6 - 12 December 2001
Issue No.563
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 6 - 12 December 2001 Issue No.563 |
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Limelight
Still the greatest
He could climb mountains, swim oceans, run marathons, fight armies. He had the face of Adonis, the body of Hercules, the manners of a gentleman, the soul of a champion. We loved all of him; his vanity, his bravura, his defiance, his intensity, his courage, his magnetism, and most of all his panache! He skipped and danced, he boasted and bragged, he taunted and teased: "I am the greatest" was his recurring refrain, and generations were lucky to grow in the shadow of his greatness. For nearly 4 decades he owned us, heart and soul. No passing of time, no onslaught of disease, no scars from blows, can take away from his beauty, his stature and his charisma.
Retired for 20 years, the honors and accolades descend on him like manna from heaven. At present the ambitious project under way, is raising $80 million for construction of a riverfront museum and institute in the state of Kentucky to honour their favourite son, 3-time heavyweight boxing champion of the world. He is one of the most recognizable men on earth, who brought to his sport unprecedented speed, charm, grace, glamour, glory, and above all, dignity. No one before or since has had the same global impact.
The world first fell in love with him on February 26th 1964, in Miami Beach, Florida. It was a balmy evening. The air was temperate, the mood serene, the world silent. The bragging, boasting youngster, yelling to the world "I am the greatest", predicted that he would knockout his opponent, Sonny Liston, the reigning champ, by the eighth round. Everyone mocked, ridiculed and dismissed the cocky lad who could "float like a butterfly sting like a bee". But when by the 7th round Liston lay bleeding, unable to rise, a new heavyweight champion of the world was crowned - a 22-year-old Olympic gold medallist by the name of Cassius Clay. The crowd was incredulous - was this a fighter or a ballet dancer? It was the wildest display of poetry, youth, joy and daring. Maybe he was the greatest after all! The world joyously embraced him.
Two days following his stunning victory, his problems began. He declared his conversion to Islam, rejected his 'slave' name, adopted a new Muslim name and for the next two decades, the tragedies that befell him and eventually overtook his life, can only be adequately described by the pen of an ancient Greek dramatist. In 1967 he refused induction into the armed services citing religious reasons. He was immediately sentenced to 5 years in prison and stripped of his heavyweight title. Always the fighter, he appealed to the Supreme Court and eventually his conviction was unanimously overturned. But the years had passed, those precious prime years. Many scholars of the period believe he helped diffuse the Vietnam war by his courageous opposition. He became hero to the antiwar factions, the poor, the oppressed, as well as the glamorous and affluent.
In 1974, at age 32, well beyond his prime for boxing, he resumed his career. He still bobbed and bounced, threatened and teased; he still spoke in rhyme, and he still loved to give his matches catchy names. He regained his title by defeating a 25-year-old killer, George Foreman in "Rumble in the Jungle" in Zaire. He sustained the blows and seemed as vital and fresh as he was 10 years before - heavyweight champion of the world.
"I am the greatest" Muhammad Ali
The epic of brutality came a year later. It was the famous "Thrilla in Manila", where he defeated Joe Frazier in the Philippines. The victory was sweet, but the blows were many and the hits were hard - Ali was never the same again. He went on to fight 14 more times in six years. The repetitive punishment his body was sustaining finally took its toll. His affliction with Parkinson's was very possibly a result of the blows to his head in "Manila", a high price to pay for that "Thrilla". Though no one could take a punch like him, he always recalls Manila as his toughest fight. He sustained one million hits during his boxing career, mostly when he was past his prime. Against the advice of numerous ring-wise counselors, Ali came out of retirement again, to seek the heavyweight crown for the 4th time. He was already the only fighter to hold it three times. It was the most challenging of Ali's ring battles - he lost to Leon Spinks, and retired from boxing in 1981.
At the end of the millenium, Ali was chosen by U.S.A. Today, as 'Athlete of the Century'. His popularity over four decades was unrivaled. He has a way with crowds. Whenever he makes a public appearance, he creates a sensation. At the opening ceremony of the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia, Ali was to light the Olympic cauldron. As soon as the stadium lights flooded, the crowd became hysterical, screaming and shouting "Ali, Ali, Ali". "I thought the crowd was going to melt in adoration" writes Jon Saracens of U.S.A. Today.
He was born on 18 January 1942, first son of Cassius Marcellus Clay Sr., a sign painter. Biographers make the connection between his white ancestors, the Louisville gentleman and fiery abolitionist Cassius Marcellus Clay. Others believe he is the great great grandson of Henry Clay, Kentucky senator and presidential candidate of the mid 1800s. He renounced his slave connection, and took the name of the great Muslim Albanian ruler of modern Egypt Muhammad Ali. He changed the consciousness of his people. He raised their pride and dignity. He seemed infallible - but of course he was not.
He will be 60 next month. Still uncommonly "pretty", his face is virtually unmarked, youthful, joyous, possessing remarkable power and grace. None who look at him sees the slight shuffle, the trembling hands, or hears the slur in his speech. They only see perfection on earth. They only see "the greatest". His condition resulting from his boxing injuries, imitates Parkinson's, yet does not have its degenerative pattern. There is no brain deterioration. He is quick with his wit and entertains his friends with magic tricks. A deeply religious man, he is the embodiment of the best in a human being.
Before year's end we shall see this fairytale romance of might and majesty on the silver screen. Ali directed by Michael Mann (Insider, Last of the Mohicans) with Will Smith (Men in Black , Independence Day), starring as boxing's legend. Smith gained 15 kg of pure muscle to match Ali's physique. For films to be Oscar contenders, they must be released before 31 December, and the Oscar buzz already puts Ali on top of the list. Michael Mann's task to display the odyssey of a man known for 40 years around the world as "The Greatest", is no meagre one. A scene in Zaire with 27,000 extras recreating "The Rumble in the Jungle" victory, is getting extensive coverage in the world press. The film covers the ten most tumultuous years between his first title as a youngster and his victory over George Foreman in Zaire. Mann says, "the film's challenge was not to do a docu- drama or a biopic, it is a very dramatic piece of history in which Ali is one of the major icons of Afro- Americans, discovering black power and cultural and ethnic pride".
Because of the nature of boxing, it is believed that boxers die young, no matter how old they live to be - not he. Muhammad Ali will always be remembered, as he always was, "seemingly immortal, omnipotent, dazzling and vital". And to us, mere mortals, he will always be "The Greatest"!
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