Aug. 5, 2016 Vol. 231 by Theodore Pigott, special correspondent
The Death of a Legend Some have called him the greatest boxer in the history of the sport. He himself claimed that he was “the Greatest of All Time.” And when the death of Muhammad Ali was reported on June 3, even more glowing tributes poured in from around the world in praise of this great sportsman. Ali was actually born as Cassius Clay in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1942. Legend has that he began boxing at the age of twelve. The young Clay quickly became an excellent boxer, and he ended up winning a gold medal at the 1960 Olympics in Rome, Italy. Proud of his accomplishment, Clay wore his gold medal back home in Louisville. However, at that time, Louisville was still a city that was divided by segregation. Even with the medal, Clay was refused service in a whites-only restaurant. Disappointed and upset, the young champion threw his gold medal into a nearby river. Clay was determined to become a professional boxing champion, though, and in 1964, he challenged the reigning champ, Sonny Liston, for the title. Liston was a heavy favorite, but Clay upset the champ to win the heavyweight title. It was a victory that, in Clay’s words, “shook up the world.” However, Clay would soon shake up the world even more. After the victory, Clay converted to Islam and changed his name. As he announced: “Cassius Clay is a slave name. I didn’t choose it and I don’t want it. I am Muhammad Ali, a free name—it means beloved of God, and I insist people use it when people speak to me.” Then, in 1966, Ali refused to serve in the US military in the Vietnam War. As he once said: “Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go 10,000 miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on brown people in Vietnam, while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs and denied simple human rights?” In 1967, after being found guilty of avoiding the draft, he was stripped of all his boxing titles and was barred from boxing professionally. Finally, in 1971, the US Supreme Court overturned the conviction, and Ali was cleared to box once again. 1