The greatest of them all, the boxing legend Muhammad Ali passed away on Friday June 03,2016 fighting a respiratory ailment.
The 74-year-old icon was hospitalized on Thursday June 02,2016. US media had reported his respiratory trouble was complicated by his Parkinson's disease.
Ali (above with wife Lonnie Wiliams in October) was taken to a hospital on Thursday after he began having difficulty breathing
Nicknamed "The Greatest," the former world heavyweight champion retired from boxing in 1981 with a record of 56 wins, 37 by knockout, and five losses
Ali's diagnosis of Parkinson's came about three years after he left the ring.
Ali-- whose legendary boxing career stretched from 1960 to 1981 - dazzled fans with slick moves in the ring, and with his wit and engaging persona outside it. His opposition to the Vietnam War saw him banned from the sport for years, but the US Supreme Court overturned his conviction for draft dodging in 1971.
Once vilified in some quarters for his conversion to Islam and his outspoken stance on civil rights issues, Ali held firm to earn dozens of tributes, lighting the Olympic torch in 1996 in Atlanta and being named a UN messenger of peace in 1998.
He received the highest US civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, in 2005.
Ali's last public appearance was in April at the "Celebrity Fight Night" gala in Arizona, a charity that benefits the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center.
At the height of his career, Ali was known for his dancing feet and quick fists and his ability, as he put it, to float like a butterfly and sting like a bee.
He held the heavyweight title a record three times, and Sports Illustrated named him the top sportsman of the 20th century.
Ali, born in Louisville, Kentucky, as Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr, changed his name in 1964 after his conversion to Islam.
Ali had a show-time personality that he melded with dazzling footwork and great hand speed. His bouts with such fighters as Sonny Liston, Joe Frazier and George Foreman made him an international celebrity like boxing had never seen.
Muhammad Ali retired from boxing in 1981 with a record of 56 wins, 37 by knockout, and 5 losses.
Ali retired from boxing in 1981 and devoted himself to social causes, before his Parkinson's diagnosis took its toll in 1984
Ali's boxing career
- Won Olympic light-heavyweight gold in 1960
- Turned professional that year and was world heavyweight champion from 1964 to 1967, 1974 to 1978 and 1978 to 1979
- Had 61 professional bouts, winning 56 (37 knockouts, 19 decisions), and losing five (4 decisions, 1 retirement)
Ali became dependent on his wife, Lonnie (right), and her sister, Marilyn Williams (left), after Parkinson's took hold
He became a symbol for black liberation during the 1960s as he stood up to the U.S. government by refusing to go into the Army for religious reasons.
Ali made a surprise appearance at the Atlanta Olympic Games in 1996, stilling the Parkinson's tremors in his hands enough to light the Olympic flame.
He also took part in the opening ceremony of the London Olympics in 2012, looking frail in a wheelchair.
He has been married 4 times and has 9 children.
A picture taken May 26, 1965, in Lewiston, USA, during the world heavyweight boxing championship, at the end of which the American Muhammad Ali (Cassius Clay) (C) won against his compatriot Sonny Liston (L) after a one minute fight with Joe Walcott (R) as a referee
Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier battling it out in 1971 in what went down in history as the 'Fight of the Century'.Joe Fraizer defeats Muhammad Ali in Madison Square Gardens, 1971.Their fight at Madison Square Garden was watched by millions of people in America and around the world. Frazier won a unanimous 15-round decision – it was Ali’s first professional loss.
Ali prowls the ring after putting George Foreman down in round eight of the Rumble in the Jungle in Zaire in 1974
Ali: The Fighter
Ali the Fighter sheds some light on the initial match with Joe Frazier, and all the drama that went on outside the ring.
The Greatest(1977)
In this 1977 biopic, Ali played himself thus allowing his charismatic personality to shine through on celluloid. The story glosses over some of the less flattering moments of Ali's life.
When We Were Kings (1996)
This film focuses primarily on Ali’s boxing match with George Foreman, and everything that led to the historic fight. The film gave fans a peek at Ali’s preparation and strategy for the match. It is considered as not just the greatest movie about Ali, but also the greatest movie about boxing ever made.
Ali: An American Hero
Ali: An American Hero was a biopic released on television. It covered different parts of Ali’s life, with flashbacks to the time when he was still known as Cassius Clay. The biopic also highlighted one of Ali’s most famous fights – the 1974 heavyweight championship with George Foreman.
Ali(2001)
The 2001 film starring Will Smith as the infamous boxer, is unique because it’s one of the few films about Ali that isn’t a documentary
Facing Ali(2009)
Facing Ali was a documentary that featured 10 of Ali’s former opponents. The competitors shared their experiences and give a detailed account of their fights with him over the years.
I Am Ali
2014's I Am Ali uses various audio journals and interviews from Ali's family and friends to tell his story
Muhammad Ali, The Greatest, Once Said These Famous Words
1. "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. His hands can't hit what his eyes can't see. Now you see me, now you don't. George thinks he will, but I know he won't."
2. "Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth."
3. "I'm young; I'm handsome; I'm fast. I can't possibly be beaten."
4. "Don’t count the days; make the days count."
5. “If my mind can conceive it, and my heart can believe it, then I can achieve it."
6. “It's hard to be humble when you're as great as I am."
7. “It isn’t the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it’s the pebble in your shoe.”
8. “If you even dream of beating me you'd better wake up and apologize.”
9. “Braggin' is when a person says something and can’t do it. I do what I say.”
10. "I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was."
11. "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."
12. "I'm so mean, I make medicine sick."
13. "I should be a postage stamp. That's the only way I'll ever get licked."
14. “Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they’ve been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It’s an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It’s a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.”
15. “He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.”
16. "A man who views the world the same at 50 as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life.”
17. “If they can make penicillin out of moldy bread, they can sure make something out of you.”
18. "I shook up the world. Me! Whee!"
19. “I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'”
20. “At home I am a nice guy: but I don’t want the world to know. Humble people, I’ve found, don’t get very far.”
21. "A man who has no imagination has no wings."
22. "He’s (Sonny Liston) too ugly to be the world champ. The world champ should be pretty like me!"
23. "I am the astronaut of boxing. Joe Louis and Dempsey were just jet pilots. I'm in a world of my own."
24. “I’ve wrestled with alligators. I’ve tussled with a whale. I done handcuffed lightning. And throw thunder in jail.”
25. "Hating people because of their color is wrong. And it doesn't matter which color does the hating. It's just plain wrong."
26. “It’s not bragging if you can back it up.”
27. "I'm the most recognized and loved man that ever lived cuz there weren't no satellites when Jesus and Moses were around, so people far away in the villages didn't know about them."
28. "It's just a job. Grass grows, birds fly, waves pound the sand. I beat people up."
29. “I’m not the greatest, I’m the double greatest.”
30. “Live everyday as if it were your last because someday you're going to be right.”
Muhammad Ali Timeline
Birth: Jan 17, 1942, as Cassius Clay Junior in Louisville, Kentucky, United States of America
The Bicycle Theft: In 1954, a bicycle gifted to him by his parents on birthday gets stolen. He reports his crime to police and vows to thrash whoever stole his bike. The policeman ask him to learn to fight first and guides him to boxing coach Fred Stoner. That started the journey of Cassius Clay turning into Muhammad Ali the legend. He won ten titles from then to the Rome Olympics in 1960.
The Rome Olympics: In 1960, Clay Junior won the light-heavyweight gold at the Games in Italy beating Poland's Zbigniew Pietrzykowski. But incidents of racism back home infuriated him and he threw his Olympic medal into the Ohio River. Thereafter, he turned to professional boxing.
Champion: Clay beats Sonny Liston to become the world heavyweight champion in 1964. He was not the favourite despite his 19-0 record but won the championship fight in six rounds.
Turns to Islam: After beating Liston, Clay announced that he has become a Black Muslim and shall be called Muhammad Ali.
Stripped of his title: In 1967, the legend was stripped of his WBA title and fighting licenses for refusing induction into the US Army. A court battle followed where he was fined and sentenced to jail but remained free pending appeals.
Return to the Ring: The legend makes a comeback to the boxing ring in Atlanta and brushes aside Jerry Quarry.
The Frazier Hook: In March 1971, Joe Frazier knocks out Ali in the 15th round.
The Revenge: In January 1974, Ali beats Frazier in a return fight. He won in 12 rounds.
Rumble in the Jungle: October of 1974 saw Ali reclaiming his heavyweight title in Zaire beating George Foreman.
Thrilla in Manila: A third face-off with Frazier in 1975 saw a bloody battle in the Philippines, but Frazier lost shape and quit after 14 rounds.
Overconfidence: By 1978, Ali had a career record of 55-2. That perhaps made him overconfident as he lost to 1976 Olympics champion Leo Spinks. But just in seven months' time, Ali managed to beat him in a return fight to regain his title.
Retirement: On June 27, 1979, he chose to quit the ring.
Decides to come back: A year later, in 1980, Ali decides to return to fight heavyweight champion Larry Holmes. But the legend gets punished by the reigning champion and gets knocked out in the 11th round.
Retires again, this time permanently: In 1981, after losing to Trevor Berbick, Ali decides to quit with his final record reading 56-5.
Parkinson's Disease: The legend is found to be suffering from the neurological disorder, leaving him partially lose control over his muscle movement and have a slowed speech.
Carries the Olympic Torch: The Atlanta Olympics of 1996 saw Ali carrying the torch. The IOC also awarded him a second gold medal to replace the one he threw into the Ohio River after winning it at the Rome Games in 1960.
One Last Appearance at the Games: In a white suit and tie, Muhammad Ali graced the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
Leaves for the Heavens: Diagnosed with a respiratory illness in May 2016 and develops complications due to his Parkinson's disease. Takes his last breath on June 3,2016 in a hospital in Arizona, USA.
No comments:
Post a Comment