In 1960, Classius Clay, as he was then known, announced himself to the boxing world, easily winning gold at the Rome Olympics. Weeks later he turned professional.
British fight fans got so see the man dubbed the ‘Lousiville Lip’ when he fought Henry Cooper in London in 1963. Clay lived up to his pre-fight bravado by beating Cooper, but only after the English fighter knocked him down in the fourth round.
In 1964, Clay, aged 22, completed a stunning victory over Sonny Liston, making him the youngest heavyweight champion of the world.
Clay then made a surprise announcement that he had accepted the teachings of the Nation of Islam and wanted to be addressed as Muhammad Ali, a name given to him by his controversial spiritual mentor Elijah Muhammad.
More controversy followed in 1967 as Ali refused to serve in the Vietnam war on the grounds of being a conscientious objector. Ali didn’t help matters by bluntly stating: “I ain’t got no quarrel with the Vietcong. No Vietcong ever called me Nigger.”
In 1970, having served a ban for refusing to be drafted, Ali made a jubilant return to the ring, beating Jerry Quarry in three rounds.
Ali’s next big bout, dubbed the ‘Fight of the Century’, saw him take on bitter rival Joe Frazier at Madison Square Garden in 1971. It was Frazier who triumphed.
Ali got back his title three year later in Zaire by winning the ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ against George Foreman.
In 1975, the Ali roadshow arrived in the Philippines for a title fight billed as the ‘Thrilla in Manila.’ Ali defeated his opponent Joe Frazier once more but later said that the brutal contest was “the closest thing to dying”.
It was Ali’s victory over Leon Spinks at the tail end of his career in 1978 that cemented his place as a boxing great. That victory made him the first boxer to win the world heavyweight championship on three separate occasions.
