Life and Career of Mohammed Ali - Essay Example

Muhammad Ali Order No.253686 November’08 Muhammad Ali This paper is about Muhammad Ali, a former three times World Heavyweight Champion. The paper traces his early, his rise to the top and how he was both a champion and a civil rights fighter. Muhammad Ali was famous for his unique fighting style, which he himself described as "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee". He was a man of courage and faced bravely all the downs of his career and his life. Introduction Muhammad Ali was named after his father, Cassius Marcellus Clay, who was named after the nineteenth century politician and abolitionist, Cassius Clay. Ali changed his name to Muhammad Ali after converting himself to Islam in 1964. Ali is the only man to have won the linear heavyweight championship thrice. He also won the Olympic Light-heavyweight gold medal in the 1960 Olympics in Rome. He was crowned “Sportsman of the Century” by Sports Illustrated and the BBC in 1999. Muhammad Ali is an icon to millions of people from all over the world. He was a philanthropist and was loved by all not only because of his feats in the boxing ring but also because of his good deeds outside the ring. Nicknamed “the Greatest” he was both charismatic and outspoken. He had developed his own style of fighting that combined exceptional speed with flair. As George Plimpton’s (1999) says “Floating, stinging, punching, prophesying, he transformed his sport and became the worlds most adored athlete”. Mohammad Ali never covered his face; his hands were always at his sides. He was different from other conventional boxers in that he aimed most of his punches at the head and not at the body. He commanded enormous respect from people from all over the world, so much so, that he was asked to light the Olympic torch in Atlanta in 1996. He was even asked in to help in the negotiations for the release of the kidnapped Americans in 1985. A short biography Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr., was born in Louisville, Kentucky. It is said that when he was twelve years old his bicycle was stolen and he went to the local police staion to complain. There, Joe Martin, the local policeman and the boxing coach of the area advised him to take up boxing so that people did not take advantage of him. He trained under him for some time and when he wanted to become a professional he began training under the boxing legend Angelo Dundee. In his first professional fight he scored a six round victory over Tunney Hunsaker. Then he took on Sonny Liston, the most famous fighter of the era. No one ever thought he could defeat Liston and there was not much interest in the bout. But by the seventh round, what people thought was impossible happened. Cassius Clay beat Sonny Liston. It was at this point of time that Cassius was disillusioned and became increasingly apprehensive about his standing in a racist society that was dominated by whites. He turned to Islam, became a Muslim and changed his name to Muhammad Ali. Mohammad Ali’s next big fight was with an ageing Zora Folley. Many consider this to be Ali’s best performance. Mohammad Ali’s rise also resulted in many controversies. His license to box was withdrawn and he was sentenced to five years in prison when he refused to take part in the Vietnamese war. The sentence was reversed after three years but in the meanwhile Muhammad Ali had lost three of his prime boxing years. After three years, when he came back to the ring, he challenged George Foreman who was then an undefeated champion and known for his heavy punching. This Ali-Foreman fight was held in Zaire. Experts have described this fight as a technical masterpiece where Ali used the trick called rope-a-dope to get away from the powerful Foreman. He used this to perfection and was able to knock out Foreman in the eighth round. This fight is often referred to as "The Rumble in the Jungle." In 1975 Ali fought another epic battle and this time it was with Joe Frazier, who at that time was one of the most technically gifted boxers. The fight dubbed as "The Thrilla in Manila” was a fight to the finish. Muhammad Ali won in the fourteenth round. Ali retired from professional boxing in 1979. But he could not stay way from boxing. He came back to fight against a Japanese wrestler called Antonio Inoki. He should have retired but his managers coaxed him into fights. He also loved the sport too much to leave it and ended up being defeated, or rather punished by boxers like Leon Spinks. Then, which many people consider a mistake, Ali set up a fight against his former sparring partner Larry Holmes. By then Ali had grown old and fat and his chances against the younger Holmes were slim. It was after this fight that a medical check up showed that Muhammad Ali had a hole in a membrane of his brain and that his speech was slurred. In the year 1984, Ali was diagnosed as suffering from Parkinson’s disease. At that time he was in his early forties. Muhammad Ali’s role as a fighter for civil rights Muhammad Ali was not only a fighter in the ring but was also a fighter for civil rights. He became an iconic figure in the strugglle for civilrights and during the the civil rights movement found himself fighting issues of class and race. According to Trinity Waters, “Alis message of black pride and black resistance to white domination was a great impact on the civil rights movement”. Ali defied the US government and always stood up for his principles. Muhammad Ali was awarded the Otto Hahn peace medal and the citation read lifelong engagement in the American civil rights movement and the global cultural emancipation of blacks, as well as his work as a U.N. Goodwill ambassador. What spurred him on to become a civil rights leader are some incidents which get a mention in his autobiography too. The first incident is the one where a racist restaurant owner refuses to serve Ali and his friends when they are out to celebrate his 1960 Olympic gold medal. It seems Ali threw his medal into the Ohio river in disgust. Later Ali and his friends derail a train. But the incident that affected him most was the murder of Emmer Till for making a pass at a white girl. He was of the opinion that people of color were just as capable as the whites and persuaded millions of people of color to believe in this. His speeches influenced many people. In fact, according to Chris Brookeman (1999) “The way Alis speeches and actions created trans-generational bonds between black militants of all ideological persuasions made him the most exciting catalyst of his era, more than a match for Martin Luther King”. Many kings and presidents were keen to be seen with him. His physique, his sheer physical presence and the way he moved in the ring for 15 rounds outmaneuvering his younger and stronger opponents, all added to his charisma. He used this to his advantage. He was adept in getting political mileage from his popularity. Conclusion Ali was once asked on a television show what he would have done with his life if he was given a choice to live all over again. His answer was that he could not think of anything other than being a boxer. Boxing was all he had wished for or ever wanted in his life. Ali is suffering from Parkinsons disease today, an illness which has hampered and slowed his movement. Today he is unable to speak in public. It is indeed sad to see the man who was once so quick on his feet moving slowly through crowds and signing autographs. He has never refused an autograph. It seems he was once denied an autograph by his idol, Sugar Ray Robison. After that he has vowed that he would never ever refuse to sign an autograph. A once loquacious man is today struggling to speak and hardly says anything. What Robert Philip (2007) had to say about Muhammad Ali aptly describes the great athlete. He said, “An illiterate black from Louisville, Kentucky, Ali transcended the ring to become the most recognisable man on the planet. His fists and feet were quick but his tongue was even quicker, delivering a rapid-fire collection of poems, one-liners and brash predictions.” References 1. Brookeman Chris (19990, Podium:The Power of Muhammed Ali, Independent, The (London),  Apr 6, 1999 2. Philip Robert (2007), Muhammad Ali: The Peoples Champ, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/boxingandmma/2306272/Muhammad-Ali-The-Peoples-Champ.html 3. Plimpton George (1999), Muhammad Ali, The Time 100, http://www.time.com/time/time100/heroes/profile/ali01.html 4. Waters Trinity, Muhammad Ali and the Civil Rights Movement http://www.helium.com/items/810842-muhammad-ali-and-the-civil-rights-movement Read More