It was just days ago we celebrated the anniversary of Muhammad Ali’s famous KO of Sonny Liston. Hard to believe “The Champ” is now gone.
Not just the greatest boxer in history, but arguably the most influential athlete of all-time, Ali was adored all over the world. The Louisville, Kentucky native will be laid to rest in his hometown on Friday. But his spirit will always live on.
Today, we pay tribute to not just an amazing fighter in the ring, but an amazing fighter for mankind. Here are the most amazing facts about ‘The Greatest of All-Time.’
What you may already know:
Muhammad Ali’s upset over Sonny Liston in 1964 gave him the first of three world heavyweight championship titles. Four years earlier, at the age of 18, Ali won the light heavyweight gold medal at the 1960 Olympics in Rome.
What you don’t know:
Ali won 56 times over his 21-year professional career and was actually the first boxer to claim the heavyweight title three times. His first 15 of 19 fights as a pro were knockouts. And as a teen, he went 100-8 as an amateur.
MIAMI, FL – FEBRUARY 25, 1964: Cassius Clay (L) throws his hands up in victor over Sonny Liston, not pictured in a World Heavyweight Title fight February 25, 1964 at Convention Hall in Miami, Florida.(Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)
What you may already know:
His real name was Cassius Clay.
What you don’t know:
“Both Muhammad Ali and his father, Cassius Marcellus Clay, Sr., were named after a white abolitionist named Cassius Marcellus Clay, a 19th century Kentucky senator who is credited with helping gain Russia’s support for the Union during the Civil War. Despite the senator’s abolitionist mindset, he actually owned more slaves at the time of the abolition than when he inherited slaves from his father. Ali later denounced this “slavemaster’s name” when he joined the Nation of Islam in 1964.”
During a visit to the training room of the boxer in Miami, the BEATLES were acting as they were knocked out by the American boxer Muhammad ALI, became recently boxing World Champion. (Photo by Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images)
What you may already know:
Ali practiced Islam.
What you don’t know:
Inspired to join the Muslim community by Malcolm X, Clay initially called himself “Cassius X” before switching it to Muhammad Ali. He would later convert to orthodox Islam during the 70s.
What you also don’t know:
Even though Muslim in his adult life, Ali was raised Baptist and still held on to his belief in God, “just by another name.”
“My mother is a Baptist, and when I was growing up, she taught me all she knew about God. Every Sunday, she dressed me up, took me and my brother to church, and taught us the way she thought was right. She taught us to love people and treat everybody with kindness. She taught us it was wrong to be prejudiced or hate. I’ve changed my religion and some of my beliefs since then, but her God is still God; I just call him by a different name.”
Elijah Muhammad (1897-1975, born Elijah Poole). Converted to Islam in 1931, from 1934 until his death be was leader of the Nation of Islam. Here in 1964 addressing followers including Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali). (Photo by Universal History Archive/Getty Images)
What you already know:
Ali was from Louisville, Kentucky.
What you don’t know:
Ali took up boxing at the age of 12 after someone stole his new bicycle he had received for Christmas. A Louisville policeman named Joe Martin took the crime report from Ali, who bragged about what he would do to the suspect if caught. Martin suggested Ali learn how to fight first, becoming Ali’s first instructor.
What you also don’t know:
Upon returning to Louisville from the Olympics with his gold medal, legend holds that Clay threw his medal into the Ohio River following a series of racial harassment in his home city, including being denied to eat in a local restaurant. Although Ali denied the narrative simply saying the medal was “lost,” he did receive a replacement medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
The winners of the 1960 Olympic medals for light heavyweight boxing on the winners’ podium at Rome: Cassius Clay (now Muhammad Ali) (C), gold; Zbigniew Pietrzykowski of Poland (R), silver; and Giulio Saraudi (Italy) and Anthony Madigan (Australia), joint bronze. (Photo by Central Press/Getty Images)
What you may know:
Ali refused to serve in Vietnam.
What you don’t know:
During the middle of his prime, Ali was arrested for refusing to serve in the Vietnam War and was banned from boxing for three years. However, he never went to prison. His case was under appeal and in 1971 the US Supreme Court overturned the conviction.
27 Feb 1964: Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) flies around the ring after beating Sonny Liston in the seventh round of the World Heavyweight Title bout in Miami Beach, Florida, USA. It was during these scenes that Clay claimed, “I am the Greatest” and “I shook up the World”. Mandatory Credit: Allsport Hulton/Archive
What you also don’t know:
Ali failed the Army’s IQ test. In fact, he was consumed with amateur boxing and therefore spent little time concentrating on school. The only classes Clay allegedly passed with satisfactory grades were art and gym, graduating from high school 376th out of 391 students, having to repeat the 10th grade in the process. One of Ali’s famous quotes: “I said I was the greatest, not the smartest!”
What you may know:
Ali had a long fight with Parkinson’s Disease.
What you may not know:
All the good Ali did despite his debilitating medical conditions. Not only did The Champ constantly make humanitarian and charitable contributions, he also met with Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein in 1990 to negotiate the release of American hostages, and in 2002 traveled to Afghanistan as a United Nations Messenger of Peace.
May 25, 1965, heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali after his rematch with boxer Sonny Liston. Ali knocked out Liston in the first round. (Photo by: Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty images)
Josh Helmuth is the editor of Crave Sports. Follow him on Twitter or like the channel on Facebook here.
