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A stolen bicycle.
A stolen bicycle caused a 12-year-old boy from Louisville, Kentucky to take up fighting. The child ran into a gym run by a police officer, Joe Martin, and asked to be taught how to fight, so he could whup the person who took his bicycle from him.
The child’s goals short term was immensely dwarfed by what he became. By what he meant to people. By what he ultimately stood for.
And, most of all, by what he accomplished.
Muhammad Ali is not one who took the typical path, but his story is without question a great American story. A story of someone who pushed boundaries, opened his arms and ultimately his heart, and became a worldwide icon, the likes of whom may never be seen again in the realm of sports.
To define Ali is not something that can be done easily. Many people fall into pretty tight buckets upon reflection – he was a good guy, he was a good family man, he was one who gave to his community.
Ali, though, is a man of nuance. A man of contradiction in many cases, and a man who impacted many people in many different ways. It’s that nuance, contradiction, rough edges and charitable works that forms the picture that Muhammad Ali is:
The Greatest.
As Cassius Clay, he rose up from one who wanted to avenge a stolen bike to an accomplished amateur boxer, and one that went to Rome in 1960, and won a gold medal as a light heavyweight. It was on this stage that he emerged as a bright light – his radiant smile, his good looks, his quick wit and boundless personality on display for all to see. Clay would soon turn professional, and had the world at his fingertips.
Clay became aligned with the late Angelo Dundee, and their partnership was one of the best trainer/fighter tandems in boxing history. Dundee was the one man who could get through to Clay, and direct him through tough moments in fights. He had an insanely gifted pupil to work with. There had never been a heavyweight fighter blessed with the hand and foot speed that Clay was blessed with. Clay could dance around the ring, snapping off rapid fire left jabs to carve up his opponents. Clay didn’t have lethal power as a puncher, but when he sat down on his punches, he had knockout power. Aside from a difficult fight with Doug Jones in Madison Square Garden in 1962, he sailed through the early portion of his career, and set himself up for a heavyweight title shot against Sonny Liston – a man backed by the Las Vegas mob, and thought to be indestructible. Liston had annihilated former champion Floyd Patterson in two brutal knockout victories. Many people thought that Clay would be destroyed by Liston.
It was here that the cunning of Clay came to be known, and the master of the mind games came to be.
Clay played the role of a crazy man in press conferences, ranting and raving anytime he was within reach of Liston. Clay rationalized that a man like Liston was likely to be unnerved by a person he thought to be crazy, and Clay took it to extreme levels. The boxing scribes believed that it was the act of a scared man, but it was actually the seeds of uncertainty planted in his opponent. Clay went on to beat Liston, dazzling him with speed, and, when rubbing liniment from Liston’s shoulder got into his eyes, showed toughness and resolve in withstanding Liston’s one rally in the fight.
Clay became the youngest heavyweight champion in history. However, a change took place in this time that made him one of the most polarizing men of the 20th Century.
Clay became a member of the Nation of Islam.
Clay had actually become a member prior to his fight with Liston, but wanted to keep it under wraps until after the fight. It was then that he revealed his change in religious identity, and a change of his name:
Cassius Clay became Muhammad Ali.
In many quarters, Ali became a hated individual. He spoke on many college campuses and gatherings around the country. There was a segment of people who loathed his message of black empowerment and of white exploitation of blacks. Many deemed him to be a racist of his own accord. But, to do so would be to ignore the reality of who Ali was – Ali’s trainer, Dundee, was white. As was his business manager, Gene Kilroy. As was his personal doctor, Ferdie Pacheco. As was his lawyer, Bob Arum.
It was also during this time that Ali showed a somewhat cruel side in the ring. He dished out vicious beatings to Floyd Patterson and Ernie Terrell in fights when they refused to refer to him by his Muslim name, Muhammad Ali. As he beat each man mercilessly, he taunted them, saying, “What’s my name?” as he piled up punishment. He demonstrated his superiority in the ring, yet lessened himself as he did so. Ali was at the top of his game.
And, then, Ali’s commitment would be tested as it had never been tested before.
Ali was drafted by the U.S. Army in 1967 to go to active duty in the Vietnam War. Ali refused to be inducted, citing grounds of being a conscientious objector. He famously said, “I ain’t got nothing against no Vietcong.” Despite being warned repeatedly by the government of the consequences, he refused to comply with the order. As a result, Ali was stripped of his heavyweight title, and forced into a three-and-a-half-year exile from his sport. He was unable to travel overseas, and would not be licensed to fight in the United States.
Ali was denied the right to earn a living as a fighter, and this was due to him not wanting to fight in a war that he didn’t believe in, and one that was in conflict with his religious views. For all of the people that think he was just a draft dodger, consider this – Ali willingly gave up his heavyweight title, his career, and the prime of his life for his beliefs. Ali was never going to see combat – he would have been in effect a USO member in uniform, fighting exhibitions and traveling to lift the spirits of American troops. And, despite this, he held firm and resolute in his beliefs that this war was wrong, and it wasn’t consistent with his religious beliefs. And, in doing so, became perhaps the most hated man in America.
How many people would have the courage, self-belief and conviction to do this?
Ali eventually got back into the ring. The three-and-a-half-year layoff robbed him of his foot speed. Once viewed as a man who ran and boxed like a man afraid of getting hit soon found out that he had one of the great chins in boxing history.
This chin and the courage and fortitude first shown in his stance against the U.S. government carried him for the back end of his career. And, it also ruined his health for the remainder of his life.
Ali had a rebirth and remaking in the 1970’s. After the government’s conviction of him was overturned by the Supreme Court, and when he renounced the views of the Nation of Islam, and transitioned to a much more moderate Sunni Muslim view of Islam, Ali transformed from being Public Enemy #1 to a worldwide icon, a beloved man, and role model for all.
In the 1970’s, Ali ushered in the golden age of heavyweight boxing. He waged hard fought trilogies with Joe Frazier and Ken Norton, and regained the heavyweight title on two occasions. In his fight against George Foreman, The Rumble in the Jungle, Ali, at the age of 32, defeated an opponent as feared as Sonny Liston was a decade earlier. Foreman, who had destroyed Joe Frazier to win the title in 1973, and wiped out Norton in Venezuela earlier in 1974, was thought to be unbeatable. Ali was thought to be over the hill. Ali summoned a lot of courage, and kept his back to the ropes, inventing the “rope a dope”. He took a beating, but allowed Foreman to punch himself out. Once this had happened, Ali knocked out Foreman, and shocked the world once again.
Ali became the heavyweight champion, and even more so, the heavyweight champion of the world. Ali fought fights in Zaire, Indonesia, Malaysia, Germany, England, Canada, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, the Philippines. He brought a cache to the heavyweight title that hadn’t been seen before. It was at this time that he became the most famous man in the world, next to the Pope.
But, for all of his activity, travels and fights, his skills were slipping, and he took beatings in the ring. Consider this – after his third fight with Frazier, The Thrilla in Manila, arguably the most intense, hard fought and brutal heavyweight title fight in history, Ali fought for another five years, logging many more rounds and receiving many more blows. Ali, never one to go hard on his sparring partners, began to prepare for fights by having his sparring partners tee off on his head and body, absorbing even more punishment. He fought 15 round fights against Jimmy Young, Alfredo Evangelista, Ken Norton, twice against Leon Spinks. He retired for the first time in 1978, but financial difficulties and an itch for the spotlight brought him back.
This fight against Larry Holmes, his ex-sparring partner, should never have happened. Ali had health issues leading into the fight, and was examined by the Mayo Clinic. The renowned institution issued a medical report that was largely ignored – that he didn’t have the dexterity that one would expect, and that the membranes of his brain had a hole in them. Couple this with improperly prescribed thyroid medication from his manager, Herbert Muhammad’s physician, and Ali was a time bomb against the most underrated heavyweight champion of all time. Ali was no match for Holmes, and took a horrific beating in being stopped for the first time in his career. To make matters worse, Ali was shorted on his purse by Don King, a man who Ali made by having him promote The Rumble in The Jungle. Ali went on to fight one last time, a forgettable fight against Trevor Berbick, and his career was over.
Three years later, Ali was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. Many believe that it was due to the many punches that he absorbed in his long career. Regardless of his affliction, Ali continued to be a very public figure, traveling the world, participating in humanitarian causes, touching the hearts of millions around the world.
Ali worked to free American hostages from Iraq in 1991. He traveled to Iraq, and ran out of his Parkinson’s medication. Despite his hardships, he would not leave until the hostages came home with him. He convinced Saddam Hussein to let them go, and the hostages were freed.
Ali further cemented his iconic status when he lit the Olympic Cauldron at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Games. Despite the tremors from his Parkinson’s violently shaking his arms, Ali showed the image of strength, lighting the cauldron, and warming the hearts of millions.
How should Muhammad Ali be remembered? Should it be for his fighting? For his colorful poems and quick wit? For his verbal sparring sessions with Howard Cosell on Wide World of Sports? For his humanitarian works?
Ali was a lot of things to a lot of people. Many still harbor resentment for his refusal to be inducted into the U.S. Army. Many hate his braggadocio. However, many also respect his stance on the war, and love his self-confidence. While Ali is to be lauded and respected for his conviction, his commitment to his religious beliefs and his capacity to do many good works with no fanfare to be gained, he also did not distinguish himself with the way he treated his three ex-wives by cheating on them repeatedly, and for the way he spoke harshly and cruelly about Joe Frazier. Ali first made Frazier out to be an Uncle Tom, then mocked him even further for his speech pattern and color. Frazier was a good man who actually supported Ali financially when he was exiled from boxing. Ali damaged Frazier significantly with his words, and Frazier bore a serious grudge until shortly before Frazier’s death. For a man who uplifted so many with his pride in being a black man in a very white America, he lowered himself and his dignity by disparaging a good man like Joe Frazier in the way that he did.
All of that being said, it’s that nuance, that contradiction, in combination with his wit, intelligence, and capacity for unselfish works that make Muhammad Ali was he was.
The Greatest of All Time.
EPILOGUE: I am not someone who is prone to be wowed or overwhelmed by meeting someone famous. I have been fortunate in my life and line of work to have met or be around famous people from time to time. In 1997, I was fortunate enough to get tickets to see the premiere of the documentary of his fight with George Foreman, When We Were Kings, that was staged at Radio City Music Hall. Along with the viewing of the documentary was a concert featuring The Fugees, James Brown and a number of other acts. When I was walking up to the doors to get in, Muhammad Ali happened to be walking up the red carpet. My knees literally locked and knocked together. I stood in awe watching this icon walk toward me, and was trying to think of something profound to say. I failed. All I managed was, “Hi champ, you are a hero of mine.” He shook my hand, his face a mask from his Parkinson’s. He kept shuffling forward. Despite his physical health being in decline, the aura that he projected was awe inspiring. It is a moment that I cherish, and will never forget. RIP to a true American success story.
A stolen bicycle caused a 12-year-old boy from Louisville, Kentucky to take up fighting. The child ran into a gym run by a police officer, Joe Martin, and asked to be taught how to fight, so he could whup the person who took his bicycle from him.
The child’s goals short term was immensely dwarfed by what he became. By what he meant to people. By what he ultimately stood for.
And, most of all, by what he accomplished.
Muhammad Ali is not one who took the typical path, but his story is without question a great American story. A story of someone who pushed boundaries, opened his arms and ultimately his heart, and became a worldwide icon, the likes of whom may never be seen again in the realm of sports.
To define Ali is not something that can be done easily. Many people fall into pretty tight buckets upon reflection – he was a good guy, he was a good family man, he was one who gave to his community.
Ali, though, is a man of nuance. A man of contradiction in many cases, and a man who impacted many people in many different ways. It’s that nuance, contradiction, rough edges and charitable works that forms the picture that Muhammad Ali is:
The Greatest.
As Cassius Clay, he rose up from one who wanted to avenge a stolen bike to an accomplished amateur boxer, and one that went to Rome in 1960, and won a gold medal as a light heavyweight. It was on this stage that he emerged as a bright light – his radiant smile, his good looks, his quick wit and boundless personality on display for all to see. Clay would soon turn professional, and had the world at his fingertips.
Clay became aligned with the late Angelo Dundee, and their partnership was one of the best trainer/fighter tandems in boxing history. Dundee was the one man who could get through to Clay, and direct him through tough moments in fights. He had an insanely gifted pupil to work with. There had never been a heavyweight fighter blessed with the hand and foot speed that Clay was blessed with. Clay could dance around the ring, snapping off rapid fire left jabs to carve up his opponents. Clay didn’t have lethal power as a puncher, but when he sat down on his punches, he had knockout power. Aside from a difficult fight with Doug Jones in Madison Square Garden in 1962, he sailed through the early portion of his career, and set himself up for a heavyweight title shot against Sonny Liston – a man backed by the Las Vegas mob, and thought to be indestructible. Liston had annihilated former champion Floyd Patterson in two brutal knockout victories. Many people thought that Clay would be destroyed by Liston.
It was here that the cunning of Clay came to be known, and the master of the mind games came to be.
Clay played the role of a crazy man in press conferences, ranting and raving anytime he was within reach of Liston. Clay rationalized that a man like Liston was likely to be unnerved by a person he thought to be crazy, and Clay took it to extreme levels. The boxing scribes believed that it was the act of a scared man, but it was actually the seeds of uncertainty planted in his opponent. Clay went on to beat Liston, dazzling him with speed, and, when rubbing liniment from Liston’s shoulder got into his eyes, showed toughness and resolve in withstanding Liston’s one rally in the fight.
Clay became the youngest heavyweight champion in history. However, a change took place in this time that made him one of the most polarizing men of the 20th Century.
Clay became a member of the Nation of Islam.
Clay had actually become a member prior to his fight with Liston, but wanted to keep it under wraps until after the fight. It was then that he revealed his change in religious identity, and a change of his name:
Cassius Clay became Muhammad Ali.
In many quarters, Ali became a hated individual. He spoke on many college campuses and gatherings around the country. There was a segment of people who loathed his message of black empowerment and of white exploitation of blacks. Many deemed him to be a racist of his own accord. But, to do so would be to ignore the reality of who Ali was – Ali’s trainer, Dundee, was white. As was his business manager, Gene Kilroy. As was his personal doctor, Ferdie Pacheco. As was his lawyer, Bob Arum.
It was also during this time that Ali showed a somewhat cruel side in the ring. He dished out vicious beatings to Floyd Patterson and Ernie Terrell in fights when they refused to refer to him by his Muslim name, Muhammad Ali. As he beat each man mercilessly, he taunted them, saying, “What’s my name?” as he piled up punishment. He demonstrated his superiority in the ring, yet lessened himself as he did so. Ali was at the top of his game.
And, then, Ali’s commitment would be tested as it had never been tested before.
Ali was drafted by the U.S. Army in 1967 to go to active duty in the Vietnam War. Ali refused to be inducted, citing grounds of being a conscientious objector. He famously said, “I ain’t got nothing against no Vietcong.” Despite being warned repeatedly by the government of the consequences, he refused to comply with the order. As a result, Ali was stripped of his heavyweight title, and forced into a three-and-a-half-year exile from his sport. He was unable to travel overseas, and would not be licensed to fight in the United States.
Ali was denied the right to earn a living as a fighter, and this was due to him not wanting to fight in a war that he didn’t believe in, and one that was in conflict with his religious views. For all of the people that think he was just a draft dodger, consider this – Ali willingly gave up his heavyweight title, his career, and the prime of his life for his beliefs. Ali was never going to see combat – he would have been in effect a USO member in uniform, fighting exhibitions and traveling to lift the spirits of American troops. And, despite this, he held firm and resolute in his beliefs that this war was wrong, and it wasn’t consistent with his religious beliefs. And, in doing so, became perhaps the most hated man in America.
How many people would have the courage, self-belief and conviction to do this?
Ali eventually got back into the ring. The three-and-a-half-year layoff robbed him of his foot speed. Once viewed as a man who ran and boxed like a man afraid of getting hit soon found out that he had one of the great chins in boxing history.
This chin and the courage and fortitude first shown in his stance against the U.S. government carried him for the back end of his career. And, it also ruined his health for the remainder of his life.
Ali had a rebirth and remaking in the 1970’s. After the government’s conviction of him was overturned by the Supreme Court, and when he renounced the views of the Nation of Islam, and transitioned to a much more moderate Sunni Muslim view of Islam, Ali transformed from being Public Enemy #1 to a worldwide icon, a beloved man, and role model for all.
In the 1970’s, Ali ushered in the golden age of heavyweight boxing. He waged hard fought trilogies with Joe Frazier and Ken Norton, and regained the heavyweight title on two occasions. In his fight against George Foreman, The Rumble in the Jungle, Ali, at the age of 32, defeated an opponent as feared as Sonny Liston was a decade earlier. Foreman, who had destroyed Joe Frazier to win the title in 1973, and wiped out Norton in Venezuela earlier in 1974, was thought to be unbeatable. Ali was thought to be over the hill. Ali summoned a lot of courage, and kept his back to the ropes, inventing the “rope a dope”. He took a beating, but allowed Foreman to punch himself out. Once this had happened, Ali knocked out Foreman, and shocked the world once again.
Ali became the heavyweight champion, and even more so, the heavyweight champion of the world. Ali fought fights in Zaire, Indonesia, Malaysia, Germany, England, Canada, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, the Philippines. He brought a cache to the heavyweight title that hadn’t been seen before. It was at this time that he became the most famous man in the world, next to the Pope.
But, for all of his activity, travels and fights, his skills were slipping, and he took beatings in the ring. Consider this – after his third fight with Frazier, The Thrilla in Manila, arguably the most intense, hard fought and brutal heavyweight title fight in history, Ali fought for another five years, logging many more rounds and receiving many more blows. Ali, never one to go hard on his sparring partners, began to prepare for fights by having his sparring partners tee off on his head and body, absorbing even more punishment. He fought 15 round fights against Jimmy Young, Alfredo Evangelista, Ken Norton, twice against Leon Spinks. He retired for the first time in 1978, but financial difficulties and an itch for the spotlight brought him back.
This fight against Larry Holmes, his ex-sparring partner, should never have happened. Ali had health issues leading into the fight, and was examined by the Mayo Clinic. The renowned institution issued a medical report that was largely ignored – that he didn’t have the dexterity that one would expect, and that the membranes of his brain had a hole in them. Couple this with improperly prescribed thyroid medication from his manager, Herbert Muhammad’s physician, and Ali was a time bomb against the most underrated heavyweight champion of all time. Ali was no match for Holmes, and took a horrific beating in being stopped for the first time in his career. To make matters worse, Ali was shorted on his purse by Don King, a man who Ali made by having him promote The Rumble in The Jungle. Ali went on to fight one last time, a forgettable fight against Trevor Berbick, and his career was over.
Three years later, Ali was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. Many believe that it was due to the many punches that he absorbed in his long career. Regardless of his affliction, Ali continued to be a very public figure, traveling the world, participating in humanitarian causes, touching the hearts of millions around the world.
Ali worked to free American hostages from Iraq in 1991. He traveled to Iraq, and ran out of his Parkinson’s medication. Despite his hardships, he would not leave until the hostages came home with him. He convinced Saddam Hussein to let them go, and the hostages were freed.
Ali further cemented his iconic status when he lit the Olympic Cauldron at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Games. Despite the tremors from his Parkinson’s violently shaking his arms, Ali showed the image of strength, lighting the cauldron, and warming the hearts of millions.
How should Muhammad Ali be remembered? Should it be for his fighting? For his colorful poems and quick wit? For his verbal sparring sessions with Howard Cosell on Wide World of Sports? For his humanitarian works?
Ali was a lot of things to a lot of people. Many still harbor resentment for his refusal to be inducted into the U.S. Army. Many hate his braggadocio. However, many also respect his stance on the war, and love his self-confidence. While Ali is to be lauded and respected for his conviction, his commitment to his religious beliefs and his capacity to do many good works with no fanfare to be gained, he also did not distinguish himself with the way he treated his three ex-wives by cheating on them repeatedly, and for the way he spoke harshly and cruelly about Joe Frazier. Ali first made Frazier out to be an Uncle Tom, then mocked him even further for his speech pattern and color. Frazier was a good man who actually supported Ali financially when he was exiled from boxing. Ali damaged Frazier significantly with his words, and Frazier bore a serious grudge until shortly before Frazier’s death. For a man who uplifted so many with his pride in being a black man in a very white America, he lowered himself and his dignity by disparaging a good man like Joe Frazier in the way that he did.
All of that being said, it’s that nuance, that contradiction, in combination with his wit, intelligence, and capacity for unselfish works that make Muhammad Ali was he was.
The Greatest of All Time.
EPILOGUE: I am not someone who is prone to be wowed or overwhelmed by meeting someone famous. I have been fortunate in my life and line of work to have met or be around famous people from time to time. In 1997, I was fortunate enough to get tickets to see the premiere of the documentary of his fight with George Foreman, When We Were Kings, that was staged at Radio City Music Hall. Along with the viewing of the documentary was a concert featuring The Fugees, James Brown and a number of other acts. When I was walking up to the doors to get in, Muhammad Ali happened to be walking up the red carpet. My knees literally locked and knocked together. I stood in awe watching this icon walk toward me, and was trying to think of something profound to say. I failed. All I managed was, “Hi champ, you are a hero of mine.” He shook my hand, his face a mask from his Parkinson’s. He kept shuffling forward. Despite his physical health being in decline, the aura that he projected was awe inspiring. It is a moment that I cherish, and will never forget. RIP to a true American success story.