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Sports · 1960s

Muhammad Ali

In memoriam 1942–2016
Boxing (heavyweight)Sport
Independent professional; based in Louisville and ChicagoTeams
Three-time world heavyweight champion; 1960 Olympic goldTitles
56-5, 37 KOs; first to win heavyweight title three timesRecords
Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. in Louisville, KentuckyBorn
The Turning Point

Born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. in Louisville, Kentucky, he took up boxing at age 12 and won Olympic gold in 1960. He shocked the world in 1964 by upsetting heavyweight champion Sonny Liston, then announced his conversion to Islam and his new name, Muhammad Ali. That breakthrough made him a global star and lightning rod.

Muhammad Ali, 1967
Muhammad Ali, 1967

Louisville Lip

Cassius Clay Jr. was born in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1942 and began boxing at 12 after his bicycle was stolen. He won Olympic gold in 1960 and turned pro that year. His brash predictions and poetry earned him the nickname the 'Louisville Lip.'

Muhammad Ali (then Cassius Clay), 1963
Muhammad Ali (then Cassius Clay), 1963

Champion and Conscientious Objector

In 1964 Clay upset Sonny Liston to win the title, then embraced Islam and the name Muhammad Ali. His 1967 refusal of the Vietnam draft cost him his title and prime years but made him a symbol of conviction. The Supreme Court later vacated his conviction in 1971.

The Greatest

Ali regained the championship by beating Foreman in 1974 and Frazier in 1975, becoming the first three-time heavyweight champion in 1978. Diagnosed with Parkinson's, he lit the 1996 Olympic flame in a moving moment. He died in Scottsdale, Arizona, in 2016 at age 74.

Career Timeline

  1. 1942Born Cassius Clay Jr. in Louisville, Kentucky
  2. 1960Wins Olympic light heavyweight gold in Rome
  3. 1964Upsets Sonny Liston for heavyweight title
  4. 1964Changes name to Muhammad Ali
  5. 1967Refuses Vietnam draft; stripped of title
  6. 1971Loses 'Fight of the Century' to Joe Frazier
  7. 1974Beats George Foreman in 'Rumble in the Jungle'
  8. 1975Defeats Frazier in brutal 'Thrilla in Manila'
  9. 1978Regains title a third time from Leon Spinks
  10. 1981Retires from professional boxing
  11. 1996Lights the Olympic cauldron in Atlanta
  12. 2016Dies in Scottsdale, Arizona, at age 74

Biggest Hits

1960
Olympic Gold MedalWon light heavyweight gold at the Rome Games
1964
Heavyweight ChampionStunned Sonny Liston to win first world title
1974
Rumble in the JungleKnocked out George Foreman to regain the title
1975
Thrilla in ManilaBeat Joe Frazier in epic third meeting
1978
Three-Time ChampionFirst to win the heavyweight title three times
1981
56-5 Career RecordFinished with 56 wins and 37 knockouts
Did You Know
  • He refused induction into the Army in 1967 on religious grounds, was stripped of his title, and did not fight for over three years until the Supreme Court overturned his conviction.
  • His battles with Joe Frazier and George Foreman, the 'Thrilla in Manila' and 'Rumble in the Jungle,' are among the most famous fights in history.

Portrait: Ira Rosenberg, New York World-Telegram and the Sun · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

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