"Muhammad Ali in China Muhammad Ali visited China on three occasions. Ali's visits to China resulted in a revival of boxing in China, and influenced the development of the sport in China. Ali's first visit to China was in December, 1979. At this time, boxing was banned in China; the ban being imposed in 1959 after a death in the ring caused concerns about safety. During this visit, Ali met Deng Xiaoping, and informed Deng of his desire to revive boxing in China. ""As long as people like it, we will develop it...Boxing can also be a bridge which enhances"
"Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer, activist, and philanthropist. Nicknamed ""The Greatest"", he is widely regarded as one of the most significant and celebrated sports figures of the 20th century and one of the greatest boxers of all time. He was born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky, and began training as an amateur boxer when he was 12 years old. At age 18, he won a gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, then turned professional later"
"refusal to serve in the Vietnam War resulted in the stripping of his title, and tore down the barrier between sport and culture. After three years of inactivity, Ali returned to the sport, leading to his first epic clash with Joe Frazier in 1971, ushering in a ""golden age"" of heavyweight boxing. Ali, Frazier, and the heavy-hitting George Foreman were the top fighters in a division overloaded with talent. Among the middleweights, Argentine Carlos Monzón emerged as a dominant champion, reigning from 1970 to his retirement in 1977, after an unprecedented 14 title defenses. Roberto Durán dismantled opponents for 6½"
"Ali (film) Ali is a 2001 American biographical sports drama film written, produced and directed by Michael Mann. The film focuses on ten years in the life of the boxer Muhammad Ali, played by Will Smith, from 1964 to 1974, featuring his capture of the heavyweight title from Sonny Liston, his conversion to Islam, criticism of the Vietnam War, and banishment from boxing, his return to fight Joe Frazier in 1971, and, finally, his reclaiming the title from George Foreman in the Rumble in the Jungle fight of 1974. It also touches on the great social and political upheaval in"
"After the fight, Ali grabbed a microphone and shouted: Ali's next boxing match would be with Joe Frazier. Bonavena would later die under tragic circumstances in 1976. Muhammad Ali vs. Oscar Bonavena Heavyweight boxers Muhammad Ali and Oscar Bonavena fought at Madison Square Garden in New York City on December 7, 1970. Ali won the bout through a technical knockout in the 15th round. According to Ferdie Pacheco, Ali absorbed more punishment in this particular fight than in any of his previous fights, and it was a mistake for Ali to have fought with Bonavena just before his first fight"
"Muhammad Ali vs. Oscar Bonavena Heavyweight boxers Muhammad Ali and Oscar Bonavena fought at Madison Square Garden in New York City on December 7, 1970. Ali won the bout through a technical knockout in the 15th round. According to Ferdie Pacheco, Ali absorbed more punishment in this particular fight than in any of his previous fights, and it was a mistake for Ali to have fought with Bonavena just before his first fight with Joe Frazier. Many experts believed Ali was making a mistake by fighting with Bonavena in only his second fight after his 3½ year break from professional"
"that year, before converting to Islam after 1961. At age 22, in 1964, he won the world heavyweight championship from Sonny Liston in a major upset. He then changed his name from Cassius Clay, which he called his ""slave name"", to Muhammad Ali. He set an example of racial pride for African Americans and resistance to white domination during the Civil Rights Movement. In 1966, two years after winning the heavyweight title, Ali further antagonized the white establishment by refusing to be drafted into the U.S. military, citing his religious beliefs, and opposition to American involvement in the Vietnam War."
"September 15, 1978, for the World Boxing Association and Lineal Heavyweight Champion titles. Ali regained the title with a Unanimous Decision over Spinks. Confirmed bouts: Muhammad Ali vs. Leon Spinks Muhammad Ali vs. Leon Spinks was the World Boxing Council professional boxing match contested on February 15, 1978 in Las Vegas, Nevada for the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship. After his unanimous decision victory against Earnie Shavers, Muhammad Ali decided to face 1976 Olympic Gold medalist Leon Spinks, knowing that he'd have to face Ken Norton for the fourth time or lose his WBC belt, after the No 1 ranked Norton beat"
"the count. Then came what was hyped as the ""Fight Of The Century,"" his first fight with Muhammad Ali, who had launched a comeback in 1970 after a three-year suspension from boxing. This would be the first meeting of two undefeated heavyweight champions (and last until Mike Tyson faced Michael Spinks in 1988), since Ali (31–0) had not lost his title in the ring, but rather been stripped because of his refusal to be conscripted into the armed forces, some considered him to be the true champion. This fight was to crown the one, true heavyweight champion. On March 8,"
"died, or voluntarily relinquished the crown to fight in a different weight class.) This policy was severely tested in 1967 with Muhammad Ali. Ali had won the world heavyweight championship by dethroning Sonny Liston in 1964. As part of the antiwar movement in the United States during the Vietnam era, Muhammad Ali lost his world heavyweight crown in the eyes of most American boxing commissions when he refused to be inducted in the U.S. Army. Despite Ali possessing no boxing licence in the United States and no passport to travel outside America to fight, The Ring continued to list Ali"
"mocked, humiliated and punished Patterson throughout the fight before knocking him out in the 12th round. A New York Times reporter complained that the fight was like watching someone ""pulling the wings off a butterfly."" On September 20, 1972, Patterson fought Ali for the second time. At age 37, Patterson was stopped in the 7th round. The defeat proved to be Patterson's last fight, although there was never an announcement of retirement. Muhammad Ali vs. Floyd Patterson Muhammad Ali vs. Floyd Patterson refers to two North American Boxing Federation heavyweight professional boxing matches between the champion Muhammad Ali and former"
"Muhammad Ali vs. Floyd Patterson Muhammad Ali vs. Floyd Patterson refers to two North American Boxing Federation heavyweight professional boxing matches between the champion Muhammad Ali and former champion Floyd Patterson. The first match took place on November 22, 1965; and the second on September 20, 1972. Ali won both fights through technical knockouts. The first fight was stopped in the 12th round; and the second after the 7th round. Patterson had previously lost his heavyweight title to Sonny Liston in a 1st round knockout. In a later rematch, Patterson lost again in the 1st round. Liston later lost the"
"years as lightweight champion, Defending the title 12 times, 11 by knockout. The late 1970s witnessed the end of universally recognised champions, as the WBC and WBA began to recognise different champions and top contenders, ushering in the era of multiple champions, unworthy mandatory challengers, and general corruption that came to be associated with sanctioning bodies in later decades. The end of this decade also saw the sport begin to become more oriented toward the casino industry. The Caesars Palace hotel in Las Vegas began to host major bouts featuring George Foreman, Ron Lyle, Muhammad Ali, Roberto Durán, Sugar Ray"
"Ali's death. He deleted one fight and added scenes and footage focusing on the political side of Ali's life. This version runs 152 minutes and was released on January 17, 2017 on Blu-Ray in the US as the ""Commemorative Edition"". Ali (film) Ali is a 2001 American biographical sports drama film written, produced and directed by Michael Mann. The film focuses on ten years in the life of the boxer Muhammad Ali, played by Will Smith, from 1964 to 1974, featuring his capture of the heavyweight title from Sonny Liston, his conversion to Islam, criticism of the Vietnam War, and"
"Leon Spinks vs. Muhammad Ali II Leon Spinks vs. Muhammad Ali II, was a professional boxing match contested on September 15, 1978 in New Orleans for the WBA and Lineal Heavyweight Championships. The fight was estimated to have been watched by a record 2billion viewers worldwide, in some 80 nations. After his shock win over Ali to become Heavyweight champion, Leon Spinks was stripped of the WBC belt for not facing its number one ranked contender Ken Norton, instead he agreed to a rematch with Ali. Ali entered the rematch as a 2½ to 1 favorite. ABC televised the fight"
"Heavyweight Title, which had become vacant after Muhammad Ali was stripped of the title for refusing to be drafted into the United States Army. The Title fight was to be held March 4, 1968, in New York's Madison Square Garden against 'smoking' Joe Frazier, his old rival. Frazier won by 11th-round knockout. Buster Mathis continued to fight in the following years, outpointing George Chuvalo, but losing on points to Jerry Quarry - a fight Mathis was favoured to win. Mathis retired after losing to Quarry in 1969, but returned in 1971 to box Muhammad Ali for the NABF belt, losing"
"met for the third and last time on September 28, 1976, at Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York, USA, completing their trilogy. This time, 34-year-old Ali entered the ring as Heavyweight Champion. Both fighters showed their strengths, but neither established themselves as the obvious winner. Most commentators gave the fight to Norton. Ultimately, Ali won by a unanimous decision, thereby retaining his title. Muhammad Ali vs. Ken Norton Muhammad Ali fought three professional boxing matches against Ken Norton between 1973 and 1976. Ali won the series 2–1. Still rebuilding a winning record after his first professional loss to Joe Frazier, Ali"
"seriously out of shape by the opening bell. He lost the title by split decision. A rematch occurred in September at the Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. 70,000 people attended the bout and paid a total of $6 million admission, making it the largest live gate in boxing history at that time. Ali won a unanimous decision in an uninspiring fight, with referee Lucien Joubert scoring rounds 10-4, judge Ernie Cojoe 10-4, and judge Herman Preis 11-4. This made Ali the first heavyweight champion to win the belt three times. Following this win, on July 27, 1979, Ali announced his"
"Muhammad Ali vs. Ron Lyle Muhammad Ali and Ron Lyle fought a boxing match on May 16, 1975. Ali won the bout through a technical knockout in the 11th round. This bout was aired live primetime in the United States via ABC with Howard Cosell doing the play-by-play and it took place in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ali entered the bout at 224.5 pounds, the heaviest he's ever been for a title match (at the time). Lyle at 219 pounds, was the heaviest in his career for this shot at a title he received despite his loss to a then unknown"
"heavyweight champion in 1970, and followed up by defeating Muhammad Ali by unanimous decision in the highly anticipated Fight of the Century in 1971. Two years later, Frazier lost his title when he was defeated by George Foreman. He fought on, beating Joe Bugner, losing a rematch to Ali and beating Quarry and Ellis again. Frazier's last world title challenge came in 1975, but he was beaten by Ali in their brutal rubber match, the Thrilla in Manila. He retired in 1976 following a second loss to Foreman. He made a comeback in 1981, fighting just once before retiring. The"
"Center) in 1999. In 1996, the stadium hosted the AAU Junior Olympics basketball competition. On October 14, 1975, the Dome hosted Muhammad Ali Appreciation Day. The Muhammad Temple of Islam 46 in New Orleans organized the activities, with Ali's appearance as the day's highlight. Speakers included Dr. Na'im Akbar, Wallace D. Muhammad and Louis Farrakhan. The Superdome hosted the September 15, 1978 fight some called the Ali rematch where Muhammad Ali won the world Heavyweight title for the third time by beating Leon Spinks in front of a crowd of 65,000. It was Ali's last professional win. Leonard–Durán II, also"
"in Manila (1975), both won by Ali. In 1971, both Ali and Frazier had legitimate claims to the title of World Heavyweight Champion. An undefeated Ali had won the title from Sonny Liston in Miami Beach in 1964, and successfully defended his belt up until he had it stripped by boxing authorities for refusing induction into the armed forces in 1967. In Ali's absence, the undefeated Frazier garnered two championship belts through knockouts of Buster Mathis and Jimmy Ellis. He was recognized by boxing authorities as the World Champion. Unlike Mathis and Ellis, Frazier was plausibly Ali's superior, which created"
"the bout. Lyle protested briefly, then staggered to his corner in a daze. Muhammad Ali vs. Ron Lyle Muhammad Ali and Ron Lyle fought a boxing match on May 16, 1975. Ali won the bout through a technical knockout in the 11th round. This bout was aired live primetime in the United States via ABC with Howard Cosell doing the play-by-play and it took place in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ali entered the bout at 224.5 pounds, the heaviest he's ever been for a title match (at the time). Lyle at 219 pounds, was the heaviest in his career for this"
"Muhammad Ali vs. Leon Spinks Muhammad Ali vs. Leon Spinks was the World Boxing Council professional boxing match contested on February 15, 1978 in Las Vegas, Nevada for the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship. After his unanimous decision victory against Earnie Shavers, Muhammad Ali decided to face 1976 Olympic Gold medalist Leon Spinks, knowing that he'd have to face Ken Norton for the fourth time or lose his WBC belt, after the No 1 ranked Norton beat No 2 ranked Jimmy Young in a title eliminator in November 1977. The 10–1 underdog Spinks ended up winning two of the scorecards 145–140 and"
"John Tate and Gerrie Coetzee for the vacant WBA title. ""We knew Muhammad Ali was going to retire,"" Arum said, ""but as long as he delayed, I couldn't make definite plans."" However, in October 1980 Ali returned to face WBC Champion Larry Holmes but was stopped by TKO in the 10th round. He then retired for good after a lackluster loss to Trevor Berbick in December 1981, thus making this fight the final win in Ali's career. Leon Spinks vs. Muhammad Ali II Leon Spinks vs. Muhammad Ali II, was a professional boxing match contested on September 15, 1978 in"
"by Larry Holmes in 1980 and Trevor Berbick in 1981. Despite repeatedly calling Ali out, Foreman was unable to secure a rematch with the champion before Foreman abruptly decided to retire after a loss to Jimmy Young in 1977. Ali did not hurry to set up a rematch, making title defenses against unheralded opponents such as Jean Pierre Coopman and Richard Dunn. However, he would repeatedly state that his rematch with Foreman was one of the major fights he wanted to get to before retiring. Foreman later made an unlikely comeback, culminating in his regaining the world heavyweight championship at"
"Laila Ali Laila Amaria Ali (born December 30, 1977) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1999 to 2007. She is the daughter of world famous boxer Muhammad Ali, and is the eighth of her father's nine children. During her career, from which she retired undefeated, she held the WBC, WIBA, IWBF and IBA female super middleweight titles, and the IWBF light heavyweight title. Laila Amaria Ali was born December 30, 1977, in Miami Beach, Florida, the daughter of boxer Muhammad Ali and his third wife, Veronica Porché Ali. Ali was a manicurist at age 16. She graduated"
"Muhammad Ali vs. Sonny Liston The two fights between Muhammad Ali and Sonny Liston for boxing's World Heavyweight Championship were among the most anticipated, watched and controversial fights in the sport's history. ""Sports Illustrated"" magazine named their first meeting, the Liston–Clay fight (Ali had not yet changed his name from Cassius Clay), as the fourth greatest sports moment of the twentieth century. The first bout was held in February 1964 in Miami Beach, Florida. Clay (later Ali) won when Liston gave up at the opening of the seventh round (after being clearly dominated in the sixth). Their second fight was"
"serving until his retirement in 1974. In 1938 he became a boxing coach at the Columbia Gym in Louisville (now the student center of Spalding University), where, in 1954, he began coaching Cassius Clay, who later became a three-time world heavyweight champion under the name of Muhammad Ali. During this time, he also trained Jimmy Ellis as well as eleven National Golden Gloves champions. Martin was an early leader in Louisville's civil rights movement. At the time the future Muhammad Ali began training there, Columbia Gym was racially integrated, unlike other Louisville boxing gyms of that period. In 1954, a"
"known as Muhammad Ali), who entered as a 7–1 underdog. Controversy followed with claims that Liston had been drinking heavily the night before the fight. In his 1965 rematch with Clay, Liston suffered an unexpected first-round knockout that led to unresolved suspicions of a fix. He was still a world-ranked boxer when he died under mysterious circumstances in 1970. Underworld connections and his unrecorded date of birth added to the enigma. ""The Ring"" magazine ranks Liston as the seventh greatest heavyweight of all time, while boxing writer Herb Goldman ranked him second. In his book, ""The Gods of War"", Springs"
"fight again. Ali chose instead to check into the Mayo Clinic, who declared him fit to fight. Their opinion was accepted by the NAC on July 31, 1980, paving the way for Ali's return to the ring. The fight took place on October 2, 1980, in Las Vegas Valley, with Holmes easily dominating Ali, who was weakened from thyroid medication he had taken to lose weight. Giachetti called the fight ""awful ... the worst sports event I ever had to cover."" Actor Sylvester Stallone was at ringside and said that it was like watching an autopsy on a man who"
"for the world heavyweight title (shared with Joe Louis), as well as winning 14 unified title bouts (shared with former welterweight champion José Napoles), were unbeaten for 35 years. Ali is the only boxer to be named ""The Ring"" magazine Fighter of the Year six times. He has been ranked the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time. He was also ranked as the greatest athlete of the 20th century by ""Sports Illustrated"", the Sports Personality of the Century by the BBC, and the third greatest athlete of the 20th century by ESPN ""SportsCentury"". Nicknamed ""The Greatest"", he was involved in"
"Loren Ross Loren ""The Boss"" Ross (September 18, 1964 – July 31, 2013) in Nashville, Tennessee) is a former professional heavyweight boxer. Ross won the 1984, 1985, and 1986 United States Amateur Light Heavyweight Championships. This feat was also accomplished by future Heavyweight Champions Cassius Clay known better as Muhammad Ali and Leon Spinks. Spinks, while serving in the United States Marine Corps won three consecutive United States Amateur Light Heavyweight Championships '74, '75 and '76. Lost to Pablo Romero (Cuba) at the World Amateur Championships in 1986 (4-1) for the 178 pound title. Ross had a professional record of"