Muhammad Ali


Muhammad Ali (b. Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr., January 17, 1942, Louisville,
Kentucky) is an American boxer. He is one of the world's greatest
heavyweight boxers, as well as one of the world's most famous individuals,
renowned the world over for his boxing and political activism.

He began boxing at age 12, initially tutored by policeman Joe Martin. After
a glittering amateur career including six Kentucky State Golden Gloves
titles, two National Golden Gloves titles, and two National Amateur Athletic
Union titles, he won the gold medal in boxing's light heavyweight division
at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome on September 5.

He turned professional under the training of boxing legend Angelo Dundee,
and quickly became famous for his unorthodox style, his spectacular results,
and his tireless self-promotion. He made a name for himself as the
"Louisville Lip" by composing poems predicting in which round he would knock
his opponent out. He boisterously sang his own praises, with sayings like "I
am the greatest" and "I'm young, I'm pretty, and I can't possibly be beat."

In Louisville on October 29, 1960 Cassius Clay won his first professional fight.

In 1964, Clay managed to get himself an opportunity to fight heavyweight
champion Sonny Liston. He stunned the world by upsetting the heavy favorite
Liston, who refused to leave his corner for the eighth round, claiming he
had injured his shoulder. Clay was duly crowned the heavyweight champion of
the world. He would confirm his abilities in 1965, when he knocked Liston
out in the first round of their rematch, albeit controversially as few
observers saw the "phantom punch" that floored Liston.

In between the two matches, he also became famous for other reasons: he
joined the Nation of Islam, and changed his name to Muhammad Ali. In 1966,
he refused to serve in the American army in the Vietnam War as a
conscientious objector, famously saying that he "got nothing against no Viet
Cong. No Vietnamese ever called me a nigger." He was stripped of his
championship title and his license to box, and sentenced to five years in
prison (this was overturned on appeal three years later).

In 1970, granted a license to box once more, he began a comeback, but
suffered a setback when he lost his 1971 title fight, a bruising 15 round
encounter with Joe Frazier at Madison Square Garden. He split two bouts with
Ken Norton before beating Frazier on points in 1974 to earn another title shot.

The incumbent, George Foreman, was a large, hard-hitting, undefeated young
fighter who had previously demolished Frazier, KO'ing him in the second
round of their championship fight, and was the heavy favorite. The fight was
held in Zaire and promoted by Don King as "The Rumble in The Jungle." In the
bout that would cement his reputation as "The Greatest", Ali boxed his best
tactical fight. Leading with his "wrong" hand and playing "rope-a-dope" by
leaning far back on the ropes (that had supposedly been loosened by Dundee),
Ali absorbed everything Foreman could throw at him, whilst only occasionally
throwing counter punches. By the end of the sixth round, Foreman had punched
himself out and Ali was able to attack a little more. Foreman kept
advancing, but his blows were much less strong and near the end of the
eighth, Ali's right hand finally sent the exhausted Foreman to the floor.

In 1975, Ali defeated Joe Frazier once more in the Thrilla In Manila in the
Philippines. Along with the "Rumble", his fights with Frazier are widely
considered among the greatest in boxing history.

He would retain his title until a 1978 loss to Leon Spinks. He defeated
Spinks in a rematch, becoming the heavyweight champion for the record third
time. He vacated the title and retired.

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, he lost by knockout in round eleven, when
Dundee would not let him come out for that round. The Holmes fight, promoted
as The Last Hurrah, was a fight many fans and experts view in disdain,
because of what many viewed as a deteriorated version of Ali. It shall be
said that Holmes was Ali's sparring partner when Holmes was a kid. Because
of that, some viewed the result of the fight as a symbolic passing of the
torch at the time.

Ali retired permanently in 1981 with a career record of 56 wins, 37 by
knockout, against 5 losses.

Ali had a highly unorthodox style for a heavyweight boxer. He carried his
hands at his sides rather than the orthodox boxing style of carrying the
hands high to defend the face. Instead, he relied on his extraordinary
reflexes and reach to keep him away from his opponents' blows. Ali punched
to the head much more than most boxers -- a high-risk strategy since over
the duration of a long fight punches to the body can be much more effective
in tiring an opponent out.

His conversion to Islam marked the beginning of an influential involvement
with the Black Muslim movement. Though he eventually parted ways with the
Nation of Islam, he remained a vocal and eloquent advocate on black civil
rights issues. The English journalist Tony Parsons described him as a hero
because "no white man could look at him or listen to him and feel superior".

He was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1982, following which his motor
functions began a slow decline. Despite this, he remained a hero to millions
around the world. In 1985, he was called on to negotiate for the release of
kidnapped Americans in Lebanon; in 1996, to light the Olympic flame in
Atlanta, Georgia. At the same Olympics, Ali was also presented with a
replacement gold medal. He had thrown the previous one, won in 1960, in the
Ohio River after he had been refused service in a restaurant because of his race.