace, social responsibility, respect, and personal growth.
According to the Muhammad Ali Center website, "Since he retired from boxing, Ali has devoted himself to humanitarian endeavors around the globe. He is a devout Sunni Muslim, and travels the world over, lending his name and presence to hunger and poverty relief, supporting education efforts of all kinds, promoting adoption and encouraging people to respect and better understand one another. It is estimated that he has helped to provide more than 22 million meals to feed the hungry. Ali travels, on average, more than 200 days per year."
At the FedEx Orange Bowl on January 2, 2007, Ali was an honorary captain for the Louisville Cardinals wearing their white jersey, number 19. Ali was accompanied by golf legend Arnold Palmer, who was the honorary captain for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, and Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade.
A youth club in Ali's hometown and a species of rose (Rosa ali) have also been named after him.
Ali currently lives in Scottsdale, Arizona with his fourth wife, Yolanda 'Lonnie' Ali,[8] They own a house in Berrien Springs, Michigan which is currently for sale and on January 9, 2007, they purchased a house in eastern Jefferson County for $1,875,000.[9]
Ranking in heavyweight history
There is some dispute among boxing historians about who is actually the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time. However, a 1998 ranking in Ring magazine named Ali as the greatest heavyweight of all time.
Personal life
Muhammad Ali has been married four times and has seven daughters and two sons. Ali's met his first wife, cocktail waitress Sonji Roi, approximately one month before they married on August 14, 1964. Roi's objections to certain Muslim customs in regards to dress for women contributed to the break-up of their marriage. They divorced on January 10, 1966.
On August 17, 1967, Ali married 17-year old Belinda Boyd. After the wedding, she changed her name to Khalilah Ali, following Muslim tradition, but she was still called Belinda by old friends and family. They had four children together; the eldest daughter, Maryum, was born in 1968. Twin daughters, Jamilla and Rasheeda, were born in 1970. Muhammad Ali's only biological son, Muhammad Ali Jr., was born in 1972. However, Ali began an affair with a young woman named Veronica Porsche in 1974. Porche was one of the four poster girls who had promoted the Rumble in the Jungle fight in Zaire versus George Foreman. By the summer of 1977, Ali's second marriage was over and he had married Veronica. By the time they were married, they had a baby girl, Hana, and Veronica was pregnant with their second child. Their second daughter, Laila Ali, was born in December of that year. By 1986, Ali and Veronica had divorced.
On November 19, 1986, Ali married his fourth wife, Yolanda 'Lonnie' Ali. They had known each other since their childhoods in Louisville. Their mothers were close friends, and Muhammad Ali was her babysitter. They have one adopted son, Asaad.
Ali has two other daughters, Miya and Khaliah, from extramarital relationships.
Ali in the media
Books
King of the World - The best-selling biography by David Remnick.
The Greatest-My Own Story by Muhammad Ali with Richard Durham - 1975.
The Fight by Norman Mailer - 1975
Mohammad Ali and a fictional son Mohammad Ali Jr. are portrayed in the Japanese manga series "New Grappler Baki - In search of our strongest hero".
GOAT (Greatest Of All Time): Taschen's massive 800 page tribute to Ali, weighs in at 75lbs, limited "Champ's Edition" is autographed by Muhammad Ali and comes with a sculpture by Jeff Koons.
The Soul of a Butterfly: Reflections on Life's Journey by Muhammad Ali (with Hana Yasmeen Ali) - 2004.
Superman Vs Muhammad Ali: DC Comics - 1978, by Dennis O'Neill & Neal Adams.
Music
In 1971, New York singer Vernon Harrell released a record about him called "Muhammed Ali" (Brunswick Records #55448) as Verne Harrell. This misspelling of Ali's name was printed on the 45's.
In 1974, a song about Ali titled "Black Superman (Muhammad Ali)" was recorded by British reggae group Johnny Wakelin & the Kinshasa Band.[10]
The British dance band Faithless recorded a song titled "Muhammad Ali" which was released as a single on 23 September 2001. The single reached #29 in the UK singles chart. The song was included on their 2001 album Outrospective.
Movies and television
When We Were Kings is a 1996 Academy Award-winning documentary film about the "Rumble in the Jungle", Ali's legendary 1974 fight against George Foreman in Kinshasa, Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo).
When We Were KingsSeveral individuals have portrayed Ali in film biographies, including Ali himself:
Future Amazing Race winner Chip McAllister, in the 1977 film, The Greatest (portraying a young adult Cassius Clay)
Muhammad Ali, in the 1977 film, The Greatest
Darius McCrary, in the 1997 HBO TV movie, Don King: Only in America
Terrence Howard, in the 2000 ABC TV movie, King of the World
Aaron Meeks, in the 2000 Fox TV movie, Ali: An American Hero (portraying a young Cassius Clay)
David Ramsey, in the 2000 Fox TV movie, Ali: An American Hero
Will Smith, in the 2001 film, Ali