Ali and Malcolm’s friendship quickly fractured, and the two went their separate ways by that spring. Surprisingly, his allegiances were with supreme leader Elijah Muhammad and not the exiled Malcolm X. At first, he called himself Cassius X before settling on the name Muhammad Ali. The next morning, on February 26, Clay announced his affiliation with the Nation of Islam. Following the win, the two held an evening of reflection in a hotel room with Jim Brown and Sam Cooke that became the inspiration for the One Night in Miami stage play and 2020 drama film. Clay’s victory over Liston earned him his first world heavyweight boxing championship. In 1964, Malcolm X brought his family to visit Clay while he trained in Florida for his February 25 title fight against Sonny Liston. Malcolm X even assigned an associate to help manage Clay’s day-to-day affairs. Floored by Malcolm X’s fearlessness as an orator, the two developed a friendship and Clay became more involved in the Black Muslim group. Relationship With Malcolm X and Conversion to IslamĬlay met charismatic Nation of Islam minister Malcolm X at a rally in Detroit in June 1962. He soon turned professional with the backing of the Louisville Sponsoring Group and continued overwhelming all opponents in the ring. After winning his first three bouts, Clay defeated Zbigniew Pietrzkowski of Poland to win the light heavyweight Olympic gold medal.Īfter his Olympic victory, Clay was heralded as an American hero. At 6 feet, 3 inches tall, Clay was an imposing figure in the ring, but he also became known for his lightning speed and fancy footwork. Olympic boxing team and traveled to Rome to compete. However, the school’s principal Atwood Wilson could see Clay’s potential and opposed this, sarcastically asking the staff, “Do you think I’m going to be the principal of a school that Cassius Clay didn’t finish?” Clay often daydreamed in class and shadowboxed in the halls-he was training for the 1960 Olympics at the time-and his grades were so bad that some of his teachers wanted to hold him back from graduation. Three years later, he won the National Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions, as well as the Amateur Athletic Union’s national title for the light heavyweight division.Ĭlay attended mostly Black public schools, including Central High School in Louisville from 1956 to 1960. Clay went on to win the 1956 Golden Gloves tournament for novices in the light heavyweight class. In his first amateur bout in 1954, he won the fight by split decision. In addition to being a police officer, Martin also trained young boxers at a local gym.Ĭlay started working with Martin to learn how to spar and soon began his boxing career. “Well, you better learn how to fight before you start challenging people,” Martin reportedly told him at the time. After his bike was stolen, Clay told police officer Joe Martin that he wanted to beat up the thief. Growing up in the segregated South, he experienced racial prejudice and discrimination firsthand.Īt the age of 12, Clay discovered his talent for boxing through an odd twist of fate. His birth name was Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.Īt an early age, young Clay showed that he wasn’t afraid of any bout-inside or outside of the ring. Muhammad Ali was born on January 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky. BORN: JanuDIED: JBIRTHPLACE: 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 Quick FactsįULL NAME: Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr. ![]() He earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005. Ali retired from boxing in 1981 and devoted much of his time after to philanthropy. 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 became an Olympic gold medalist in 1960 and the world heavyweight boxing champion in 1964. Muhammad Ali was a boxer, philanthropist, and social activist who is universally regarded as one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century. Wives, Children, and Family Boxing Legacy.Vietnam War Protest and Supreme Court Case.Relationship With Malcolm X and Conversion to Islam.
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