Muhammad Ali is regarded as one of the best athletes ever. An ESPN poll ranked him the third-greatest North American athlete of the 20th century behind basketball star Michael Jordan and baseball legend Babe Ruth. Ali is also considered an important figure in 1960s American history because of his refusal to be inducted into the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War and his religious conversion to the Nation of Islam.
Early Life
Muhammad Ali was born Cassius Clay on Jan. 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky. He grew up in a Baptist household. His only sibling was older brother Rudy, who changed his name to Rahman Ali and became a professional heavyweight boxer, winning 14 of 17 fights. Cassius Clay began boxing at age 12 when he reported the theft of his bicycle to police officer Joe Martin, who also trained boxers, according to the UXL Encyclopedia of World Biography. While attending Louisville Central High, Clay won four national amateur championships. He wasn't a good student, but he honed his speaking skills on Martin's boxing-oriented local television program, "Tomorrow's Champions."
Champion
Clay won the 1960 light-heavyweight Olympic gold medal. However, racism in the United States spurred him to throw his gold medal in the Ohio River, according to Notable Sports Figures. Clay was refused service at a restaurant, though he competed for his nation in Rome. Clay became a professional boxer after the Olympics. A heavyweight, he won 19 straight bouts from 1960 to 1963, while becoming known for evading punches by constantly moving his feet or "dancing." Outside the ring, he became known for being talkative and cocky, often predicting in poems the rounds he would knock out his opponent. On Feb. 25, 1964, he beat Sonny Liston to become the world heavyweight champion.
Controversy
Clay announced his name was Muhammad Ali and he was a Black Muslim in 1964. His religious conversion was controversial because Black Muslims supported a blacks-only nation, according to the UXL Encyclopedia of World Biography. Ali knocked out Liston in the first round of their rematch and defended his title nine times between 1965 and 1967. Ali then refused to be inducted into the U.S. Army because he said Muslims were conscientious objectors, according to the Contemporary Black Biography encyclopedia. Ali was stripped of his boxing title, convicted of a felony and sentenced to five years in jail. He was out of jail during the appeals process, but wasn't allowed to fight until 1970. The U.S. Supreme Court threw out his conviction on a technicality in 1971.
Comeback
Ali defeated Jerry Quarry in three rounds in 1970 after a 43-month absence. In 1971, he tried to regain his heavyweight title from Joe Frazier, but lost a 15-round decision. In 1973, George Foreman won the title after knocking Frazier down six times in four minutes. Ali was given a title bout in 1974 against the younger, bigger, stronger and undefeated Foreman. Instead, Ali regained the title in one of the greatest upsets in boxing history. He defended his title 10 times. Leon Spinks beat him in 1978, but Ali won a rematch and retired as champion. He unretired in 1980 and lost his final fights to Larry Holmes and Trevor Berbick. In 1984, he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
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