The world has lost one of the most iconic figures of the 20th century with the passing of Muhammad Ali, who died Friday in a Phoenix, Arizona hospital at age 74.
Born Cassius Clay in Louisville, Kentucky, he burst on the sports scene during the 1960 Olympics when the young pugilist took the Gold Medal.
That victory, however, merely set the stage for many more to come as Clay embarked on his career as a professional boxer, quickly becoming a polarizing figure, known for his boastful bragging — and his ability to live up to his own hype.
Dubbing himself “The Greatest,”; Clay went on to prove he was just that, winning the heavyweight title from champ Sonny Liston at the tender age of 22.
It wasn’t long after that he joined the controversial Nation of Islam and changed his name to Muhammad Ali, becoming a powerful voice in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. In 1967, Ali was drafted to serve in Vietnam, but refused to be conscripted by labelling himself a conscientious objector, his anti-war stance winning him even more fans among the emerging counterculture of the late 1960s.
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The U.S. government, however, saw Ali as a draft dodger and had him arrested and stripped of his title. He was prohibited from fighting for the next four years until the case was overturned by the Supreme Court in a landmark decision.
When he returned to the ring, Ali went on to score several more decisive victories throughout a professional career that, in retrospect, may have lasted longer than it should. Highlights included three epic battles with rival Joe Fazier and one of the most famous fights in boxing history, the 1974 “Rumble in the Jungle”; in Zaire in which Ali regained the title from champ George Foreman.
Ali famously lost the title to Leon Spinks in 1978 at 36, a time when most professional boxers had long since retired. He regained the heavyweight belt in a 1979 rematch, and announced his retirement shortly thereafter.
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Retirement didn’t take, and Ali returned to the ring in 1980 for a disastrous match with Larry Holmes, losing badly. After another loss in 1981, to Trevor Berbick, Ali retired from the ring for good, having become the only boxer in history to claim the heavyweight title three separate times.
In 1984, Ali was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, likely resulting from the head trauma from his 1980 fight with Larry Holmes. In the years that followed, Ali’s health slowly declined as the effects of the Parkinson’s became more pronounced, yet he continued to lend his powerful voice to philanthropic causes, often involving human rights issues, and in 1998 was named Messenger of Peace by the United Nations.
Ali was admitted to hospital on Thursday, June 2, suffering from respiratory issues that were exacerbated by his Parkinson’s, and was placed on life support as his condition took a turn for the worse.
According to a statement released by the family, the funeral will take place in Ali’s hometown of Louisville, Kentucky.
