"I am the greatest," said Muhammad Ali, and arguably he was.
Ali was the first boxer to win the world heavyweight championship three times - a testament to his unique skills, athleticism and intelligence.
But Ali, the king of the ring, impossibly handsome and articulate, was far more than a boxing icon.
The American star transcended his sport to become a worldwide symbol of courage and dignity.Ali was born Cassius Marcellus Clay in Louisville, Kentucky, on 17 January 1942.
He took up boxing at the age of 12 after someone stole his bike.He was a natural and within six years had become Olympic light heavyweight champion.
He turned professional and the 18-year-old boxer had his first fight on 29 October 1960.Before his sixth bout, against LaMar Clark on 19 April, 1961, Clay predicted a second-round knockout and made it come true.He kept making successful predictions, although he was nearly undone in London in 1963 when Henry Cooper put him on the canvas.Clay got up to win, and kept on winning - nothing was going to stop the "Louisville Lip".
Even so, Clay, then 22, was the underdog when he met the awesome Sonny Liston for the world heavyweight championship in Miami on 25 February 1964.But he won the fight when Liston failed to come out for the eighth round and then knocked him out in the first round in their rematchthe following May.
Soon after winning his first championship, Clay declared his allegiance to the Nation of Islam and changed his name to Muhammad Ali.He defended the title eight times in the next 20 months, establishing himself as one of the most exciting and talented boxers of all time.
His catchphrase, "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee", aptly described his remarkable combination of speed and power.
Ali was stripped of his title when he refused the Vietnam draft on religious grounds and was sentenced to five years in jail.He appealed and eventually won.But in the meantime he was out of the ring for more than two years and never quite recapturedhis scintillating form.
But he went on to win the heavyweight crown twice more, first from the big-hitting George Foreman in the "Rumble in the Jungle" in Zaire on 30 October 1974.The fight was a master class in tactics, where Ali simply let Foreman punch himself to a standstill before knocking him out cold in the eighth round.
On his way home to the US,Ali made a surprise visit to a school in Brixton, south London, after being asked by an equality campaigner.
The following year, 1975, Ali wonpossibly his greatest fight, the celebrated "Thrilla in Manila", stopping 'Smokin' Joe Frazier in the 14th.After 10 defences, he lost the title on points to Leon Spinks in February 1978, but reclaimed it in September the same year.
Ali was now 36 and decided to hang up his gloves after taking enough punishment to last several lifetimes.Unwisely, he came out of retirement for another championship fight, against Larry Holmes on 2 October 1980.Holmes knocked him out in the 11th round.
Ali retired for good after losing on points to Trevor Berbick the following year.Soon afterwards he announced he was suffering from Parkinson's disease, the debilitating illness which causes involuntary shaking of parts of the body.
Despite his poor health, he travelled the world supporting the campaign to end Third World debt and pressing for more research into Parkinson's.
Few will forget the sight of Ali holding aloft the Olympic torch atthe 1996 Atlanta Games.In 1999 he was welcomed again in Brixton during a UK visit to tackle international debt, and then three years later, he went to Afghanistan on a UN goodwill mission.
In 2009 he visited Ennis, County Clare, Ireland, the birthplace of his great-grandfather, Abe Grady,who emigrated from the town to the US in the 1860s.Thousands of people turned out to see Ali, who was made the first honorary freeman of Ennis.He also made a special appearance at the 2012 London Games, where he helped to hold the Olympic flag.
His illness was plain for the world to see, but so too was his fighting spirit and determination.
It came as no surprise when he was voted the 20th Century's topsportsman in Millennium polls onboth sides of the Atlantic.One of the greatest things about the "Greatest" was that he never lost his sense of humour or his compassion.
*Sumber Berita - SkyNews*
ILLF : #MuhammadAli, 1942-2016..
Inna lilaahi wainna ilaaihi rajiun
[to Allah we belong & to Him we shall return]
Al-Fatihah.