Muhammad Ali is known today to every person who is at least somewhat interested in sports. The future king of boxing was born in Kentucky, USA in 1942 in a poor, but not a poor family by African American standards. His father was engaged in drawing signboards, and his mother worked as a governess in rich houses. Actually, the real name of the future athlete, given to him at birth, was Cassius Clay.
His modern biographers note that the young man's talent for boxing was manifested since childhood. An important factor that prompted Cassius to come to the gym was the tense situation in his hometown, where there was an atmosphere of violence, racism, discrimination against the black population. In this regard, hopeless black youth often united in gangs - this was the path leading to nowhere. At twelve, an unpleasant incident occurred with the boy. A local bully took away the bike he had just bought from him. Going to the station, the future champion met a policeman there, whom he announced his intention to beat his offender. By a happy coincidence, the policeman, whose name was Joe Martin, was a sports coach himself and invited the boy to his room, where other young boxers trained.
The workouts that began forever changed the life of a young boxer. Despite significant problems with discipline in the gym (young Cassius constantly got into fights with training partners, painfully reacting to the slightest criticism or underestimation of his potential), the young man began to persistently improve his skills.
Daily jogging, exhausting workouts, a fanatical commitment to a healthy lifestyle began. Two months after the start of classes, Cassius won his first victory, which was broadcast on local television. And two years later, in 1956, he took his first tournament - Golden Gloves (the most famous tournament for beginner boxers in the USA). A giddy career start leads the young boxer to the US national team. And in 1960, he goes to the Olympics, where he wins his first gold.
At the same time, the young man falls under the influence of the Muslim sect "The Nation of Islam", meets with its leaders and visits a mosque, which greatly transforms his life. And then the rising star of world sports dumbfounded everyone. Cassius Clay joins the "Nation of Islam", henceforth his name is Muhammad Ali. Now it is closely connected with the Islamic world. By the way, one of the Arab sheikhs - Rashid Bin Muhammad Al Maktoum - has the same name. This step of the young boxer caused a tough reaction.
Muhammad Ali, whose photo by that time appeared on the front pages of all sports publications, was deprived of the World Boxing Association's champion title, which he won the same year by a victory over Sony Liston. In addition, the reaction of the American and world public, colleagues from the boxing workshop of Ali, was extremely harsh, and even his father said that representatives of the “Nation of Islam” had brainwashed on his son.
However, Muhammad Ali would not be himself if he succumbed to public pressure. Despite the boycott and the loss of the championship title, he still confidently claimed that he would beat all his rivals. And kept his word. In 1966, the boxer won the twelfth round of his childhood idol and current critic for his connection with the Islamic sect of Floyd Patterson. Then there were even more epochal fights in the boxer's career: three fights with Joe Fraser (in 1971, 1974 and 1975), a fight with George Forman (1974) and, finally, the last champion title, which Muhammad Ali defended in a duel with Leon Spinks (1978).