MUHAMMAD ALI

Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.; January 17, 1942) is an American former professional boxer, generally considered among the greatest heavyweights in the sport's history. A controversial and polarizing figure during his early career, Ali is today widely regarded for not only the skills he displayed in the ring but also the values he exemplified outside of it: religious freedom, racial justice and the triumph of principle over expedience.[2][3] He is one of the most recognized sports figures of the past 100 years, crowned "Sportsman of the Century" by Sports Illustrated and "Sports Personality of the Century" by the BBC.[4][5]

Born Cassius Clay, at the age of 22 he won the world heavyweight championship in 1964 from Sonny Liston in a stunning upset. Shortly after that bout, Ali joined the Nation of Islam and changed his name. He subsequently converted to Sunni Islam in 1975.

In 1967, three years after winning the heavyweight title, Ali refused to be conscripted into the U.S. military, citing his religious beliefs and opposition to the Vietnam War. He was eventually arrested and found guilty on draft evasion charges and stripped of his boxing title. He did not fight again for nearly four years—losing a time of peak performance in an athlete's career. Ali's appeal worked its way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, where in 1971 his conviction was overturned. Ali's actions as a conscientious objector to the war made him an icon for the larger counterculture generation.[6][7]

Ali remains the only three-time lineal World Heavyweight Champion; he won the title in 1964, 1974, and 1978.

Nicknamed "The Greatest", Ali was involved in several historic boxing matches.[8] Notable among these were the first Liston fight, three with rival Joe Frazier, and one with George Foreman, where he regained titles he had been stripped of seven years earlier.

Ali revolutionized the sport of boxing by sheer power and magnetism of his personality [9] He transformed the role and image of the African American athlete in America by his embrace of racial pride and his willingness to antagonize the white establishment in doing so.[15][16][17] In the words of writer Joyce Carol Oates, he was one of the few athletes in any sport to completely "define the terms of his public reputation."[18]

Early Life and career

He was first directed toward boxing by Louisville police officer and boxing coach Joe E. Martin,[22] who encountered the 12-year-old fuming over a thief taking his bicycle. He told the officer he was going to "whup" the thief. The officer told him he better learn how to box first.[23] For the last four years of Clay's amateur career he was trained by boxing cutman Chuck Bodak.[24]

Clay won six Kentucky Golden Gloves titles, two national Golden Gloves titles, an Amateur Athletic Union National Title, and the Light Heavyweight gold medal in the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome.[25] Clay's amateur record was 100 wins with five losses.

Shortly after his return home from Rome following the Olympics, Ali would claim in his 1975 autobiography that he threw his medal into the Ohio River after he and a friend of his were being refused service at a "whites-only" restaurant, and fighting with a white gang. The story has since been heavily debated and several of Ali's friends from photographer Howard Bingham to Budini Brown denied it. Brown later told Sports Illustrated writer Mark Kram, "Honkies sure bought into that one!" Thomas Hauser's biography of Ali confirmed that Ali was refused service at the diner but that he lost his medal a year after he won it. Ali later received a replacement medal at a basketball intermission during the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, where he lit the torch to start the games.

Heavyweight Champion 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.

Clay won a disputed 10 round decision over Doug Jones, who, despite being lighter than Clay, staggered Clay as soon as the fight started with a right hand, and beat Clay to the punch continually during the fight. 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-bashful 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 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, he was ultimately diagnosed with Pugilistic Parkinson's syndrome. By late 2005 it was reported that Ali's condition was notably worsening. 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.