Cassius Clay to Muhammad Ali (Part 11)
Ali was a one man army within the ring, the only one man to become the Heavyweight Champion on three occasions in his boxing tenure. At the young age of 18, he was the face of his country in the 1960 Olympics from which he returned
home from Rome, with the gold medal in the Light Heavyweight Division.
In 1974, Ali was awarded the sportsman and fighter of the year award by Sports Illustrated and The Boxers News Association respectively. His fury and lightning like speed, his dancer like movements put together with his accurate
combinations , his charisma and resilience, his endurance and on top of all, his strong religious beliefs made him an absolutely destructive force to beat.
These abilities turned him into a roaring success as he defended his Heavyweight title for five consecutive years. They just came and he just kept knocking them out.
The Champion fought 56 fights and only lost 5. What is more remarkable and far more astonishing is that out of those 56 wins, he won 37 bouts by complete knockouts.
His mental influence on his counterpart was phenomenal. Gaining that mental edge over his opponent was a critical part of his game plan. While boxing in the heavyweight division, his elegant yet powerful style was something that
no one else could pull off. He could simply glance and sway around the ring while throwing deadly combinations of jabs and hooks.
Ali had a knack for getting the crowd behind him. He would always create an electric atmosphere, instantly feeling motivated and his opponent mentally weakened. Hence, his mind tricks were never ending.
He would taunt his fellow fighters in between rounds, making sure he frustrated his challenger. Muhammad Ali was well aware that if he could get into the other fighters head and confuse him, half the battle was already over. His
intelligence was mostly underrated. Hence, it would be his most effective weapon as well.
He was called the greatest for good reason. Muhammad Ali had the natural talent of becoming a great boxer. Thus, before he even began his professional boxing career, he was practically ruling the amateur division. In 1959, Ali was
the winner of The Golden Gloves Light Heavy Weight Champion and the National Amateur Athletic Union Champion in the same year.
As for The greatest Muhammad being recognized and appreciated, he was behind no one. In 1970, he was awarded the Dr. Martin Luther King Memorial Award. Nine years later, he was to receive The Honorary Doctorate of Humane letters
from the University of Southern Texas. Amazingly, in the same year, a street was named after him in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky.
It was another six years later that the World Boxing Association would recognize him for his Long Meritorious Service for the sport of boxing. The contribution that the marvel Ali made to the sport of boxing can simply be termed
as immaculate.
He entered professional boxing and made the game go through a complete transition. Ali achieved things that previously people thought were not possible. His contributions to boxing alone cannot truly be measured.
In 1987, he was appreciated and given a lot of respect by entering into the Boxing Hall of Fame. He was truly a deserving inductee. It was an emotional moment for him. The great was being gifted for all the entertainment, delight
and thrill that he had given everyone in the past years.
However in 1990, the greatest boxer of all time was honoured by being inducted in the International Boxing Hall Of Fame. It was truly the largest honour he would ever receive. At the event it was announced publicly and on national
TV that Muhammad Ali was the greatest weight for weight boxer in his specific weight category.
Another ironic part of his induction in the Hall of Fame was the fact that he had defeated all the other fighters that were also inducted in the International Boxing Hall of Fame in the same event. These fighters included Joe Frazier,
George Foreman, and Sonny Liston and so on.
Winning against seven Hall of Famers was nothing less than climbing a mountain of magnificent fighters. He received a marvellous ovation with the entire world applauding him. Furthermore, in the 1996 Olympics, he was requested to
light the Olympic torch at the Atlanta Olympics. The world watched as Ali carried the historical torch for the final lap.
Regardless of his disability, he is respected, loved, believed to be an icon and regarded as a dynamic public figure.
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