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Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. "one of the country's most recognized anti-war activists" "professional boxer and social activist"; "the professional boxer and activist"; "Muhammad Ali serves as reminder that radical activist athletes can become mainstreamed."}} A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "the Greatest", he is often regarded as the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time. He held the ''Ring'' magazine heavyweight title from 1964 to 1970, was the undisputed champion from 1974 to 1978, and was the WBA and ''Ring'' heavyweight champion from 1978 to 1979. In 1999, he was named Sportsman of the Century by ''Sports Illustrated'', the Sports Personality of the Century by the BBC and the second best athlete of the 20th century behind Pelé by the International Olympic Committee. In August 2024, the International Sports Press Association (AIPS) voted him as the best athlete of the last 100 years above Usain Bolt and Michael Jordan.

Born in Louisville, Kentucky, he began training as an amateur boxer at age 12. At 18, he won a gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 1960 Summer Olympics and turned professional later that year. He joined the Nation of Islam in the early 1960s, but later disavowed it in the mid-1970s. He won the world heavyweight championship, defeating Sonny Liston in a major upset on February 25, 1964, at age 22. During that year, he denounced his birth name as a "slave name" and formally changed his name to Muhammad Ali. In 1967, Ali refused to be drafted into the military, owing to his religious beliefs and ethical opposition to the Vietnam War, and was found guilty of draft evasion and stripped of his boxing titles. He stayed out of prison while appealing the decision to the Supreme Court, where his conviction was overturned in 1971. He did not fight for nearly four years and lost a period of peak performance as an athlete. Ali's actions as a conscientious objector to the Vietnam War made him an icon for the larger counterculture of the 1960s generation, and he became a prominent, high-profile figure of racial pride for African Americans during the civil rights movement and throughout his career.

He fought in several historic boxing matches, including his highly publicized fights with Liston, Joe Frazier (including the Fight of the Century, the biggest boxing event up until then), the Thrilla in Manila, and his fight with George Foreman in The Rumble in the Jungle. Ali thrived in the spotlight at a time when many boxers let their managers do the talking, and he became renowned for his provocative and outlandish persona. He was famous for trash-talking, often free-styled with rhyme schemes and spoken word poetry, and has been recognized as a pioneer in hip hop. He often predicted in which round he would knock out his opponent. As a boxer, Ali was known for his unorthodox movement, fancy footwork, head movement, and rope-a-dope technique, among others.

Outside boxing, Ali attained success as a spoken word artist, releasing two studio albums: ''I Am the Greatest!'' (1963) and ''The Adventures of Ali and His Gang vs. Mr. Tooth Decay'' (1976). Both albums received Grammy Award nominations. He also featured as an actor and writer, releasing two autobiographies. Ali retired from boxing in 1981 and focused on religion, philanthropy, and activism. In 1984, he made public his diagnosis of Parkinson's syndrome, which some reports attributed to boxing-related injuries, though he and his specialist physicians disputed this. He remained an active public figure globally, but in his later years made fewer public appearances as his condition worsened, and was cared for by his family. Provided by Wikipedia