Cassius clay muhammad ali biography

He championed the world.

If courage had a face, it would be the visage of a man in full, magnificently complicated yet fully evolved, both mythic but real to the touch. Courage would look like a world heavyweight champion, a conscientious objector, an activist, a diplomat, and a humanitarian. Courage would be Muhammad Ali.

In the ring, Ali possessed unparalleled power, speed, and charisma. In the world at large, his consciousness and empathy about the state of the world, equality, justice, and the fate of the marginalized reverberated louder than his athletic prowess. Quite possibly the most famous person in his time, Ali drew crowds everywhere he went — and he went everywhere. Equally at ease with heads of state and people on the street, Ali stood in the power of his faith and values. He withstood forces that threatened to cut him down to size and steal prime years of his career, only to rise again stronger and more urgent than ever.

Born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr. on January 17, 1942, he grew up in Louisville, Kentucky, while racial segregation was the law in the American South. In a pivotal moment of his youth, a young Ali channeled outrage over the theft of his red bicycle into amateur boxing. Within a few short years, he’d won a gold medal at the 1960 Rome Summer Olympics and shook the world when he upset the world heavyweight champion. Unabashed confidence and poetic self-expression were backed up by a talent that saw him undefeated through his first 31 professional fights.

His ascendancy grew alongside the fight for civil rights in America, where he became a cultural force. A generation watched a young Black man declare his own beauty and greatness and inspired others to do the same. He announced his conversion to Islam and was given a name reflecting his faith — Muhammad Ali. His conscientious objection to the Vietnam War was a polarizing moment in American society. Stripped of the championship and banned from boxing and his ability to earn a l

1942-2016

Who Was Muhammad Ali?

Muhammad Ali was a boxer, philanthropist, and social activist who is universally regarded as one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century. Ali became an Olympic gold medalist in 1960 and the world heavyweight boxing champion in 1964. Following his suspension for refusing military service in the Vietnam War, Ali reclaimed the heavyweight title two more times during the 1970s, winning famed bouts against Joe Frazier and George Foreman along the way. Ali retired from boxing in 1981 and devoted much of his time after to philanthropy. He earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005.

Quick Facts

FULL NAME: Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.
BORN: January 17, 1942
DIED: June 3, 2016
BIRTHPLACE: Louisville, Kentucky
SPOUSES: Sonji Roi (1964-1965), Belinda Boyd (1967-1977), Veronica Porché (1977-1986), and Yolanda Williams (1986-2016)
CHILDREN: Maryum, Jamillah, Rasheda, Muhammad Jr., Miya, Khaliah, Hana, Laila Ali, and Asaad
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Capricorn

Early Life

Muhammad Ali was born on January 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky. His birth name was Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.

At an early age, young Clay showed that he wasn’t afraid of any bout—inside or outside of the ring. Growing up in the segregated South, he experienced racial prejudice and discrimination firsthand.

At the age of 12, Clay discovered his talent for boxing through an odd twist of fate. After his bike was stolen, Clay told police officer Joe Martin that he wanted to beat up the thief. “Well, you better learn how to fight before you start challenging people,” Martin reportedly told him at the time. In addition to being a police officer, Martin also trained young boxers at a local gym.

Clay started working with Martin to learn how to spar and soon began his boxing career. In his first amateur bout in 1954, he won the fight by split decision. Clay went on to win the 1956 Golden Gloves tournament for novices in the light heavyweight class. Three y

American boxer and social activist (1942–2016)

For other uses, see Muhammad Ali (disambiguation).

"Cassius Clay" redirects here. For other people, see Cassius Marcellus Clay (disambiguation).

"I am the greatest" redirects here. For other uses, see I Am the Greatest (disambiguation).

Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the epithet "the Greatest", he is frequently cited 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 and the Sports Personality of the Century by the BBC.

Born and raised 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 generat

Born Cassius Clay in Louisville, Kentucky, Muhammad Ali is consistently ranked as one of the greatest boxers of all time. At the age of 18, Ali traveled to Rome, Italy to participate in the 1960 Olympics. He won the gold medal in light heavyweight boxing and returned to the United States to pursue his professional boxing career shortly thereafter. It was also around this time that Clay became a member of the Nation of Islam, announcing his name as Cassius X, then Muhammad Ali in 1964.

In 1967, Ali had been reigning world heavyweight champion for three years when he publicly refused to be inducted into the American military during the Vietnam War. As a result of his actions, boxing officials decided to punish Ali by stripping him of his titles and suspending him from the game of boxing. During his suspension from 1967-1970, Ali became an activist and toured around the world speaking to civil rights organizations and anti-war groups.

After 1970, Ali regained the title of heavyweight champion after defeating George Foreman in a match known as "The Rumble in the Jungle." He continued fighting until 1981, ending his career with a 56-5 professional record.

Black Power records at the National Archives related to Muhammad Ali consist of the court case (Clay v. United States) relating to his refusal of induction for the Vietnam War draft. There are also records of FBI surveillance of Muhammad Ali in various parts of the country and his time spent with the members of the Nation of Islam. Also, a motion picture, sound recordings and several photographs of Ali at State Dinners and meetings with sitting presidents.

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Record Group 21: District Courts of the United St