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    4 views3 pages

    Mohammad Ali

    Uploaded by

    Shaikh Usman Ai

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    of 3

    Word Search: Meet the boy who became the

    boxing legend Muhammad Ali


    We learn about the course of events that propelled Ali into the spotlight

    Published: August 14, 2022 08:30Sanya Nayeem, Games Editor

    America
    n boxing legend Muhammad Ali stood up for his convictions, even
    when they were unpopular, and went through several disappointments
    before his meteoric rise to the hall of fame.Image Credit: Wikimedia
    Commons/Dutch National Archives
    Everyone knows the name Muhammad Ali – the American boxing legend who
    still inspires with his ‘float like a butterfly, sting like a bee’ class act in the ring.
    But he was once a teary-eyed 12-year-old, looking for a stolen bicycle and his
    purpose in life.
    Click start to play today’s Word Search, where you can find a number of
    boxing greats.

    Here are five things about Ali, that you probably didn’t know:

    1. A stolen bike led him to boxing

    When Ali was 12, and still went by the name Cassius Clay, he attended an
    annual convention of the Louisville Service Club in Kentucky, US. When it was
    done, Clay exited the building and looked for his new red and white Schwinn
    bicycle. It was nowhere to be found. Tearful and anxious, Clay asked around,
    and was directed to the basement of the auditorium by onlookers. That was
    where Clay’s life changed forever. The basement turned out to be a boxing
    gym, where a policeman by the name Joe Martin met the crying Clay and
    consoled him. He also asked him a question that would turn the course of his
    life: “Do you know how to fight?” Clay reportedly said no, but that he would
    fight anyway. So, Martin told him to learn about fighting “before you go and
    make any hasty challenges”. Clay followed his advice, and Martin took on the
    role of becoming his first ever trainer.

    2. He refused to serve during the Vietnam War

    In 1967, when Americans were asked to join the army, Ali refused to do so. He
    issued a statement saying it went against his personal convictions and noted:
    “I take my stand in rejecting the call to be inducted. I do so with the full
    realisation of its implications. I have searched my conscience.”

    3. He paid for his decision

    The US government didn’t take his decision well. Ali was convicted of draft
    evasion and sentenced to the maximum sentence – a fine of $10,000
    (Dh36,750) and five years in prison. The New York Boxing Commission even
    suspended his license. But in 1970, the New York State Supreme Court
    reinstated Ali’s license, and he returned to the ring.

    4. Grammy nominated boxer

    Ali proved he was talented in other fields, as well. In 1963, he released a


    spoken-word comedy album, titled ‘I am the Greatest’. The performance was
    live, before an audience of 200. His album was so well received, he was
    nominated for a Grammy Award. Ali then went on to collaborate in 1976 with
    singers Frank Sinatra, Ossie Davis, Howard Cossell and others, and to record
    another album, called ‘Ali and His Gang vs. Mr Tooth Decay’.

    5. He never turned fans away

    When a young Ali eagerly lined up to meet another American boxing legend,
    Sugar Ray Robinson, in 1960, he received a rude shock. He was turned away.
    This was incredibly disappointing, since Ali often called Robinson ‘the king,
    the master, my idol’. Later in life, Ali reminisced in an interview that this was
    the moment he vowed to never turn a fan away. It was a philosophy he
    followed throughout life, even saying once: “I’m the people’s champion. You
    can walk up to me and say ‘hello’ without paying.”

    What do you think of this boxing legend? Play today’s Word Search tell us
    at [email protected].

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