Muhammad Ali

Named the Sportsman of the Century by Sports Illustrated, Muhammad Ali was born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. on January 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky. Growing up in the Southern U.S. during the 50s and 60s, Ali experienced first-hand the struggle for equality faced by African Americans during the civil rights movement. Although he was named after an abolitionist, Ali resented the fact that he was named after a white man, and therefore had a given name that could never truly reflect who he was.

Ali learned to box as a teen, and at age seventeen, had already won a national Golden Gloves championship. After successfully competing on the 1960 U.S. Olympic boxing team, Ali was signed to Louisville promoters, and well on his way to becoming a serious contender for the heavyweight boxing crown. Boxing fans were drawn to Ali’s unapologetic and outspoken views on both politics and his own capabilities in the ring. When he famously declared, "I am the greatest," few could argue, as he had both the skills in the ring and the conviction to back it up.

While perfecting his punches, Ali became involved with the Nation of Islam (sometimes labeled the Black Muslims), a religious group which advocates self-defense and racial separatism for African Americans. Ali became friends with the Nation's most famous spokesman, Malcolm X; however, he kept his affiliation with the group under wraps until his February 1964 defeat of Sonny Liston and subsequent ascent to the heavyweight champion title. At this time, Ali announced his association with the Nation of Islam, and explained that he had shed his "slave" name to become known as Muhammad Ali.

Despite his name change, several reporters and boxing officials continued to refer to Ali as "Cassius Clay" in the media, and accelerated hostility by calling for his title to be withdrawn. In 1967, the growing tension came to a head when Ali refused to be drafted into the army based on his religious convictions. When government officials refused his claim that he was an Islamic minister, Ali became famous for such statements as "I ain't got no quarrel with the Vietcong" and "no Vietcong ever called me n****r," which expressed the irrationality of fighting those abroad who had never waged the same hostility against him that he had endured in his own country. For refusing to fight in the Vietnam War, Ali was stripped of his title and later convicted and sentenced to five years in prison, although his prison sentence was eventually overturned by the Supreme Court.

In 1974, Ali came out swinging in a stunning vindication when he defeated George Foreman and regained his rightful title of heavyweight champion. Dubbed "The Rumble in the Jungle," the fight was promoted by master of hype, Don King.

Following his retirement from boxing in the late 1970s, Ali developed Pugilistic Parkinson's syndrome, which severely impaired the once-prolific champion’s public-speaking engagements. A devout Sunni Muslim, Ali has since devoted himself to charity endeavors aimed at relieving poverty and hunger, and has helped provide more than 22 million meals to the hungry.

In 2001, Will Smith portrayed Ali in the biopic, Ali. Smith had reportedly turned down previous offers to portray Ali, until Ali personally requested that he take on the role. Smith later revealed that Ali had joked, "You ain't pretty enough to play me."

Ali and his fourth wife, Yolanda "Lonnie" Ali currently live in Scottsdale, Arizona.

YUDDY