And the entire world knew his name because Ali transcended boxing, nay sport, to become one of the greatest sportsperson and entertainer of all time.
Born in 1942 in the highly segregated South of the USA, the ‘Louisville Lip’ was introduced to boxing by a local cop when his bicycle was stolen.
His larger-than-life persona came into play during the Vietnam war when he refused the military draft as a ‘conscientious objector’. He was charged to court, lost his titles and faced five years in jail.
He would also be involved in another spectacular fight when he battled then world champion George Foreman in the Zaire in the ‘Rumble in the Jungle’. There Ali deployed his famous rope-a-dope strategy outlasting Foreman before knocking him out in the eighth.
He lost that fight in Pheonix, Arizona, earlier today, June 4, 2016 at the age of 74. He is survived by nine children and his fourth wife.
Ali, bomaye!
