Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday said he believed that Muhammad Ali, the renowned world’s heavyweight champion in boxing, was the greatest sportsman owing to his talents and his beliefs about the human existence.
I believe he was the greatest sportsman, not only because he was talented, intelligent & courageous, but because his beliefs went beyond material considerations to a conviction that humans, unlike animals, had a higher purpose of existence.https://t.co/fP9uNreA3d
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) June 21, 2020
On his Twitter account, the prime minister posted, “I believe he was the greatest sportsman, not only because he was talented, intelligent & courageous, but because his beliefs went beyond material considerations to a conviction that humans, unlike animals, had a higher purpose of existence.”
The prime minister also tagged a video recording titled ‘Muhammad Ali’s biggest fight was not in the ring’ showing Ali’s professional life, briefs and different aspects of his life on different occasions during tv interviews.
In standing up for his beliefs in the face of all odds, he sacrificed the best years of his sporting life & lucrative earnings. His strength & courage continue to inspire people across the world even today.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) June 21, 2020
“In standing up for his beliefs in the face of all odds, he sacrificed the best years of his sporting life & lucrative earnings. His strength & courage continue to inspire people across the world even today,” the prime minister further added.
Muhammad Ali was a US boxer, philanthropist and social activist and was universally regarded as one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century.
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He became an Olympic gold medalist in 1960 and the world heavyweight boxing champion during 1964. Following his suspension for refusing military service, Ali reclaimed the heavyweight title two more times during the 1970s, winning his famed and ferocious bouts against Joe Frazier and George Foreman.
During 1984, he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Due to his philanthropist work, Ali earned the US Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005.
Early Life
Muhammad Ali was born on January 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky. His birth name was Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.
At an early age, young Clay showed that he wasn’t afraid of any bout — inside or outside of the ring. Growing up in the segregated South, he experienced racial prejudice and discrimination firsthand.
At the age of 12, Clay discovered his talent for boxing through an odd twist of fate. After his bike was stolen, Clay told a police officer, Joe Martin, that he wanted to beat up the thief.
Conversion to Islam
Clay joined the black Muslim group Nation of Islam in 1964. At first, he called himself Cassius X before settling on the name Muhammad Ali. The boxer eventually converted to orthodox Islam during the 1970s.
Online Int’l News with additional input by GVS News Desk