By: Hailey Mandelko World History Honors P.6 Muhammad Ali By: Hailey Mandelko World History Honors P.6

Birth Was born January 17, 1942 in Louisville Kentucky. When he was born his name was Cassius Clay.

Family He lived with his mother and father and stayed in Kentucky throughout his childhood. He was an only child. His father was a mural painter and his mother stayed at home.

Childhood When Ali was 12, his bike was stolen and he told the police officer that he knew that he was going to “fight the kid that stole his bike.” The officer than took Ali and led him to Fred Stoner who was a Boxing trainer.

Training Stoner was at first trying to find a way to channel Ali’s aggression but instead found himself training Ali to be a boxer. Over the next 6 years, Ali went to 6 Kentucky Golden Glove championships and many other things.

Olympics Once Ali got started and was winning championships and tournaments, so in 1960 he won a spot on the U.S. Boxing Team. He traveled to Rome and Italy and won the gold medal. His threat was his footwork and his powerful jab.

Professional Ali was a threat to be reckoned with when he first went professional. He won all his bouts and beat Henry Cooper and Sonny Liston to become the heavyweight champion of the world.

The Greatest Ali was referred to as “the greatest” was not scared to show how good he felt he was. He was the one the boasted and praised himself about his skills. His most commonly known quote was saying he could “fly like a butterfly, sting like a bee.”

Marriage Muhammad Ali has not had one of the best marriages. He has actually been married 4 times. Along with his four marriages, he has 9 children all together and one of his daughters even filled his shoes and became a boxer.

Nation of Islam While doing some soul searching he decided to come apart of the Nation of Islam which was what Malcolm X had joined. This caused Ali to change his name from Cassius Clay to Cassius X to finally settle on the name Muhammad Ali.

Military Ali was being drafted into the military when he refused to go because of his religious views. He was put in jailed and tried and was released but he was stripped of his boxing title and suspended him from the sport for about 3 and a half years.

Fight of the Century Ali and Joe Frazier took each other on in what was called the “Fight of the Century”. This fight went 15 rounds when Frazier dropped Ali to the ground and won by knockout. Ali later beat him in a rematch.

Rumble in the Jungle This fight was between Ali and George Foreman. Going in Ali was looked at as the underdog for the first time since he was a contender. But Ali overcame all the people saying he couldn’t to beat Foreman and because the heavyweight champion of the world again.

Thrilla in Manilla The toughest fight that the critics believed Ali had was when he battled Joe Frazier in 1975. The match lasted 14 rounds with each one leaving nothing behind. Ali came out on top as the winner and having a winning record against Frazier.

Retiring Ali started to lose his fighting ways and lost three straight was well as losing his last fight to lose the heavyweight title. After his last fight, he retired the next day.

Parkinson’s Ali announced in 1984 that he had Parkinson’s Disease which is a degenerative neurological condition. He started funding for the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center in Arizona as well as supporting the Special Olympics and the Make a Wish Foundation.

Rankings Ali is known as one of the best boxers in the history of boxing. In a boxing magazine, he was rated number 1 of greatest boxers in the era. He was rated the second best on ESPN.com only behind Sugar Ray Robinson.

Legacy As Ali graced the World with his quick moves and hard jabs, he slowly declined to a wobble and a constant shake. He will always be remembered as the king of the ring and the most recognizable athlete.

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