Muhammad Ali was an American boxer, philanthropist and social activist. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time. As a professional boxer, Ali won 56 times out of 61 fights.
Table of Contents:
1. Early life
2. Career
3. Retirement and later life
4. Legacy
5. Muhammed Ali’s Top Quotes
Early life
Muhammad Ali was born on January 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky. He was named after his father, Cassius Marcellus Clay Sr., who was a heavy-weight boxer. His mother’s name was Odessa O’Grady Clay. He had four brothers and sisters.
Career
At the age of 12, Ali’s bicycle was stolen, and he was so angry that he wanted to beat up the thief. A police officer named Joe Martin told him that he could learn to box at his gym.
Ali started boxing when he was only 12 years old. He won his first bout by split decision. He then went on to win the Golden Gloves tournament in 1959 and 1960.
In 1960, Ali won the Olympic gold medal in the light heavyweight division.
Retirement and later life
Ali retired from boxing in 1981. He then focused on his philanthropic work. He founded the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center in Phoenix, Arizona.
In 1996, Ali lit the Olympic flame at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia.
Legacy
Ali was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990. In 2005, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Muhammed Ali’s Top Quotes
“It’s in my blood to be around people while I was training.” – Muhammad Ali
“I am the astronaut of boxing. Joe Louis and Dempsey were just jet pilots. I’m in a world of my own.” – Muhammad Ali
“What keeps me going is goals.” – Muhammad Ali
“What you’re thinking is what you’re becoming.” – Muhammad Ali
“Impossible is not a fact. It’s an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It’s a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.” – Muhammad Ali
“People don’t realize what they had till it’s gone. Like President Kennedy, there was no one like him, the Beatles, and my man Elvis Presley. I was the Elvis of boxing.” – Muhammad Ali
“We can’t be brave without fear.” – Muhammad Ali
“Live everyday as if it were your last because someday you’re going to be right.”– Muhammad Ali
“I’ve made my share of mistakes along the way, but if I have changed even one life for the better, I haven’t lived in vain.” – Muhammad Ali
“I wish people would love everybody else the way they love me. It would be a better world.” – Muhammad Ali
“Truly great people in history never wanted to be great for themselves. All they wanted was the chance to do good for others and be close to God.” – Muhammad Ali
“You don’t have to be in a boxing ring to be a great fighter. As long as you are true to yourself, you will succeed in your fight for that in which you believe.” – Muhammad Ali
“The man who views the world at 50 the same as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life.” – Muhammad Ali
“I know I can learn to hit without getting hit.” – Muhammad Ali
“Don’t count the days; make the days count.” – Muhammad Ali
“A rooster crows only when it sees the light. Put him in the dark and he’ll never crow. I have seen the light and I’m crowing.” – Muhammad Ali
“Only a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his soul and come up with the extra ounce of power it takes to win when the match is even.” – Muhammad Ali
“When I won the Golden Gloves in 1960, that made me realize I had a chance. And when I won at the Olympics, that sealed it: I was the champ.” – Muhammad Ali
“Too many easy victories can ruin a fighter just as much as a long line of defeats.” – Muhammad Ali
“Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth. – Muhammad Ali
“Champions are made from something they have deep inside them-a desire, a dream, a vision. They have to have the skill, and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill.” – Muhammad Ali
“No one knows what to say in the loser’s locker room.” – Muhammad Ali
“Superman don’t need no seat belt.” – Muhammad Ali
“Silence is golden when you can’t think of a good answer.” – Muhammad Ali
“To be a great champion you must believe you are the best. If not, pretend you are.” – Muhammad Ali
“I am America. I am the part you won’t recognize. But get used to me. Black, confident, cocky; my name, not yours; my religion, not yours; my goals, my own; get used to me.” – Muhammad Ali
“I’m not the greatest, I’m the double greatest.” – Muhammad Ali
“I shook up the world. Me! Whee!” – Muhammad Ali
“Life is so, so short. Bible says it’s like a vapor.” – Muhammad Ali
“My principles are more important than the money or my title.” – Muhammad Ali
“I would like to be remembered as a man who won the heavyweight title three times. Who was humorous and who treated everyone right. As a man who never looked down on those who looked up to him, and who helped as many people as he could. As a man who stood up for his beliefs no matter what. As a man who tried to unite all humankind through faith and love. And if all that’s too much, then I guess I’d settle for being remembered only as a great boxer who became a leader and a champion of his people. And I wouldn’t even mind if folks forgot how pretty I was.” – Muhammad Ali
“I calculate that I took 20,000 punches, but I earned millions and kept a lot of it. I may talk slow, but my mind is OK.” – Muhammad Ali
“Put yourself out on a limb, like me!” – Muhammad Ali
“He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.”– Muhammad Ali
“I don’t trust anyone who’s nice to me, but rude to a waiter because they would treat me the same if I were in that position.” – Muhammad Ali
“It’s hard to be humble when you’re as great as I am.” – Muhammad Ali
“I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was.” – Muhammad Ali
“You lose nothing when fighting for a cause.” – Muhammad Ali
“Jokes? There are no jokes. The truth is the funniest joke of all.” – Muhammad Ali
“Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” – Muhammad Ali
“It’s lack of faith that makes people afraid of meeting challenges, and I believed in myself.” – Muhammad Ali
“The greatest victory in life is to rise above the material things that we once valued most.” – Muhammad Ali
“The critics only made me work harder.” – Muhammad Ali
“Wisdom is knowing when you can’t be wise.” – Muhammad Ali
“It’s funny, but those who hate me the most sometimes inspire me the most.” – Muhammad Ali
“The best way to make your dreams come true is to wake up.” – Muhammad Ali
“I have never heard anything that affected me like those words: ‘Heavyweight Champion of the World.’” – Muhammad Ali
“There are no pleasures in a fight, but some of my fights have been a pleasure to win.” – Muhammad Ali
“If you even dream of beating me, you’d better wake up and apologize.”– Muhammad Ali
“I don’t count my sit-ups; I only start counting when it starts hurting because they’re the only ones that count.” – Muhammad Ali
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