Boxing great Ali turns 70 and vows to shake the world once more

He may not be throwing the lightning punches that dazed his opponents. Nor can he shuffle in the ring as he did for over two decades. His speech and movement may have been slowed by Parkinson’s disease which he has endured for close to three decades. But Muhammad Ali, who turns 70 on Tuesday, remains, as he has often told the world, the greatest of all time.

Ali will celebrate his birthday at a colourful ceremony in the Muhammad Ali Center, Louisville, Kentucky, his home town where he was born and brought up to become the greatest boxer the world has ever seen. Among the many highlights will be the attendance of the American hikers freed from captivity in Iran. Ali had to intervene on their behalf to secure their release.

According to the programme, the hikers detained by Iranian authorities in 2009 for more than a year, Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer, will appear at the Muhammad Ali Center downtown with Sarah Shourd, the third hiker who had been released before them.

The gala of up to 350 people paying Sh87,000 ($ 1,000) per head per head to spend time with Ali raises money to fund both capital and operating needs for the five-year-old Center that draws an estimated 85,000 visitors annually.

One of Ali’s wives, Lonnie Ali, says her husband is excited about his birthday. And many too around the world are excited as they recall what he has done over the years to transform people’s lives beyond boxing.
Ali’s core values

Passing on Ali’s six core values of respect, confidence, conviction, dedication, giving and spirituality to young people extends the mission of the legendary boxer, Lonnie Ali said, and helps build community around the nonprofit center at Sixth and Main Streets.

As Ali prepares to blow off the candles to signify his 70 years on the face of the earth, one thing is obvious: his memories of Joe Frazier who died recently of liver cancer. In the history of boxing, no two boxers have caused tension and excitement as did Ali and Frazier.

Ali was known for his verbal attacks against his opponents long before the actual fight started. Frazier never took it kindly, especially when Ali called him ‘Gorilla.’ It was their actual fights that put the entire world to attention.

They had three real battles starting with the ‘Fight of the Century in March 1971, where Ali lost on points, another in 1974 and the toughest of the all- ‘Thrilla in Manila.’ This is the fight Ali said was ‘closest to dying.’

When Ali visited Kenya in February 1980, his excitement was to look around for any guy who resembled Joe Frazier. If he spotted one, he would quickly move to the guy, pretending he was fighting Joe Frazier.

Ali is known for a number of things that surpass boxing. He is known to get along with anybody. When USA failed to have its hostages released during the days of Saddam Hussein, Ali went to talk to Saddam. Saddam allowed Ali to go back to America with some of the hostages.

Away from the high and mighty, Ali has always spared time to be with the ordinary people to share with them matters of concern and even motivate them that every human being is as important as any other. He did that in Sudan in September 1984 when both of us visited that country. After meeting with President Jaffer Numeiry, he would later ask to be taken where ordinary people were.

Ali had several quotes attributed to him. Here are just a few:

“Age is what you think it is. You are as old as you think you are.”

“Frazier is so ugly that he should donate his face to the US Bureau of Wildlife.”

“I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew it. I am the astronaut of boxing. Joe Louis and Dempsey were just jet pilots. I am in a world of my own.”

“He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.”