Events

1010 – Ferdowsi completes his Shāhnāmeh.

1126 – Following the death of his mother Urraca, Alfonso VII is proclaimed king of Castile and León.

1618 – Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion.

1655 – John Casor becomes the first legally-recognized slave in England's North American colonies.

1702 – Anne Stuart, sister of Mary II, becomes Queen regnant of England, Scotland, and Ireland.

1722 – The Safavid Empire of Iran is defeated by an army from Afghanistan at The Battle of Gulnabad, pushing Iran into anarchy.

1736 – Nader Shah, founder of the Afsharid dynasty, is crowned Shah of Iran.

1775 – An anonymous writer, thought by some to be Thomas Paine, publishes "African Slavery in America", the first article in the American colonies calling for the emancipation of slaves and the abolition of slavery.

1777 – Regiments from Ansbach and Bayreuth, sent to support Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War, mutiny in the town of Ochsenfurt.

1782 – Gnadenhütten massacre: Ninety-six Native Americans in Gnadenhutten, Ohio, who had converted to Christianity are killed by Pennsylvania militiamen in retaliation for raids carried out by other Indians.

1817 – The New York Stock Exchange is founded.

1844 – King Oscar I ascends to the thrones of Sweden and Norway.

1862 – American Civil War: The iron-clad (formerly ) is launched at Hampton Roads, Virginia.

1868 – Sakai incident: Japanese samurai kill 11 French sailors in the port of Sakai near Osaka.

1910 – French aviatrix Raymonde de Laroche becomes the first woman to receive a pilot's license.

1911 – International Women's Day is launched in Copenhagen, Denmark, by Clara Zetkin, leader of the Women's Office for the Social Democratic Party in Germany.

1916 – World War I: A British force unsuccessfully attempts to relieve the siege of Kut (present-day Iraq) in the Battle of Dujaila.

1917 – International Women's Day protests in St. Petersburg mark the beginning of the February Revolution (so named because it was February on the Julian calendar).

1917 – The United States Senate votes to limit filibusters by adopting the cloture rule.

1920 – The Arab Kingdom of Syria, the first modern Arab state to come into existence, is established.

1921 – Spanish Premier Eduardo Dato Iradier is assassinated while exiting the parliament building in Madrid.

1924 – The Castle Gate mine disaster kills 172 coal miners near Castle Gate, Utah.

1936 – Daytona Beach Road Course holds its first oval stock car race.

1937 – Spanish Civil War: The Battle of Guadalajara begins.

1942 – World War II: The Dutch surrender to Japanese forces on Java.

1949 – Mildred Gillars ("Axis Sally") is condemned to prison for treason

1957 – Egypt re-opens the Suez Canal after the Suez Crisis.

1957 – The 1957 Georgia Memorial to Congress, which petitions the U.S. Congress to declare the ratification of the 14th & 15th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution null and void, is adopted by the U.S. state of Georgia.

1957 – Ghana joins the United Nations.

1963 – The Ba'ath Party comes to power in Syria in a coup d'état by a clique of quasi-leftist Syrian Army officers calling themselves the National Council of the Revolutionary Command.

1966 – A bomb planted by young Irish protesters destroys Nelson's Pillar in Dublin.

1974 – Charles de Gaulle Airport opens in Paris, France.

1978 – The first radio episode of ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'', by Douglas Adams, is transmitted on BBC Radio 4.

1979 – Philips demonstrates the Compact Disc publicly for the first time.

1983 – President Ronald Reagan calls the Soviet Union an "evil empire".

1985 – A failed assassination attempt on Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah in Beirut, Lebanon, kills at least 45 and injures 175 others.

1999 – The Supreme Court of the United States upholds the murder convictions of Timothy McVeigh for the Oklahoma City bombing.

2004 – A new constitution is signed by Iraq's Governing Council.

2010 – The stolen body of Tassos Papadopoulos, fifth President of Cyprus, is discovered in a cemetery near the capital.

Births

1286 – John III, Duke of Brittany (d. 1341)

1293 – Beatrice of Castile, queen of Portugal (d. 1359)

1495 – John of God, Portuguese-born friar and saint (d. 1550)

1514 – Amago Haruhisa, Japanese samurai and warlord (d. 1562)

1566 – Don Carlo Gesualdo, Italian composer (d. 1613)

1659 – Isaac de Beausobre, French Protestant pastor (d. 1738)

1702 – Anne Bonny, Irish-American pirate (d. 1782)

1712 – John Fothergill, English physician (d. 1780)

1714 – Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, German composer (d. 1788)

1726 – Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe, Royal Navy admiral of the fleet (d. 1799)

1746 – André Michaux, French botanist (d. 1802)

1748 – William V of Orange, Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic (d. 1806)

1783 – Hannah Van Buren, wife of Martin Van Buren (d. 1819)

1799 – Simon Cameron, 26th U.S. Secretary of War (d. 1889)

1804 – Alvan Clark, American telescope maker and astronomer (d. 1887)

1814 – Ede Szigligeti, Hungarian dramatist (d. 1878)

1822 – Ignacy Lukasiewicz, Polish inventor (d. 1882)

1827 – Wilhelm Bleek, German linguist (d. 1875)

1830 – João de Deus, Portuguese poet (d. 1896)

1841 – Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (d. 1935)

1847 – John Lister, English politician (d. 1933)

1856 – Bramwell Booth, the 2nd General of The Salvation Army (d. 1929)

1856 – Colin Campbell Cooper, American Impressionist painter (d. 1937)

1859 – Kenneth Grahame, English author (d. 1932)

1865 – Frederic Goudy, American type designer (d. 1947)

1872 – Anna Held, Polish actress and singer (d. 1918)

1879 – Otto Hahn, German chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1968)

1886 – Edward Calvin Kendall, American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1972)

1897 – Damerla Rama Rao, Indian artist, (d. 1925)

1891 – Sam Jaffe, American actor (d. 1984)

1892 – Mississippi John Hurt, American blues singer and guitarist (d. 1966)

1892 – Juana de Ibarbourou, Uruguayan poet (d. 1979)

1896 – Charlotte Whitton, Canadian politician (d. 1975)

1899 – Elmer Keith, American firearms developer (d. 1984)

1900 – Howard Aiken, American computing pioneer (d. 1973)

1902 – Louise Beavers, American actress (d. 1962)

1902 – Jennings Randolph, America politician, United States Senator from West Virginia (d. 1998)

1907 – Konstantinos Karamanlis, Greek politician (d. 1998)

1910 – Bernard Benjamin, British statistician (d. 2002)

1910 – Claire Trevor, American actress (d. 2000)

1911 – Alan Hovhaness, American composer (d. 2000)

1912 – Preston Smith, America politician, 40th Governor of Texas (d. 2003)

1914 – Yakov Borisovich Zel'dovich, Russian physicist (d. 1987)

1915 – Tapio Rautavaara, Finnish athlete, actor, and singer (d. 1979)

1916 – John W. Seybold, American businessman, father of computer typesetting (d. 2004)

1920 – Douglass Wallop, American novelist and playwright (d. 1985)

1921 – Alan Hale, Jr., American actor (d. 1990)

1921 – Fritz Luchsinger, Swiss mountaineer (d. 1983)

1922 – Ralph H. Baer, German-born American inventor

1922 – Cyd Charisse, American actress and dancer (d. 2008)

1922 – Carl Furillo, American baseball player (d. 1989)

1922 – Shigeru Mizuki, Japanese soldier and manga artist

1922 – Yevgeny Matveyev, Russian actor and film director (d. 2003)

1924 – Georges Charpak, Ukrainian-born physicist, Nobel laureate (d. 2010)

1925 – Warren Bennis, American educator and author

1926 – Francisco Rabal, Spanish actor (d. 2001)

1927 – Dick Hyman, American pianist and composer

1929 – Hebe Camargo, Brazilian television presenter, actress and singer

1930 – Bob Grim, American baseball player (d. 1996)

1931 – Neil Adcock, South African Cricket player

1931 – John McPhee, American writer and professor

1931 – Neil Postman, American cultural critic (d. 2003)

1933 – Evelyn Margaret Ay, American beauty pageant winner (d. 2008)

1933 – Luca Ronconi, Italian theater and opera director

1934 – Marv Breeding, American baseball player (d. 2006)

1936 – Gábor Szabó, Hungarian guitarist (d. 1982)

1937 – Richard Farina, American folksinger (d. 1966)

1937 – Juvénal Habyarimana, President of Rwanda (d. 1994)

1938 – Pete Dawkins, American football player

1938 – Bruno Pizzul, Italian sports journalist

1939 – Jim Bouton, American baseball player and author

1939 – Lidia Skoblikova, Russian skater

1939 – Robert Tear, Welsh tenor

1940 – Susan Clark, Canadian actress

1941 – Andrei Mironov, Soviet actor (d. 1987)

1942 – Dick Allen, American baseball player

1942 – Ann Packer, British athlete

1943 – Lynn Redgrave, English actress (d. 2010)

1943 – Dionysis Simopoulos, Greek physicist and astronomer

1944 – Buzz Hargrove, Canadian labour leader

1944 – Sergey Nikitin, Russian composer

1944 – Palito Ortega, Argentine singer and actor

1944 – Pepe Romero, Spanish guitarist

1945 – Bruce Broughton, American composer

1945 – Jim Chapman, American politician

1945 – Micky Dolenz, American musician (The Monkees)

1945 – Anselm Kiefer, German painter

1946 – Randy Meisner, American musician (The Eagles)

1947 – Mike Allsup, American musician (Three Dog Night)

1947 – Florentino Pérez, Spanish football executive

1947 – Carole Bayer Sager, American composer

1948 – Peggy March, American pop singer

1948 – Jonathan Sacks, Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth

1949 – Karel Lismont, Belgian athlete

1949 – Antonello Venditti, Italian singer-songwriter

1950 – Richard Ouzounian, Canadian/American theatre director and critic

1950 – Dimitris Spentzopoulos, Greek footballer

1952 – George Felix Allen, American politician, 67th Governor of Virginia

1953 – Jim Rice, American baseball player

1953 – Don Werner, American baseball player

1954 – Bob Brozman, American musician

1954 – Cheryl Baker, British singer (Bucks Fizz)

1954 – David Wilkie, Scottish swimmer

1955 – Don Ashby, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1981)

1956 – Laurie Cunningham, English footballer (d. 1989)

1956 – John Kapelos, Canadian actor

1957 – Clive Burr, British musician (Iron Maiden)

1957 – John Butcher, American baseball player

1957 – Billy Childs, composer/pianist

1957 – Cynthia Rothrock, American actress

1957 – Bob Stoddard, American baseball player

1958 – Nick Capra, American baseball player

1958 – Gary Numan, British singer

1959 – Aidan Quinn, American actor

1959 – Lester Holt, American television journalist

1960 – Max Metzker, Australian swimmer

1960 – Buck Williams, American basketball player

1961 – Camryn Manheim, American actress

1961 – Larry Murphy, Canadian ice hockey player

1961 – Mark Salas, American baseball player

1962 – Kim Ung-Yong, Korean child prodigy

1963 – Mike Lalor, Canadian ice hockey player

1964 – Kate Betts, American fashion editor

1964 – Thomas Bezucha, American screenwriter and director

1964 – Cheryl James, American performer (Salt-n-Pepa)

1964 – Lance McCullers, American baseball player

1965 – Fátima Lopes, Portuguese fashion designer

1965 – Kenny Smith, American basketball player

1967 – Joel Johnston, American baseball player

1968 – Michael Bartels, German race car driver

1968 – Jim Dougherty, American baseball player

1968 – Ellen Forney, American cartoonist

1968 – Shawn Mullins, American musician

1970 – Jason Elam, American football player

1970 – Andrea Parker, American actress, ballet dancer

1971 – Kit Symons, Welsh footballer

1972 – Georgios Georgiadis, Greek footballer

1972 – Angie Hart, Australian pop singer

1972 – Fergal O'Brien, Irish snooker player

1973 – Anneke van Giersbergen, Dutch singer (The Gathering)

1973 – Boris Kodjoe, Austrian model

1973 – Mark Lukasiewicz, American baseball player

1973 – Kurt Mollekens, Belgian racing car driver

1973 – Justin Thompson, American baseball player

1974 – Mike Moriarty, American baseball player

1975 – Mauro Briano, Italian footballer

1975 – Fardeen Khan, Indian actor

1975 – Peggy Zina, Greek singer

1976 – Gaz Coombes, English singer (Supergrass)

1976 – Juan Encarnacion, American baseball player

1976 – Ryan Freel, American baseball player

1976 – Freddie Prinze Jr., American actor

1976 – Hines Ward, American football player

1977 – James Van Der Beek, American actor

1977 – Johann Vogel, Swiss footballer

1978 – Mohammed Bouyeri, Dutch-Moroccan assassin

1978 – Nick Zano, American actor

1979 – Tom Chaplin, English singer (Keane)

1979 – Andy Ross, American guitarist (OK Go)

1979 – João Martins, Portuguese artist

1980 – Charli Delaney, Australian singer (Hi-5)

1980 – Stephen Milne, Australian rules footballer

1981 – Michael Beauchamp, Australian footballer

1981 – Timothy Jordan II, American musician (The All American Rejects, Jonezetta) (d. 2005)

1981 – Joost Posthuma, Dutch professional cyclist

1982 – Nicolas Armindo, French race car driver

1982 – Kat Von D, Mexican-born tattoo artist

1982 – Leonidas Kampantais, Greek footballer

1982 – Craig Stansberry, American baseball player

1983 – Mark Worrell, American baseball player

1983 – André Santos, Brazilian footballer

1984 – Dave Moffatt, Canadian musician

1984 – Ross Taylor, New Zealand cricketer

1984 – Sasha Vujačić, Slovenian basketball player

1985 – Ewa Sonnet, Polish model and pop singer

1986 – Princess Tsuguko of Takamado, Japanese princess

1988 – Armanti Edwards, American college football player

1989 – Robbie Hummel, American basketball player

1990 – Kristinia DeBarge, American R&B; singer

1990 – Petra Kvitová, Czech tennis player

1990 – Ben Tozer, English footballer

1991 – Devon Werkheiser, American actor

1992 – Charlie Ray, American actress

Deaths

1126 – Urraca of León (b. 1082)

1144 – Pope Celestine II

1223 – Wincenty Kadłubek, Polish chronicler (b. 1161)

1550 – John of God, Portuguese-born friar and saint (b. 1495)

1641 – Xu Xiake, Chinese adventurer (b. 1587)

1674 – Charles Sorel, sieur de Souvigny, French writer (b. 1597)

1702 – William III of England (b. 1650)

1731 – Ferdinand Brokoff, Czech sculptor (b. 1688)

1757 – Thomas Blackwell, Scottish classical scholar (b. 1701)

1771 – Louis August le Clerc, French-born sculptor (b. 1688)

1819 – Benjamin Ruggles Woodbridge, American doctor, Massachusetts militia officer, member of the Massachusetts legislature (b. 1739)

1844 – Charles XIV John of Sweden (b. 1763)

1855 – William Poole, American criminal, member of New York City's Bowery Boys gang (b. 1821)

1869 – Hector Berlioz, French composer (b. 1803)

1872 – Cornelius Krieghoff, Canadian painter (b. 1815)

1874 – Millard Fillmore, 13th President of the United States (b. 1800)

1887 – Henry Ward Beecher, American clergyman (b. 1813)

1887 – James Buchanan Eads, American engineer (b. 1820)

1889 – John Ericsson, Swedish inventor (b. 1803)

1907 – Marinos Antypas, Greek lawyer and journalist, one of the country's first socialists (b. 1872)

1917 – Ferdinand von Zeppelin, German aircraft manufacturer (b. 1838)

1923 – Johannes Diderik van der Waals, Dutch Nobel laureate (b. 1837)

1923 – Krišjānis Barons, Latvian writer (b. 1835)

1930 – William Howard Taft, 27th President of the United States (b. 1857)

1930 – Edward Terry Sanford, Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court (b. 1865)

1935 – Hachiko, world-famous dog (b. 1923)

1937 – Howie Morenz, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1902)

1941 – Sherwood Anderson, American author (b. 1876)

1942 – José Raúl Capablanca, Cuban chess player (b. 1888)

1945 – Frederick Bligh Bond, English architect, illustrator, archaeologist and psychical researcher (b.1864)

1951 – Martha Beck, American convicted murderer (b. 1920)

1951 – Raymond Fernandez, American convicted murderer (d. 1914)

1957 – Othmar Schoeck, Swiss composer and conductor (b. 1886)

1961 – Thomas Beecham, English conductor (b. 1879)

1971 – Harold Lloyd, American actor (b. 1893)

1972 – Erich von dem Bach-Zelewski, German Nazi official (b. 1899)

1973 – Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, American musician (b. 1945)

1975 – George Stevens, American director (b. 1904)

1976 – Alfons Rebane, Estonian military commander (b. 1908)

1981 – Joseph Henry Woodger, British theoretical biologist (b. 1894)

1983 – William Walton, English composer (b. 1902)

1985 – Edward Andrews, American actor (b. 1914)

1986 – Kersti Merilaas, Estonian author, poet (b. 1913)

1988 – Amar Singh Chamkila, Punjabi folk singer (b. 1961)

1988 – Werner Hartmann, German physicist (b. 1912)

1988 – Henryk Szeryng, Polish-born violinist (b. 1918)

1991 – John Bellairs, American mystery author (b. 1938)

1993 – Billy Eckstine, American musician (b. 1914)

1995 – Ingo Schwichtenberg, German drummer (b. 1965)

1996 – Jack Churchill, eccentric British soldier (b.1906)

1998 – Ray Nitschke, American football player (b. 1936)

1999 – Peggy Cass, American actress and comedian (b. 1924)

1999 – Joe DiMaggio, American baseball player (b. 1914)

1999 – Adolfo Bioy Casares, Argentine writer (b. 1914)

1999 – William Wrigley III, President of the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company (b. 1933)

2001 – Edward Winter, American actor (b. 1937)

2003 – Adam Faith, English singer and actor (b. 1940)

2003 – Karen Morley, American actress (b. 1909)

2004 – Abu Abbas, founder of the Palestine Liberation Front (b. 1948)

2004 – Robert Pastorelli, American actor (b. 1954)

2005 – Aslan Maskhadov, Chechen leader (b. 1951)

2005 – César Lattes, Brazilian physicist (b. 1924)

2006 – Brian Barratt-Boyes, New Zealand heart surgeon (b. 1924)

2007 – John Inman, English actor (b. 1935)

2007 – Viky Vanita, Greek actress (b. 1948)

2007 – John Vukovich, American baseball player and coach (b. 1947)

2008 – Carol Barnes, former ITV news presenter (b. 1944)

2009 – Ali Bongo, British magician (b. 1929)

2009 – Zbigniew Religa, Minister of Health of the Republic of Poland (b. 1938)

2011 – Mike Starr (musician), American Musician (b. 1966)

Holidays and observances

Christian Feast Day:

*John of God

*Philemon the actor

Earliest day on which Canberra Day can fall, while March 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Monday in March. (Australian Capital Territory)

Earliest day on which Commonwealth Day can fall, while March 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Monday in March. (Commonwealth of Nations)

Earliest day on which Passion Sunday can fall, while April 17 is the latest; observed on the fifth Sunday of Lent. (Christianity)

International Women's Day or Mother's Day (primarily Eastern Europe, Russia, and the former Soviet bloc)

Revolution Day (Syria)

External links

On This Day in Canada

BBC: On This Day

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Category:Days of the year Category:March

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position	Defense
shoots	Left
height ft	6
height in	9
weight lb	260
team	Boston Bruins
former teams	Ottawa Senators New York Islanders
league	NHL
ntl team	Slovakia
birth date	March 18, 1977
birth place	Trenčín, Czechoslovakia
career start	1997
draft	56th overall
draft year	1996
draft team	New York Islanders }}

Zdeno Chára (; born March 18, 1977) is a Slovak professional ice hockey defenseman. He is the captain of the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League (NHL) and won the Norris Trophy while playing for them in 2008–09. At 6 ft 9 (2.06 m), he is the tallest player ever to play in the NHL. He is also the second European born and trained captain to win the Stanley Cup.

Playing career

New York Islanders (1997—2001)

Chára was drafted 56th overall by the New York Islanders in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft. After four seasons with the Islanders, he was traded to the Ottawa Senators during the 2001 NHL Entry Draft. Chára was part of a package deal with Bill Muckalt and the second overall pick in that year's draft (Jason Spezza) that sent Alexei Yashin to New York.

Ottawa Senators (2001—2006)

As a Senator for four years, Chára emerged as an elite defenseman in the league and more than doubled his previous offensive totals in his first season with Ottawa. In his second season with the team, 2002–03, Chára made his first All-Star Game appearance and recorded the second hardest shot behind Al MacInnis in the skills competition.

The next season, in addition to posting 16 goals and 41 points, Chára recorded the league's third highest plus/minus, behind Martin St. Louis and Marek Malík, culminating into his first Norris Trophy nomination. Although he would lose to Scott Niedermayer as the league's best defenseman, he would join Niedermayer on the NHL First All-Star Team.

After the 2004–05 NHL lockout, in which Chára played in the Swedish Elitserien for Färjestads BK, he matched his previous NHL season's 16-goal total and increased to 56 points, not good enough for NHL Second All-Star Team honours. As Chára did not come to terms on a new contract with Ottawa, he became an unrestricted free agent at the end of 2005–06.

Boston Bruins (2006—present)

Subsequently, on July 1, 2006, he signed a five-year, $37.5 million contract with the Boston Bruins and was named the team's captain, a role left vacant since Joe Thornton's departure during the 2005–06 season. He became only the third Slovak-born NHL player to become a team captain, after Peter Šťastný of the Quebec Nordiques and Stan Mikita (co-captain) of the Chicago Blackhawks. He was named to the 2007 All-Star Game, his second appearance, in Dallas and scored two goals in an 12–9 Eastern Conference loss. Chára also won the hardest shot segment of the preceding skills competition, clocking a shot at 100.4 mph.

In 2008, he was voted in as a starter in the All-Star Game for the first time in his career and repeated as the winner of the hardest shot competition, recording an even-faster 103.1 mph (166 km/h) on the radar gun. On March 8, 2008, during a game against the Washington Capitals, Chára suffered a torn labrum in his left shoulder. However, after missing five games, he played the remainder of the season including the playoffs. Upon a first-round elimination at the hands of the Montreal Canadiens, he underwent a shoulder operation on April 29. At the end of the season, Chára received his second nomination for the Norris Trophy after tallying a career-high 17 goals, 34 assists and 51 points, marking the fifth straight season he had either matched or bested his previous season's points total.

In 2008–09, Chára was named to his fourth All-Star Game. As back-to-back champion of the hardest shot competition, Chára initiated a charity drive among the participants ($1,000 per player) to go to the charity of choice of the competition's winner. Having raised $24,000 from the six competitors and their respective teams, the NHL and the NHLPA, Chára set a new Skills Competition record, with a 105.4 mph (169.7 km/h) slapshot. He donated the winnings to Right to Play. The shot passed Al Iafrate's previous record-making 105.2 mph (169.3 km/h) slapper from just over a decade earlier. Then, at the 2011 NHL All-Star Game in Raleigh, North Carolina, he eclipsed his previous record with a shot clocked at 105.9 mph (170.43 km/h). He won the Norris Trophy for the 2008–09 season, beating out Mike Green of the Washington Capitals and Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings.

On October 9, 2010, Chara re-signed with the Bruins with a 7-year deal.

On January 17, 2011, Chara recorded his first career hat trick against the Carolina Hurricanes to make it a 7-0 final. He celebrated the feat by performing fellow Slovak star Peter Bondra's celebration, where he mocked throwing a hat into the air.

On June 15, 2011, Chara captained the Boston Bruins to win the Stanley Cup against the Vancouver Canucks for the first time since 1972.

;Pacioretty Incident On March 8, 2011, Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty suffered an injury following a hit by Chara. The force and location of the hit resulted in Pacioretty colliding with the stanchion at the end of the bench. He was taken off the ice on a stretcher. The extent of the injury was revealed the next day to be a non-displaced fracture to the 4th vertebra and a severe concussion. For delivering the hit Chara received a five-minute major penalty and a game misconduct, and videotape of the play was sent to NHL VP of hockey operations Mike Murphy for review. Mike Murphy decided no further punishment was warranted. However, a criminal investigation was announced by the Montreal police.

Awards

Played in NHL All-Star Game in 2003, 2007, 2008 (starter), 2009 and 2011

Named to the NHL First All-Star Team in 2004 and 2009.

Named to the NHL Second All-Star Team in 2006, 2008 and 2011.

Won the James Norris Memorial Trophy in 2009.

Won the Hardest Shot competition at the NHL All-Star Game SuperSkills Competition in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2011 where he set a record of 105.9 mph (170.4 km/hr).

Won the NHL Plus-Minus Award in 2011 with a +33 rating.

Won the Mark Messier Leadership Award in 2011.

Won the Stanley Cup in 2011.

First NHL player born inside the Iron Curtain to captain an NHL team to the Stanley Cup (2011).

Records

NHL All-Star Skills Competition hardest shot record – 105.9 mph (170.4 km/hr) (2011) (surpassed his previous record from 2009 – 105.4 mph in 2009)

Personal life

Before he was drafted in the NHL, back in Slovakia, his coaches told him that he was better off playing basketball instead, due to his great size.

Zdeno Chára married his long-time girlfriend Tatiana Biskupicová on July 14, 2007, in a Catholic church in Nemšová, Slovakia. Tatiana gave birth to the couple's first child, daughter Elliz Victoria Chára (or Chárová) on April 27, 2009. His father, Zdenek, was a Greco-Roman wrestler who competed for Czechoslovakia in the 1976 Summer Olympics.

Chára is an Athletic Ambassador for Right to Play. In July 2008, he spent two weeks in Africa, going to Mozambique in support of the charity, and then climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro with fellow NHL player Robyn Regehr.

Chára speaks seven languages: Slovak, Czech, Polish, Swedish, Russian, German, and English.

Career statistics

{| BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="0" width="90%" style="text-align:center" |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! colspan="5" | Regular season ! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! colspan="5" | Playoffs |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! Season ! Team ! League ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM |- | 1996–97 | Prince George Cougars | WHL | 49 | 3 | 19 | 22 | 120 | 15 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 45 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1997–98 | Kentucky Thoroughblades | AHL | 48 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 125 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |- | 1997–98 | New York Islanders | NHL | 25 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 50 | — | — | — | — | — |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1998–99 | Lowell Lock Monsters | AHL | 23 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 47 | — | — | — | — | — |- | 1998–99 | New York Islanders | NHL | 59 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 83 | — | — | — | — | — |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1999–00 | New York Islanders | NHL | 65 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 57 | — | — | — | — | — |- | 2000–01 | New York Islanders | NHL | 82 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 157 | — | — | — | — | — |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2001–02 | HK Dukla Trenčín | SVK | 8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — |- | 2001–02 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 75 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 156 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 12 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2002–03 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 74 | 9 | 30 | 39 | 116 | 18 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 14 |- | 2003–04 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 79 | 16 | 25 | 41 | 147 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2004–05 | Färjestads BK | SEL | 33 | 10 | 15 | 25 | 132 | 13 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 82 |- | 2005–06 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 71 | 16 | 27 | 43 | 135 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 23 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2006–07 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 80 | 11 | 32 | 43 | 100 | — | — | — | — | — |- | 2007–08 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 77 | 17 | 34 | 51 | 114 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 12 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2008–09 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 80 | 19 | 31 | 50 | 95 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 12 |- | 2009–10 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 80 | 7 | 37 | 44 | 87 | 13 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 29 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2010–11 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 81 | 14 | 30 | 44 | 88 | 24 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 34 |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" | AHL totals ! 71 ! 6 ! 11 ! 17 ! 172 ! 1 ! 0 ! 0 ! 0 ! 4 |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" | NHL totals ! 928 ! 125 ! 282 ! 407 ! 1385 ! 100 ! 9 ! 27 ! 36 ! 144 |}

International play

Chára has played for Slovakia in the following international competitions:

1999 World Championships

2000 World Championships

2001 World Championships

2004 World Championships

2004 World Cup

2005 World Championships

2006 Winter Olympics

2007 World Championships

2010 Winter Olympics

See also

List of Boston Bruins players

List of current NHL captains

Notes

References

External links

Category:1977 births Category:Boston Bruins captains Category:Boston Bruins players Category:Färjestads BK players Category:Ice hockey players at the 2006 Winter Olympics Category:Ice hockey players at the 2010 Winter Olympics Category:James Norris Memorial Trophy winners Category:Kentucky Thoroughblades players Category:Living people Category:Lowell Lock Monsters players Category:National Hockey League All-Stars Category:New York Islanders draft picks Category:New York Islanders players Category:Olympic ice hockey players of Slovakia Category:Ottawa Senators players Category:People from Trenčín Category:Prince George Cougars alumni Category:Slovak ice hockey players Category:Stanley Cup champions cs:Zdeno Chára da:Zdeno Chára de:Zdeno Chára fr:Zdeno Chára is:Zdeno Chara lv:Zdeno Hāra no:Zdeno Chára pl:Zdeno Chára ru:Хара, Здено simple:Zdeno Chára sk:Zdeno Chára fi:Zdeno Chára sv:Zdeno Chára uk:Здено Хара

position	Left wing
shoots	Left
height ft	6
height in	2
weight lb	212
ntl team	USA
birth date	November 20, 1988
birth place	New Canaan, CT, USA
career start	2008
team	Montreal Canadiens
league	NHL
draft	22nd overall
draft year	2007
draft team	Montreal Canadiens
halloffame	}}

Max Pacioretty (born November 20, 1988) is an American professional ice hockey player currently playing for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was called up from the American Hockey League (AHL) for the second time on December 12, 2010. He was drafted 22nd overall in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft by the Montreal Canadiens.

Playing career

Pacioretty played high school hockey at New Canaan High School during his freshman year, and then moved on to The Taft School in Watertown, Connecticut. He signed a three-year contract with the Canadiens on July 17, 2008, thus forgoing his remaining eligibility at the University of Michigan.

Pacioretty made his NHL debut with the Montreal Canadiens on January 2, 2009, scoring his first NHL goal on his first NHL shot in a 4-1 loss against the New Jersey Devils. He is the first player in franchise history to wear the jersey #67.

Chara incident

On March 8, 2011, Pacioretty suffered an injury following a hit by Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara. The force and location of the hit resulted in Pacioretty colliding with the stanchion at the end of the bench. He was taken off the ice on a stretcher after laying motionless on the ice for several minutes. The extent of the injury was revealed the next day to be a fracture to the 4th cervical vertebra (C4) and a severe concussion. One Bruin, Mark Recchi, questioned the severity of the concussion during an interview stating that Pacioretty was at a movie theater four days after the incident. For delivering the hit Chara received a five-minute major penalty and a game misconduct, and after reviewing videotape of the play the NHL decided no further punishment was warranted. However, a criminal investigation was announced by the Montreal police. Additionally, Air Canada threatened to remove its sponsorship if the league does not take any action to prevent further violence on ice.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

{| BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="0" width="74%" style="text-align:center" |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! colspan="5" | Regular season ! rowspan="99" bgcolor="#ffffff" |   ! colspan="5" | Playoffs |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! Season ! Team ! League ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM |- ALIGN="center" | 2006–07 | Sioux City Musketeers | USHL | 60 | 21 | 42 | 63 | 119 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 10 |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2007–08 | University of Michigan | CCHA | 36 | 15 | 23 | 38 | 59 | — | — | — | — | — |- ALIGN="center" | 2008–09 | Hamilton Bulldogs | AHL | 37 | 6 | 23 | 29 | 43 | — | — | — | — | — |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2008–09 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 34 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 27 | — | — | — | — | — |- ALIGN="center" | 2009–10 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 52 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2009–10 | Hamilton Bulldogs | AHL | 18 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |- ALIGN="center" | 2010–11 | Hamilton Bulldogs | AHL | 27 | 17 | 15 | 32 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 2010–11 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 37 | 14 | 10 | 24 | 39 | — | — | — | — | — |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" | NHL totals ! 123 ! 20 ! 29 ! 49 ! 86 ! — ! — ! — ! — ! — |}

International

{| BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="0" width=40% |- ALIGN="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! Year ! Team ! Comp ! GP ! G ! A ! Pts ! PIM |- ALIGN="center" | 2008 | United States | WJC | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" | Junior int'l totals ! 6 ! 0 ! 0 ! 0 ! 8 |}

References

External links

Category:1988 births Category:American ice hockey left wingers Category:Hamilton Bulldogs players Category:Living people Category:Michigan Wolverines men's ice hockey players Category:Montreal Canadiens draft picks Category:Montreal Canadiens players Category:National Hockey League first round draft picks Category:Sioux City Musketeers alumni

de:Max Pacioretty fr:Max Pacioretty fi:Max Pacioretty

Name	Smokin Joe Frazier
Realname	Joseph William Frazier
Nationality	American
Nickname	''"Smokin" Joe''"
Height
Reach
Weight	Heavyweight
Birth date	January 12, 1944
Birth place	Beaufort, South Carolina, USA
Home	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Style	Orthodox
Total	37
Wins	32
Ko	27
Losses	4
Draws	1
No contests	0
Medaltemplates	}}

}}

Joseph William "Joe" Frazier, (; born January 12, 1944), known as Smokin' Joe, is a former Olympic and Undisputed World Heavyweight boxing champion, whose notable professional career lasted from 1965 to 1976, with a brief comeback in 1981.

Frazier emerged as the top contender in the late-1960s, defeating Jerry Quarry, Oscar Bonavena, Buster Mathis, Eddie Machen, Doug Jones and Jimmy Ellis en route to becoming undisputed heavyweight champion in 1970, and followed up by defeating Bob Foster and Muhammad Ali on points in the highly-anticipated "Fight of the Century" in 1971. Two years later Frazier lost his title when he was knocked out 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 rubbermatch. He retired in 1976 following a second loss to Foreman. He made a comeback in 1981, fighting just once, before retiring for good. The International Boxing Research Organization (IBRO) rates Frazier among the ten greatest heavyweights of all time. He is an inductee of both the International Boxing Hall of Fame and the World Boxing Hall of Fame.

Frazier's style was often compared to that of the legendary Henry Armstrong and also at times Rocky Marciarno. He was dependent on bobbing, weaving and wearing down his opponents with relentless pressure. His best known punch was a powerful left hook, which accounted for most of his knockouts. Compared to Ali's style, he was close enough to the ideal bruiser that some in the press and media characterized the bouts as the answer to the classic question: "What happens when a boxer meets with a brawler?"

Since retiring Frazier has made cameo appearances in several Hollywood movies, and two episodes of ''The Simpsons''. His son Marvis became a boxer - trained by Frazier himself - although was unable to emulate his father's success. Frazier continues to train fighters in his gym in Philadelphia. His later years have seen the continuation of his bitter rivalry with Ali, in which the two periodically exchange insults, interspersed with brief reconciliations.

Early life

Joe Frazier was born to Rubin and Dolly Frazier in Laurel Bay, Beaufort, South Carolina. Joe has said he was always close to his Father, who carried Joe when he was a toddler "over the 10 acres of farmland us Frazier's owned, to the still where he made his bootleg corn liquor, and into town on Saturday's to buy the necessities that a family of 10 needed. Billy Boy wasn't along just for the ride."

Rubin had his left hand and part of his forearm amputated a year before Joe was born. While Rubin and Dolly were in the car a friend named Arthur Smith, who was drunk at the time and was fond of meeting women, passed by and made a move for Dolly. He was refused. When Frazier's parents drove away Smith fired several bullets, hitting Dolly once in the foot and Rubin several times in the arm, which was hanging outside the car. Arthur Smith went to jail for the shooting, but didn't stay long. As Joe's Mother put it, "If you were a good workman, the white man took you out of jail and kept you busy on the farm." His parents owned a farm "which had 10 acres, and two mules, Buck and Jenny, to work them." Frazier had said the land was what country folk called "white dirt, which is another way of saying it isn't worth a damn." The Frazier family couldn't grow peas or corn on it, they were only able to grow cotton and watermelon.

In the early '50s, Joe's Father got a black and white television. His father, his mother and her brothers and other people from the neighborhood would come to watch boxing matches on it. Frazier's mother sold drinks for a quarter as they watched fighters like Sugar Ray Robinson, Rocky Marciano, Willie Pep, Rocky Graziano. One night Joe walked into the porch of his house when his Uncle Israel and noticed Joe's stocky build. "That boy there...that boy is gonna be another Joe Louis" he remarked. The words made an impression on Joe. At school, his classmates would give him a sandwich or a quarter to walk with them at final bell so that bullies would not mess with them. Joe remarked any "scamboogah" (a disrespectful, low-down and foul person) who got in my face would soon regret it: Billy Boy could kick anybody's ass." The next day after Joe was labelled the next Joe Louis, he got an old burlap sack and filled it with rags, corncobs, a brick in the middle and Spanish moss that grew on trees all over Beaufort County. He then tied a rope to it an hung the makeshift heavybag from an oak tree in the backyard where the mules were kept. "For the next 6, 7 years damn near every day I'd hit that heavybag for an hour at a time. I'd wrap my hands with a necktie of my Daddy's, or a stocking of my Momma's or sister's, and get to it" Joe remarked.

It was not long after Joe started working out that his left arm was seriously damaged because of the Frazier's ornery 300 pound hog. The hog was very nasty from time to time, but sometimes Joe could not resist teasing it. One day Joe poked the hog with a stick and ran away, but someone had left the gate to the pigpen open and the hog ran through the gate, chasing Joe. In his hurry, Joe fell and hit his left arm on a brick. The arm was torn badly, but as the Frazier family was unable to pay for a Doctor, the arm had to heal on its own. The arm eventually did heal, but Joe was never able to keep it fully straight again. It was crooked and lacking a full range of motion. But as it existed, it was though it was cocked for the left hook – permanently cocked.

By the time Joe was 15 years old, he had been working on a farm for a family called the Bellamy's. They where both white men, Mac who was the younger of the two and more easy going, and Jim who was a little rougher and somewhat backward. One day a little black boy of about 12 years old, screwed up one of the Bellamy's tractors without meaning too. Jim Bellamy became so enraged he took off his belt and whipped the boy with his belt right there in the field. Joe saw the event and went back to the packing house on the farm and told his black friends what he had seen. It wasn't long before Jim Bellamy saw Joe and asked him why did he tell people what he had witnessed. Joe then told Bellamy he didn't know what he was talking about, but Bellamy didn't believe Joe and threatened Joe to get off the farm before he took off his belt again. Joe told him he better keep his pants up because he wasn't going to use his belt on him. Jim then analyzed Joe for a bit and eventually said "Go on, get the hell outta here." Joe knew from that moment it was time for him to leave Beaufort, he could only see hard times and low-rent for himself. Even his Momma could see it. She told Joe "Son, if you can't get along with the white folks, then leave home because I don't want anything to happen to you."

The train fare from Beaufort to the cities up North was pretty steep, and the closet bus-stop was in Charleston, 96 miles away. Luckily by 1958, the bus (The Dog, as called by locals in Beaufort) had finally made Beaufort a stop on its South Carolina route. Joe had a brother, Tommy, in New York. He was told he could stay with Tommy and his family. Joe had to save up a bit before he could make the bus trip to New York and still have some money in his pocket, and he went to work for the local Coca-Cola plant. Joe remarked the white guy would drive the truck and he would do the real work, stacking and unloading the crates. Joe stayed with Coca-Cola until the government began building houses for the marines stationed over at Parris Island, when he was hired on a work crew. 9 months had eventually passed from when he got the boot from the Bellamy farm. One day, with no fanfare, no tearful goodbyes, Joe packed quickly and got the first bus heading northward. "I climbed on the Dog's back and rode through the night" Joe remarked. "It was 1959, I was 15 years old and I was on my own."

Amateur career

In Joe's amateur days, he won the Middle Atlantic Golden Gloves heavyweight championships in 1962, 1963 and 1964. His only loss in 3 years as an amateur was to Buster Mathis. Mathis would prove to be Joe's biggest obstacles to making the 1964 US Olympic Boxing team. They met in the final of the US Olympic Trial at the New York World's Fair in the summer of 1964. Their fight was scheduled for 3 rounds, and they fought with 10oz gloves and with headgear, even though the boxers who made it to Tokyo would wear no headgear and would wear 8oz gloves. Joe was eager to get back at Mathis for his only amateur loss, and KO'd two opponents to get to the finals. But once again, when the dust settled, the judges had called it for Mathis, undeservedly Joe thought. "All that fat boy had done was run like a thief- hit me with a peck and backpedal like crazy." Joe would remark.

Mathis had worn his trunks very high, ("darm near up to his titties") so that when Joe hit Mathis with legitimate body shots the referee took a dim view of them. In the 2nd round, the referee had gone so far as to penalize Joe 2 points for hitting below the belt. "In a 3 round bout a man can't afford a pounds deduction like that." Joe would say. Joe then returned to Philadelphia as lowdown as he'd ever been, and was even thinking about giving up boxing. But Duke Nugent and his trainer Yank Durham were able to talk Joe out of his doldrums and even suggested Joe make the trip to Tokyo as an alternate for Mathis. Joe went to Tokyo in the end, in case something happened to Mathis. While there, Joe was a workhorse, sparring with any of the Olympic boxers who wanted some action. "Middleweight, light heavyweight, it didn't matter to me, I got in there and boxed all comers" Joe would say. In contrast, Mathis was screwing off. In the morning, when the Olympic team would do their roadwork, Mathis would run a mile, then start walking saying "Go ahead, big Joe. I'll catch up."

Towards the end of the training camp, arrangements were made to put on an exhibition for the military brass at Fort Hamilton. That night, Mathis hit Joe with a shot on the head and felt pain in his hand. The next day he said he'd busted a knuckle, which meant he was out and Joe was going to take his place. Joe later expressed doubt over whether really busted his knuckle. Mathis was out, and it hardly seemed to faze him. He saw Joe the next morning and was as chipper as could be. At the boxing event, Joe knocked out George Oywello of Uganda out in the 1st round, then Athol McQueen of Australia out 40 seconds into the 3rd round. He was then into the semi-final, as the only American boxer left, facing the 6 foot 4, 230 lb Russian Vadim Yemelyanov.

"My left hook was a heat seeking missile, careening off his face and body time and again. Twice in the 2nd round I knocked him to the canvas. But as I pounded away, I felt a jolt of pain shoot through my left arm. ''Oh damn, the thumb.''" Joe would say. Joe knew immediately the thumb of his left hand was damaged, though he wasn't sure as to the extent. "In the midst of the fight, with your adrenaline pumping, it's hard to gauge such things. My mind was on more important matters. Like how I was going to deal with Yemelyanov for the rest of the fight." Fortunately, there was no rest of the fight. The Russian's handlers decided their man had no chance, and threw in the towel. At 1:49 if the 2nd round, the referee raised Joe's injured hand in victory.

Now Joe was into the final, he didn't mentioned his broken thumb to anyone. He went back to his room and soaked his thumb in hot water and Epson salts. "Pain or not, Joe Frazier of Beaufort, South Carolina, was going for gold." Joe proclaimed. Joe would fight a 30 year old German mechanic named Hans Huber, who failed to make it on the German Olympic wrestling team. By now Joe was used to fighting bigger guys, but he was not used to doing it with a damaged left hand. When the opening bell sounded on fight night, Joe came out and started winging punches, he threw his right hand more than usual that night. Every so often he'd used his left hook, but nothing landed with the kind of impact he managed in previous bouts. Under Olympic rules, 5 judges judge a bout, and that night 3 voted for Joe.

Professional career

After Frazier won the USA's only 1964 Olympic boxing gold medal, his trainer Yancey "Yank" Durham helped put together Cloverlay, a group of local businessmen who invested in Frazier's professional career and allowed him to train full-time. Durham was Frazier's chief trainer and manager until Durham's death in August 1973.

Frazier turned professional in 1965, defeating Woody Goss by a technical knockout in the first round. He won three more fights that year, all by knockout, none going past the third round.

Joe's second contest was of interest in that he was decked in the first round. Mike Bruce in only his 5th contest himself had won 3 of his previous 4 - Ring Encyclopedia informs. He'd go on a long career. For information, by the close of 1970 Bruce had won only 7 of his 37 fights and 1 draw but he kept going. Bruce fought Jack O'halloran twice. Perhaps surprisingly, several other name fighters would later still battle with Bruce in the middle of their careers. Just shows that not everyone can be a world champion. But Mike Bruce at least decked a future world champ to be. Frazier here got a 3rd round stoppage.

In 1966, as Frazier's career was taking off, Durham contacted Los Angeles trainer Eddie Futch. The two men had never met, but Durham had heard of Futch through the latter's reputation as one of the most respected trainers in boxing. Frazier was sent to Los Angeles to train, before Futch agreed to join Durham as an assistant trainer. With Futch's assistance, Durham arranged three fights in Los Angeles against Al Jones, veteran contender Eddie Machen, and George "Scrapiron" Johnson. Frazier knocked out Jones and Machen, but surprisingly went 10 rounds with journeyman Johnson to win a unanimous decision. Johnson had apparently bet all his purse that he'd survive to the final bell, noted Ring magazine, and somehow he achieved it.

After the Johnson match, Futch became a full-fledged member of the Frazier camp as an assistant trainer and strategist, who advised Durham on matchmaking. It was Futch who suggested that Frazier boycott the 1967 WBA heavyweight elimination tournament to find a successor to Muhammad Ali, after the heavyweight champion was stripped of his title for refusing to be inducted into the military, although Frazier was the top-ranked contender at the time.

Futch proved invaluable to Frazier as an assistant trainer, helping modify his style. Under his tutelage, Frazier adopted the bob-and-weave defensive style, making him more difficult for taller opponents to punch, while giving Frazier more power with his own punches. While Futch remained based in Los Angeles, where he worked as a supervisor with the U.S. Postal Service, he was flown to Philadelphia to work with Frazier during the final preparations for all of his fights.

When Durham died in 1973, Futch was asked to succeed him as Frazier's head trainer and manager. In fact, Futch was training heavyweight contender Ken Norton at the time. He was in Norton's corner in March 1973, when Norton broke Ali's jaw and won a split decision. After Norton lost the rematch to Ali in September 1973, Norton's managers, Robert Biron and Aaron Rivkind, demanded that Futch choose between training Frazier and Norton. Futch chose Frazier, but not without regret at being forced to make the choice.

Mid to Late 1960s

Now in his 2nd year, in September 1966 and somewhat green Frazier won a close decision over rugged contender Oscar Bonavena, despite Bonavena flooring him twice in the second round. Although Frazier rallied with sheer determination. A third knockdown in the second round would have ended the fight. Frazier was only in his 12th pro fight. The Machen win followed this contest.

But then in 1967 Frazier stormed ahead winning all six of his fights, including a sixth-round knockout of Doug Jones and a fourth-round brutal technical knockout (TKO) of Canadian George Chuvalo. Nobody had ever stopped Chuvalo before.

By February 1967 Joe had scored 14 wins, all by KO. His name was starting to appear a lot more often in boxing, with Frazier appearing on the cover of Ring Magazine highlighting this. In this month he met Ali, who hadn't yet been stripped of his title. Ali said Joe would never stand a chance of whopping him, not even in his wildest dreams. Later that year, Muhammad Ali was stripped of his world heavyweight title due to his refusal to be inducted into the military during the Vietnam War.

To fill the vacancy, the New York State Athletic Commission held a bout between Frazier and Buster Mathis, with the winner to be recognized as "World Champion" by the state of New York. Although the fight was not recognized as a World Championship bout by some, Frazier won by a knockout in the 11th round and staked a claim to the heavyweight championship. He then his title by beating hard hitting then prospect Manuel Ramos of Mexico in two rounds.

He closed 1968 by again beating Oscar Bonavena via a 15-round decision in a hard-fought rematch. Oscar had gone somewhat defensive being often bulled to the ropes. It let Frazier build a wide points margin but Oscar again left with head held high and fans respect.Ring magazine showed Bonavena afterwards with gruesomely bruised face. It had been a punishing match.

1969 saw Frazier defend his New York title in Texas, beating Dave Zyglewicz, who'd only lost once in 29 fights, by a first-round knockout. Then he beat Jerry Quarry in a 7th round stoppage. The competitive, exciting match with Quarry was named 1969 ''Ring Magazine'' fight of the year. Frazier showed he could do a lot more than just slug. He'd avoided many of Quarry's best determined shots and then countered in his 'smoking' mode.

Wins World Championship - Ellis

On February 16, 1970, Frazier became the undisputed world champion when he defeated WBA champion Jimmy Ellis at Madison Square Garden when the latter couldn't come out for the 5th. Ellis had outpointed Jerry Quarry in the final bout after winning the WBA elimination tournament for Ali's vacated belt. Ellis also held a better win over Oscar Bonavena so he was a serious threat. Frazier had himself declined to participate with the WBA but he was out to prove a point. His clear win over the previously unstopped Ellis was by sheer powerful techinique and highly aclaimed. No heavywieght to date had even decked Ellis. Smoking Joe was on form and dangerous.

In his first title defense, Frazier traveled to Detroit to fight legendary world light-heavyweight champion Bob Foster, who had set a record for the number of defenses in the light-heavyweight division. Frazier (26-0) retained his title by thunderous knock-out in two rounds. Then came what was quickly dubbed the "Fight Of The Century", his first fight with Ali. This would be the first meeting of two undefeated heavyweight champions, since Ali (31-0) had not lost his title in the ring, but rather been stripped because of his refusal to be inducted in the Armed Forces.

Defeats Ali in title defence

On March 8, 1971, at Madison Square Garden, Frazier and Ali met in the first of their three bouts which was widely called the "Fight of the Century" in pre-bout publicity and the press feeding frenzy. With a worldwide television audience, and an in-house audience that included luminaries such as Frank Sinatra (as a photographer for ''Life'' magazine to get a ringside seat), comedian Woody Allen, singer Diana Ross, and actors Dustin Hoffman and Burt Lancaster (who served as "color commentator" with fight announcer Don Dunphy), the two undefeated heavyweights met in the kind of media-frenzied atmosphere not seen since Joe Louis' youth.

Several factors came together for Frazier in this fight. He was 27 years old and at his lifetime peak boxing wise, physically and mentally, while Ali, 29, was coming back from a three-year absence but had kept in training, taking on Frazier soon after a bruising battle with Oscar Bonavena, whom Ali had defeated by a TKO in 15. In fact the win inspired Ali that he was ready for Frazier. Joe himself had trained with famed coach Eddie Futch, who had developed a strategy based on Ali's tendency to throw the right-hand uppercut from a straight standing position after dropping the hand in preparation to throw it with force. Futch instructed Frazier to watch Ali's right hand and, at the moment Ali dropped it, to throw a left hook at the spot where they knew Ali's face would be a second later. Frazier's major staggering of Ali in the 11th round and his knock-down of Ali in the 15th were both executed precisely in this way.

In a brutally competitive contest, Frazier lost a number of early rounds but took Ali's combinations without backing down. As Ali started to slow in the middle rounds, Frazier came on strong, landing hard shots to the body as well as the powerful left hooks to the head.

Consequently, Frazier won a clear, 15-round, unanimous decision. Ali was taken to the hospital immediately after the fight to have his badly swollen jaw x-rayed, and Frazier spent time in the hospital during the ensuing month, the exertions of the fight having been exacerbated by his existing health problems, such as hypertension and a kidney infection. Some while later he did a 3round exhibition against Cleveland Williams.

In 1972, Frazier successfully defended the title twice, beating Terry Daniels and Ron Stander, both by knockout, in the fourth and fifth rounds respectively. It's worth noting Daniels had drawn with Jerry Quarry and Stander had KO'd Earnie Shavers.

Loses title to George Foreman

Ultimately, Frazier lost his undefeated record of 29-0 and his world championship, at the hands of powerful unbeaten George Foreman on January 22, 1973, in Kingston, Jamaica. Foreman towered 3" over the shorter, more compact champion, and soon dominated the brief bout as Frazier came in too open, despite Frazier being the overall favorite. Two minutes into the first round, Frazier was knocked down. After being knocked down a sixth time referee Arthur Mercante stopped the contest. It was the first two knockdowns that were decisive.

Frazier won his next fight, a 12-round tough decision over Joe Bugner in London to begin his quest to regain the title. Many felt it Bugner's best career effort.

Mid 1970s

Frazier's second fight against Ali took place in 1974, in New York, with Ali winning a clear 12-round unanimous decision. It was not a good fight to watch, with much holding and limited action.

Frazier finished 1974 with a much awaited rematch against top Jerry Quarry. A wicked left hook to the ribs giving a five round stoppage although Quarry had tried to go on he clearly couldn't. An impressive win.

In 1975 Frazier rematched Jimmy Ellis, the man from whom he had originally taken the WBA title, in Melbourne, Australia, knocking him out again. This time in nine rounds. The win made him once again the number one challenger for the world crown, now held by Ali, after an eighth-round knockout of George Foreman in the famous "Rumble in the Jungle".

Third Ali match

Ali and Frazier met for the third and final time in Quezon City (a district within the metropolitan area of Manila), the Philippines, on October 1, 1975: the "Thrilla in Manila". Ali took every opportunity to mock Frazier, again calling him ''The Gorilla'', and generally trying to irritate him. Some felt this behaviour beyond the call of sport.

The fight was far more action-filled than the previous encounter (there was no belt at stake in the second fight), and was a punishing display that ended when Eddie Futch stopped the fight before the 15th and final round with Frazier. Ali always maintained it was his toughest ever contest. The extreme heat alone made it an amazing effort from both.

Foreman again

In 1976, Frazier (32-3) personally wished to retry against George Foreman. With a shaved head for a new image Frazier fought well enough, somewhat more restrained than usual, avoiding walking onto the big shots which he had done in their first match. However the now great George Foreman awaited his moment and then lobbed in one tremendous left hook that lifted Frazier off his feet. After a second knock down it was stopped in the fifth. Joe retired.

Frazier made a cameo appearance in the movie ''Rocky'' later in 1976 and dedicated himself to training local boxers in Philadelphia, where he grew up, including some of his own children. He helped train Duane Bobick a while.

1980s comeback and coaching career

In 1981, Frazier attempted a comeback. He drew over 10 rounds with hulking Floyd "Jumbo" Cummings in Chicago, Illinois. It was a brusing battle with mixed reviews. He then retired for good.

Since then, Frazier has involved himself in various endeavors. Among his sons who turned to boxing as a career, he helped train Marvis Frazier, a challenger for Larry Holmes's world heavyweight title, and trains his daughter, Jackie Frazier-Lyde, whose most notable fight to date was a close points loss against Laila Ali, the daughter of his rival.

Frazier's overall record is 32 wins, 4 losses and 1 draw, with 27 wins by knockout. He won 73 percent of his fights by knockout, compared to 60 percent for Ali and 84 percent for Foreman. He is a member of the International Boxing Hall Of Fame.

In 1986, Frazier appeared as the "corner man" for Mr. T against Roddy Piper at WrestleMania 2 at Madison Square Garden. In 1989, Frazier joined Ali, Foreman, Norton and Holmes for the tribute special ''Champions Forever''.

1990s to present

Frazier lives in Philadelphia where he owns and manages a boxing gym but Frazier put the gym up for sale in mid 2009. He has diabetes and high blood pressure. He and his nemesis, Muhammad Ali, have alternated over the years between public apologies and public insults.

Frazier appeared as himself in an episode of ''The Simpsons'' ("Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?") in 1992, in which he would beat up Barney Gumble. Frazier's son objected and was instead shown beating up Gumble and putting him in a trash can. He appeared in another episode of ''The Simpsons'' ("Homer's Paternity Coot") in 2006. Since the debut of the Fight Night series of games, Frazier appeared in ''Fight Night 2004'', ''Fight Night Round 2'', ''Fight Night Round 3'', ''Fight Night Round 4'', and Fight Night Champion, games made by EA Sports.

Frazier's autobiography is titled ''Smokin' Joe'' and he was widely criticized by Ali fans for relating many of Ali's actions that he considered offensive. Some feel that Frazier has hurt himself with his unrelenting bitterness toward Ali. In 1996, when Ali lit the Olympic flame in Atlanta, Frazier told a reporter that he would like to throw Ali into the fire. Frazier made millions of dollars in the 70's, but the article cited mismanagement of real-estate holdings as a partial explanation for his economic woes. Frazier has repeated that he no longer has any bitter feelings towards Ali.

Frazier is still training young fighters, although he needed multiple operations for back injuries sustained in a car accident. It has been reported that he and Ali recently attempted a reconciliation, but as of October 2006 Frazier still claimed to have won all three bouts between the two. He declared to a ''Times'' reporter, when questioned about his bitterness toward Ali, "I am what I am."

Financial Status and Legal Battles

According to an article from New York Times Frazier ' Over the years, Frazier has lost a fortune through a combination of his own generosity and naïveté, his carousing, failed business opportunities and a deep hatred for his former chief boxing rival, Muhammad Ali. The other headliners from his fighting days — Ali, George Foreman and Larry Holmes — are millionaires.

Asked about his situation, Frazier became playfully defensive, but would not reveal his financial status.

“Are you asking me how much money I have?” he said. “I got plenty of money. I got a stack of $100 bills rolled up over there in the back of the room.”

Frazier blamed himself, partly, for not effectively promoting his own image.

Frazier-Lyde is a lawyer and has worked on her father’s behalf in pursuit of money they claim he was owed in a Pennsylvania land deal. In 1973, Frazier purchased 140 acres in Bucks County, Pa., for $843,000. Five years later, a developer agreed to buy the farmland for $1.8 million. Frazier received annual payments from a trust that bought the land with money he had earned in the ring. When the trust went out of business, the payments stopped.

Frazier sued his business partners, claiming that his signature was forged on documents and that he had no knowledge of the sale. In the ensuing years, the land was subdivided and turned into a residential community. The property is now worth an estimated $100 million.

Relationship with Muhammad Ali

While Ali's characteristic taunts of his opponent began typically enough, after regaining his title, his taunts of ''Smokin' Joe'' eventually turned mean-spirited and racist. Joe was painted by Ali as the white man's hope and as an ''"Uncle Tom"'' interjecting an element of racism into an already contentious and controversial series of great bouts. (The early controversy was whether Ali should be allowed to fight at all.)

Joe Frazier petitioned President Nixon to have Ali's right to box reinstated setting up the whole series of matches. Frazier boycotted the 1967 WBA heavyweight elimination tournament to find a successor to Muhammad Ali, when the champion was stripped of the title.

After years of remaining bitter, Frazier told ''Sports Illustrated'' in May 2009 that he no longer held hard feelings for Ali.

Trivia

Some of the most memorable moments in the 1976 boxing-themed feature film, Rocky - such as Rocky's carcass-punching scenes and Rocky running up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, as part of his training regimen - are taken from Joe's real-life exploits, for which he received no credit.

"''But he never paid me for none of my past. I only got paid for a walk-on part. Rocky is a sad story for me''."

Joe had his Olympic gold medal cut up into eleven separate pieces to divide it between his eleven children. In March, 2007, a Joe Frazier action figure was released as part of a range of toys based on the Rocky film franchise, developed by the American toy manufacturer, Jakks Pacific.

When Joe was young, his family was poor so he couldn't afford a punchbag. He had to improvise, so he got the outline of a punchbag made of leather, and made it so it could be suspended from the ceiling. He put bricks in the middle of the improvised punchbag and thick foam on the outside, and he honed his boxing skills on this.

Professional boxing record

|- |align="center" colspan=8|32 Wins (27 knockouts, 5 decisions), 4 Losses (3 knockouts, 1 decision), 1 Draw |- | align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Result | align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Record | align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Opponent | align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Type | align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Rounds | align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Date | align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Location | align="center" style="border-style: none none solid solid; background: #e3e3e3"|Notes |-align=center |style="background:#abcdef;"|Draw |32-4-1 |align=left| Floyd Cummings |MD |10 |03/12/1981 |align=left| International Amphitheatre, Chicago, Illinois, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Loss |32–4 |align=left| George Foreman |TKO |5 |15/06/1976 |align=left| Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Loss |32–3 |align=left| Muhammad Ali |RTD |14 |01/10/1975 |align=left| Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines |align=left| |-align=center |Win |32–2 |align=left| Jimmy Ellis |TKO |9 |02/03/1975 |align=left| St.Kilda Junction Oval, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |align=left| |-align=center |Win |31–2 |align=left| Jerry Quarry |TKO |5 |17/06/1974 |align=left| Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Loss |30–2 |align=left| Muhammad Ali |UD |12 |28/01/1974 |align=left| Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |30–1 |align=left| Joe Bugner |PTS |12 |02/07/1973 |align=left| Earls Court Arena, Kensington, London, England, United Kingdom |align=left| |-align=center |Loss |29–1 |align=left| George Foreman |TKO |2 |22/01/1973 |align=left| Earls Court Arena, Kensington, Kingston, Jamaica |align=left| |-align=center |Win |29–0 |align=left| Ron Stander |TKO |5 |25/05/1972 |align=left| Civic Auditorium, Omaha, Nebraska, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |28–0 |align=left| Terry Daniels |TKO |4 |15/01/1972 |align=left| Rivergate Auditorium, New Orleans, Louisiana, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |27–0 |align=left| Muhammad Ali |UD |15 |08/03/1971 |align=left| Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |26–0 |align=left| Bob Foster |KO |2 |18/11/1970 |align=left| Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |25–0 |align=left| Jimmy Ellis |TKO |5 |16/02/1970 |align=left| Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |24–0 |align=left| Jerry Quarry |TKO |7 |23/06/1969 |align=left| Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |23–0 |align=left| Dave Zyglewicz |KO |1 |22/04/1969 |align=left| Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |22–0 |align=left| Oscar Bonavena |UD |15 |10/12/1968 |align=left| Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |21–0 |align=left| Manuel Ramos |TKO |2 |24/06/1968 |align=left| Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |20–0 |align=left| Buster Mathis |TKO |11 |04/03/1968 |align=left| Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |19–0 |align=left| Marion Connor |TKO |3 |18/12/1967 |align=left| Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |18–0 |align=left| Tony Doyle |TKO |2 |17/10/1967 |align=left| Spectrum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |17–0 |align=left| George Chuvalo |TKO |4 |19/07/1967 |align=left| Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |16–0 |align=left| George Johnson |UD |10 |04/05/1967 |align=left| Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |15–0 |align=left| Jefferson Davis |TKO |5 |11/04/1967 |align=left| Auditorium, Miami Beach, Florida, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |14–0 |align=left| Doug Jones |KO |6 |21/02/1967 |align=left| Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |13–0 |align=left| Eddie Machen |TKO |10 |21/11/1966 |align=left| Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |12–0 |align=left| Oscar Bonavena |MD |10 |21/09/1966 |align=left| Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |11–0 |align=left| Billy Daniels |RTD |6 |25/07/1966 |align=left| Convention Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |10–0 |align=left| Memphis Al Jones |KO |1 |26/05/1966 |align=left| Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |9–0 |align=left| Chuck Leslie |KO |3 |19/05/1966 |align=left| Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |8–0 |align=left| Don Smith |KO |3 |28/04/1966 |align=left| Convention Hall, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |7–0 |align=left| Charley Polite |TKO |2 |04/04/1966 |align=left| Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |6–0 |align=left| Dick Wipperman |TKO |5 |04/03/1966 |align=left| Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |5–0 |align=left| Mel Turnbow |KO |1 |04/03/1966 |align=left| Convention Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |4–0 |align=left| Abe Davis |KO |1 |04/03/1966 |align=left| Hotel Philadelphia Auditorium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |3–0 |align=left| Ray Staples |TKO |2 |28/09/1965 |align=left| Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |2–0 |align=left| Mike Bruce |TKO |3 |20/09/1965 |align=left| Convention Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center |Win |1–0 |align=left| Woody Goss |TKO |1 |16/08/1965 |align=left| Convention Hall, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |align=left| |-align=center

See also

Frazier's portrayal in the film ''Ali'' (2001); directed by Michael Mann.

List of heavyweight boxing champions

List of WBA world champions

List of WBC world champions

Notable boxing families

References

External links

Official Website

Official Collection Website

Official Facebook Fan Page

Dispute hits sour note with residents, Bucks County Courier Times

Fire Still Burns Inside Smokin’ Joe Frazier, New York Times

{{s-ttl | title= NYSAC Heavyweight Champion | years =March 4, 1968 - February 16, 1970}} {{s-ttl | title= WBC Heavyweight Champion Undisputed Heavyweight Champion | years =February 16, 1970 - January 22, 1973}} {{s-ttl | title=WBA Heavyweight Champion | years =February 16, 1970 - January 22, 1973}}

Category:1944 births Category:Living people Category:Heavyweight boxers Category:African American boxers Category:Boxers at the 1964 Summer Olympics Category:Boxers from Pennsylvania Category:American Christians Category:International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees Category:Olympic boxers of the United States Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States Category:Sportspeople from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Category:People from Beaufort, South Carolina Category:World Boxing Association Champions Category:World Boxing Council Champions Category:World heavyweight boxing champions Category:Olympic medalists in boxing

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name	Muhammad Ali
nationality	American
nickname	The GreatestThe ChampThe Louisville Lip
height
reach
weight	Heavyweight
birth date	January 17, 1942
birth place	Louisville, Kentucky, US
style	Orthodox
total	61
wins	56
ko	37
losses	5
draws	0
no contests	0
Medaltemplates	}}

Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.; January 17, 1942) is an American former boxer and three-time World Heavyweight Champion. As an amateur, he won a gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. After turning professional, he went on to become the first and only boxer to win the lineal heavyweight championship three times.

Originally known as Cassius Clay, Ali changed his name after joining the Nation of Islam in 1964, subsequently converting to Sunni Islam in 1975, and more recently to Sufism. In 1967, Ali refused to be conscripted into the U.S. military, based on his religious beliefs and opposition to the Vietnam War. He was arrested and found guilty on draft evasion charges, stripped of his boxing title, and his boxing license was suspended. He was not imprisoned, but did not fight again for nearly four years while his appeal worked its way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, where it was successful.

Nicknamed "The Greatest", Ali was involved in several historic boxing matches. Notable among these are three with rival Joe Frazier and one with George Foreman, whom he beat by knockout to win the world heavyweight title for the second time. He suffered only five losses (four decisions and one TKO by retirement from the bout) with no draws in his career, while amassing 56 wins (37 knockouts and 19 decisions). Ali was well known for his unorthodox fighting style, which he described as "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee", and employing techniques such as the rope-a-dope. He was also known for his pre-match hype, where he would "trash talk" opponents on television and in person some time before the match, often with rhymes. These personality quips and idioms, along with an unorthodox fighting technique, made him a cultural icon. In later life, Ali developed Parkinson's syndrome. In 1999, Ali was crowned "Sportsman of the Century" by ''Sports Illustrated'' and "Sports Personality of the Century" by the BBC.

Biography

Amateur career and Olympic gold

Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr., was born on January 17, 1942, in Louisville, Kentucky. The younger of two boys, he was named after his father, Cassius Marcellus Clay, Sr., who was named for the 19th century abolitionist and politician of the same name. His father painted billboards and signs, and his mother, Odessa Grady Clay, was a household domestic. Although Cassius Sr. was a Methodist, he allowed Odessa to bring up both Cassius and his elder brother Rudolph "Rudy" Clay (later renamed Rahman Ali) as Baptists. He is a descendant of pre-Civil War era American slaves in the American South, and is predominantly of African-American descent, with some Irish and English ancestry.

Clay was first directed toward boxing by the white Louisville police officer and boxing coach Joe E. Martin, who encountered the 12-year-old fuming over the theft of his bicycle. However, without Martin's knowledge, Clay began training with Fred Stoner, an African-American trainer working at the local community center. In this way, Clay could make $4 a week on ''Tomorrow's Champions,'' a local, weekly TV show that Martin hosted, while benefiting from the coaching of the more experienced Stoner. For the last four years of Clay's amateur career he was trained by legendary boxing cutman Chuck Bodak.

Clay won six Kentucky Golden Gloves titles, two national Golden Gloves titles, an Amateur Athletic Union National Title, and the Light Heavyweight gold medal in the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. Clay's amateur record was 100 wins with five losses.

Ali states (in his 1975 autobiography) that he threw his Olympic gold medal into the Ohio River after being refused service at a 'whites-only' restaurant, and fighting with a white gang. Whether this is true is still debated, although he was given a replacement medal at a basketball intermission during the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, where he lit the torch to start the games.

Early professional career

After his Olympic triumph, Clay returned to Louisville to begin his professional career. There, on October 29, 1960, he won his first professional fight, a six-round decision over Tunney Hunsaker, who was the police chief of Fayetteville, West Virginia.

Standing tall, at 6-ft, 3-in (1.91 m), Clay had a highly unorthodox style for a heavyweight boxer. Rather than the normal style of carrying the hands high to defend the face, he instead relied on foot speed and quickness to avoid punches, and carried his hands low.

From 1960 to 1963, the young fighter amassed a record of 19–0, with 15 knockouts. He defeated boxers such as Tony Esperti, Jim Robinson, Donnie Fleeman, Alonzo Johnson, George Logan, Willi Besmanoff, Lamar Clark (who had won his previous 40 bouts by knockout), Doug Jones and Henry Cooper.

Clay built a reputation by correctly predicting the round in which he would "finish" several opponents, and by boasting before his triumphs. Clay admitted he adopted the latter practice from "Gorgeous" George Wagner, a popular professional wrestling champion in the Los Angeles area who drew thousands of fans. Often referred to as "the man you loved to hate," George could incite the crowd with a few heated remarks, and Ali followed suit.

Among Clay's victims were Sonny Banks (who knocked him down during the bout), Alejandro Lavorante, and the aged Archie Moore (a boxing legend who had fought over 200 previous fights, and who had been Clay's trainer prior to Angelo Dundee). Clay had considered continuing using Moore as a trainer following the bout, but Moore had insisted that the cocky "Louisville Lip" perform training camp chores such as sweeping and dishwashing. He considered having his idol, Sugar Ray Robinson, as a manager, but instead hired Dundee.

Clay first met Dundee when the latter was in Louisville with light heavyweight champ Willie Pastrano. The teenaged Golden Gloves winner traveled downtown to the fighter's hotel, called Dundee from the house phone, and was asked up to their room. He took advantage of the opportunity to query Dundee (who had worked with champions Sugar Ramos and Carmen Basilio) about what his fighters ate, how long they slept, how much roadwork (jogging) they did, and how long they sparred.

Following his bout with Moore, Clay won a disputed 10-round decision over Doug Jones in a matchup that was named "Fight of the Year" for 1963. Clay's next fight was against Henry Cooper, who knocked Clay down with a left hook near the end of the fourth round. The fight was stopped in the fifth due to deep cuts over Cooper's eyes.

Despite these close calls, Clay became the top contender for Sonny Liston's title. However, although he had an impressive record, he was not widely expected to defeat the champ. The fight was scheduled for February 25, 1964 in Miami, Florida, but was nearly canceled when the promoter, Bill Faversham, heard that Clay had been seen around Miami and in other cities with the controversial Malcolm X, a member of The Nation of Islam. Because of this, news of this association was perceived as a potential gate-killer to a bout which, given Liston's overwhelming status as the favorite to win (7–1 odds), had Clay's colorful persona and nonstop braggadocio as its sole appeal.

Faversham confronted Clay about his association with Malcolm X (who, at the time, was actually under suspension by the Nation as a result of controversial comments made in the wake of President Kennedy's assassination). While stopping short of admitting he was a member of the Nation, Clay protested the suggested cancellation of the fight. As a compromise, Faversham asked the fighter to delay his announcement about his conversion to Islam until after the fight. The incident is described in the 1975 book ''The Greatest: My Own Story'' by Ali (with Richard Durham).

During the weigh-in on the day before the bout, the ever-boastful Clay, who frequently taunted Liston during the buildup by dubbing him "the big ugly bear" (among other things), declared that he would "float like a butterfly and sting like a bee," and, summarizing his strategy for avoiding Liston's assaults, said, "Your hands can't hit what your eyes can't see."

First title fight and aftermath

At the pre-fight weigh-in, Clay's pulse rate was around 120, more than double his norm of 54. Liston, among others, misread this as nervousness. In the opening rounds, Clay's speed kept him away from Liston's powerful head and body shots, as he used his height advantage to beat Liston to the punch with his own lightning-quick jab.

By the third round, Clay was ahead on points and had opened a cut under Liston's eye. Liston regained some ground in the fourth, as Clay was blinded by a substance in his eyes. It is unconfirmed whether this was something used to close Liston's cuts, or deliberately applied to Liston's gloves; however, Bert Sugar has claimed that "in two of his previous fights, Liston's opponents had complained about their eyes 'burning'", suggesting the possibility that the Liston corner deliberately attempted to cheat.

Liston began the fourth round looking to put away the challenger. As Clay struggled to recover his vision, he sought to escape Liston's offensive. He was able to keep out of range until his sweat and tears rinsed the substance from his eyes, responding with a flurry of combinations near the end of the fifth round. By the sixth, he was looking for a finish and dominated Liston. Then, Liston shocked the boxing world when he failed to answer the bell for the seventh round, stating he had a shoulder injury. At the end of the fight, Clay boasted to the press that doubted him before the match, proclaiming, "I shook up the world!"

When Clay beat Liston, he was the youngest boxer (age 22) ever to take the title from a reigning heavyweight champion, a mark that stood until Mike Tyson won the title from Trevor Berbick on 22 November 1986. At the time, Floyd Patterson (dethroned by Liston) had been the youngest heavyweight champ ever (age 21), but he won the title during an elimination tournament following Rocky Marciano's retirement by defeating Archie Moore, the light-heavyweight champion at the time.

In the rematch with Liston, which was held in May 1965 in Lewiston, Maine, Ali (who had by then publicly converted to Islam and changed his name) won by knockout in the first round as a result of what came to be called the "phantom punch." Many believe that Liston, possibly as a result of threats from Nation of Islam extremists, or in an attempt to "throw" the fight to pay off debts, waited to be counted out (see Muhammad Ali versus Sonny Liston). Others, however, discount both scenarios and insist that it was a quick, chopping Ali punch to the side of the head that legitimately felled Liston.

Early title defenses

On November 22, 1965, Ali fought Floyd Patterson in his second title defense. Patterson lost by technical knockout at the end of the 12th round. As would later occur with Ernie Terrell, many sportswriters accused Ali of "carrying" Patterson so that he could physically punish him without knocking him out. Ali countered that Patterson, who said his punching prowess was limited when he strained his sacroiliac, was not as easy to down as may have appeared.

Ali was scheduled to fight WBA champion Ernie Terrell (the WBA stripped Ali of his title after his agreement to fight a rematch with Liston) on March 29, 1966, but Terrell backed out. Ali won a 15-round decision against substitute opponent George Chuvalo. He then went to England and defeated Henry Cooper by stoppage on cuts May 21, and knocked out Brian London in the third round in August. Ali's next defense was against German southpaw Karl Mildenberger, the first German to fight for the title since Max Schmeling. In one of the tougher fights of his life, Ali stopped his opponent in round 12.

Ali returned to the United States in November 1966 to fight Cleveland "Big Cat" Williams in the Houston Astrodome. According to the Sports Illustrated account, the bout drew an indoor world record 35,460 fight fans. A year and a half before the fight, Williams had been shot in the stomach at point-blank range by a Texas policeman. As a result, Williams went into the fight missing one kidney and of his small intestine, and with a shriveled left leg from nerve damage from the bullet. Ali beat Williams in three rounds.

On February 6, 1967, Ali returned to a Houston boxing ring to fight Terrell in what is regarded as one of the uglier fights in boxing. Terrell had angered Ali by calling him Clay, and the champion vowed to punish him for this insult. During the fight, Ali kept shouting at his opponent, "What's my name, Uncle Tom ... What's my name?" Terrell suffered 15 rounds of brutal punishment, losing 13 rounds on two judges' scorecards, but Ali did not knock him out. Analysts, including several who spoke to ESPN on the sports channel's "Ali Rap" special, speculated that the fight continued only because Ali wanted to thoroughly punish and humiliate Terrell. After the fight, Tex Maule wrote, "It was a wonderful demonstration of boxing skill and a barbarous display of cruelty." When asked about this during a replay of the fight on ABC's popular "Wide World of Sports" by host Howard Cosell, Ali said he was not unduly cruel to Terrell- that boxers are paid to punch all their opponents into submission or defeat. He pointed out that if he had not hit and hurt Terrell, Terrell would have hit and hurt him, which is standard practice. Cosell's repeated reference to the topic surprised Ali. Following his final defense against Zora Folley in March 1967 Ali would be stripped of his title the following month for refusing to be drafted into the Army and had his professional boxing license suspended.

Conversion to the Nation of Islam

After winning the championship from Liston in 1964, Clay revealed that he was a member of the Nation of Islam (often called the Black Muslims at the time) and the Nation gave Clay the name Cassius X, discarding his surname as a symbol of his ancestors' enslavement, as had been done by other Nation members. On Friday, March 6, 1964, Malcolm X took Clay on a guided tour of the UN building (for a second time). Malcolm X announced that Clay would be granted his "X." That same night, Elijah Muhammad recorded a statement over the phone to be played over the radio that Clay would be renamed Muhammad (one who is worthy of praise) Ali (fourth rightly guided caliph). Only a few journalists (most notably Howard Cosell) accepted it at that time. Venerable boxing announcer Don Dunphy addressed the champion by his adopted name, as did British reporters. The adoption of this name symbolized his new identity as a member of the Nation of Islam.

Many sportswriters of the early 1960s reported that it was Ali's brother, Rudy Clay, who converted to Islam first (estimating the date as 1961). Others wrote that Clay had been seen at Muslim rallies a few years before he fought Liston. Ali's own version is that he would sneak into Nation of Islam meetings through the back door roughly three years before he fought Sonny Liston.

Aligning himself with the Nation of Islam made him a lightning rod for controversy, turning the outspoken but popular champion into one of that era's most recognizable and controversial figures. Appearing at rallies with Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad and declaring his allegiance to him at a time when mainstream America viewed them with suspicion—if not outright hostility—made Ali a target of outrage, as well as suspicion. Ali seemed at times to provoke such reactions, with viewpoints that wavered from support for civil rights to outright support of separatism. For example, Ali once stated, in relation to integration: "We who follow the teachings of Elijah Muhammad don't want to be forced to integrate. Integration is wrong. We don't want to live with the white man; that's all." And in relation to inter-racial marriage: "No intelligent black man or black woman in his or her right black mind wants white boys and white girls coming to their homes to marry their black sons and daughters." Indeed, Ali's religious beliefs at the time included the notion that the white man was "the devil" and that white people were not "righteous." Ali claimed that white people hated black people.

Ali converted from the Nation of Islam sect to mainstream Sunni Islam in 1975. In a 2004 autobiography, written with daughter Hana Yasmeen Ali, Muhammad Ali attributes his conversion to the shift toward Sunni Islam made by Warith Deen Muhammad after he gained control of the Nation of Islam upon the death of Elijah Muhammad in 1975. Later in 2005 he embraced spiritual practices of Sufism.

Vietnam War

In 1964, Ali failed the U.S. Armed Forces qualifying test because his writing and spelling skills were sub-par. However, in early 1966, the tests were revised and Ali was reclassified as 1A. This classification meant he was now eligible for the draft and induction into the U.S. Army during a time when the United States was involved in the Vietnam War. When notified of this status, he declared that he would refuse to serve in the United States Army and publicly considered himself a conscientious objector. Ali stated that "War is against the teachings of the Holy Qur'an. I'm not trying to dodge the draft. We are not supposed to take part in no wars unless declared by Allah or The Messenger. We don't take part in Christian wars or wars of any unbelievers." Ali famously said in 1966: "I ain't got no quarrel with them Viet Cong ... They never called me nigger." Rare for a heavyweight boxing champion in those days, Ali spoke at Howard University, where he gave his popular "Black Is Best" speech to 4,000 cheering students and community intellectuals after he was invited to speak at Howard by a Howard sociology professor, Nathan Hare, on behalf of the Black Power Committee, a student protest group.

Appearing shortly thereafter for his scheduled induction into the U.S. Armed Forces on April 28, 1967 in Houston, he refused three times to step forward at the call of his name. An officer warned him he was committing a felony punishable by five years in prison and a fine of $10,000. Once more, Ali refused to budge when his name was called. As a result, he was arrested and on the same day the New York State Athletic Commission suspended his boxing license and stripped him of his title. Other boxing commissions followed suit.

At the trial on June 20, 1967, after only 21 minutes of deliberation, the jury found Ali guilty. After a Court of Appeals upheld the conviction, the case went to the U.S. Supreme Court. During this time, the public began turning against the war and support for Ali began to grow. Ali supported himself by speaking at colleges and universities across the country, where opposition to the war was especially strong. On June 28, 1971, the Supreme Court reversed his conviction for refusing induction by unanimous decision in ''Clay v. United States''. The decision was not based on, nor did it address, the merits of Clay's/Ali's claims ''per se''; rather, the Government's failure to specify ''which'' claims were rejected and which were sustained, constituted the grounds upon which the Court reversed the conviction.

Quotes about Vietnam war

}}

The Fight of the Century

In 1970, while his case was still on appeal, Ali was allowed to fight again. On August 12, 1970, with the help of Leroy R. Johnson, a Georgia State Senator, he was granted a license to box by the City of Atlanta Athletic Commission. In Atlanta on October 26, 1970, he stopped Jerry Quarry on a cut after three rounds. Shortly after the Quarry fight, the New York State Supreme Court ruled that Ali had been unjustly denied a boxing license. Once again able to fight in New York, he fought Oscar Bonavena at Madison Square Garden in December 1970. After a tough 14 rounds, Ali stopped Bonavena in the 15th, paving the way for a title fight against Joe Frazier, who was himself undefeated.

Ali and Frazier met in the ring on March 8, 1971, at Madison Square Garden. The fight, known as "The Fight of the Century," was one of the most eagerly anticipated bouts of all time and remains one of the most famous. It featured two skilled, undefeated fighters, both of whom had legitimate claims to the heavyweight crown. Frank Sinatra—unable to acquire a ringside seat—took photos of the match for ''Life'' magazine. Legendary boxing announcer Don Dunphy and actor and boxing aficionado Burt Lancaster called the action for the broadcast, which reached millions of people. The fight lived up to the hype, and Frazier punctuated his victory by flooring Ali with a hard, leaping left hook in the 15th and final round. Frazier retained the title on a unanimous decision, dealing Ali his first professional loss.

In 1972 Muhammad Ali held the "Muhammad Ali Boxing Show," a series of exhibition matches between himself and other wrestlers. In San Antonio, Texas, during the exhibition series, on October 24, 1972, Ali lost against boxer Elmo Henderson.

In 1973, Ali fought Ken Norton, who had broken Ali's jaw and won by split decision over 12 rounds in their first bout in 1972. Ali won the rematch, by split decision, on September 10, 1973, which set up Ali-Frazier II, a nontitle rematch with Joe Frazier, who had already lost his title to George Foreman. The bout was held on January 28, 1974, with Ali winning a unanimous 12-round decision.

The Rumble in the Jungle

In one of the biggest upsets in boxing history, Ali regained his title on October 30, 1974 by defeating champion George Foreman in their bout in Kinshasa, Zaire. Hyped as "The Rumble in the Jungle", the fight was promoted by Don King.

Almost no one, not even Ali's long-time supporter Howard Cosell, gave the former champion a chance of winning. Analysts pointed out that Joe Frazier and Ken Norton had given Ali four tough battles in the ring and won two of them, while Foreman had knocked out both of them in the second round. As a matter of fact, so total was the domination that, in their bout, Foreman had knocked down Frazier an incredible six times in only four minutes and 25 seconds.

During the bout, Ali employed an unexpected strategy. Leading up to the fight, he had declared he was going to "dance" and use his speed to keep away from Foreman and outbox him. However, in the first round, Ali headed straight for the champion and began scoring with a right hand lead, clearly surprising Foreman. Ali caught Foreman nine times in the first round with this technique but failed to knock him out. He then decided to take advantage of the young champion's weakness: staying power. Foreman had won 37 of his 40 bouts by knockout, mostly within three rounds. Eight of his previous bouts did not go past the second round. Ali saw an opportunity to outlast Foreman, and capitalized on it.

In the second round, the challenger retreated to the ropes—inviting Foreman to hit him, while counterpunching and verbally taunting the younger man. Ali's plan was to enrage Foreman and absorb his best blows to exhaust him mentally and physically. While Foreman threw wide shots to Ali's body, Ali countered with stinging straight punches to Foreman's head. Foreman threw hundreds of punches in seven rounds, but with decreasing technique and potency. Ali's tactic of leaning on the ropes, covering up, and absorbing ineffective body shots was later termed "The Rope-A-Dope".

By the end of the seventh round, Foreman was exhausted. In the eighth round, Ali dropped Foreman with a combination at center ring and Foreman failed to make the count. Against the odds, Ali had regained the title.

The "Rumble in the Jungle" was the subject of a 1996 Academy Award winning documentary film, ''When We Were Kings''. The fight and the events leading up to it are extensively depicted in both John Herzfeld's 1997 docudrama ''Don King: Only in America'' and Michael Mann's 2001 docudrama, ''Ali''.

The Thrilla in Manila

In March 1975, Ali faced Chuck Wepner in a bout that inspired the original ''Rocky''. While it was largely thought that Ali would dominate, Wepner surprised everyone by not only knocking Ali down in the ninth round, but nearly going the distance. Ali eventually stopped Wepner in the fading minutes of the 15th round. Following a title defense with Ron Lyle, in July Ali faced Joe Bugner, winning a 15 round decision.

On October 1, 1975, Ali fought Joe Frazier for the third time. Taking place in the Philippines, the bout was promoted as the Thrilla in Manila by Don King, who had ascended to prominence following the Ali-Foreman fight. The anticipation was enormous for this final clash between two great heavyweights. Ali believed Frazier was "over the hill" by that point. Ali's frequent insults, slurs and demeaning poems increased the anticipation and excitement for the fight, but enraged a determined Frazier. Regarding the fight, Ali famously remarked, "It will be a killa... and a chilla... and a thrilla... when I get the gorilla in Manila."

The fight lasted 14 grueling rounds in temperatures approaching . Ali won many of the early rounds, but Frazier staged a comeback in the middle rounds, while Ali lay on the ropes. By the late rounds, however, Ali had reasserted control and the fight was stopped when Frazier was unable to answer the bell for the 15th and final round (his eyes were swollen closed). Frazier's trainer, Eddie Futch, refused to allow Frazier to continue.

Subsequent bouts and retirement

In February 1976, Ali easily beat Jean-Pierre Coopman. In April 1976 he defeated Jimmy Young and then Richard Dunn the following month, which would turn out to be Ali's last knockout victory. Following that fight, he staged an exhibition match with professional wrestler and martial artist Antonio Inoki. Although widely perceived as a publicity stunt, the match against Inoki would have a long-term detrimental affect on Ali's mobility. Inoki spent much of the fight on the ground trying to damage Ali’s legs, while Ali spent most of the fight dodging the kicks or staying on the ropes. At the end of 15 rounds, the bout was called a draw. Ali's legs, however, were bleeding, leading to an infection. He suffered two blood clots in his legs as well.

In September 1976, at Yankee Stadium, Ali faced Ken Norton in their third fight, with Ali winning a close but unanimous 15-round decision. 1977 saw Ali defend his title against Alfredo Evangelista and Earnie Shavers. Fight doctor Ferdie Pacheco left Ali's camp following the Shavers fight after being rebuffed for advising Ali to retire.

In February 1978, Ali lost the heavweight title to 1976 Olympics Champion Leon Spinks. On September 15, 1978, Ali fought a rematch in the New Orleans Louisiana Superdome against Spinks for the WBA version of the Heavyweight title, winning it for a record third time. Ali retired following this victory on June 27, 1979, but returned in 1980 to face current champion Larry Holmes in an attempt to win a heavyweight title an unprecedented four times. Angelo Dundee refused to let his man come out for the 11th round, in what became Ali's only loss by anything other than a decision. Ali's final fight, a loss by unanimous decision after 10 rounds, was to up-and-coming challenger Trevor Berbick in 1981.

Ali's legacy

Muhammad Ali defeated every top heavyweight in his era, which has been called the golden age of heavyweight boxing. Ali was named "Fighter of the Year" by ''Ring Magazine'' more times than any other fighter, and was involved in more ''Ring Magazine'' "Fight of the Year" bouts than any other fighter. He is an inductee into the International Boxing Hall of Fame and holds wins over seven other Hall of Fame inductees. He is one of only three boxers to be named "Sportsman of the Year" by ''Sports Illustrated''.

In 1978, three years before Ali's permanent retirement, the Board of Aldermen in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky voted 6–5 to rename Walnut Street to Muhammad Ali Boulevard. This was controversial at the time, as within a week 12 of the 70 street signs were stolen. Earlier that year, a committee of the Jefferson County Public Schools considered renaming Central High School in his honor, but the motion failed to pass. At any rate, in time, Muhammad Ali Boulevard—and Ali himself—came to be well accepted in his hometown.

In 1993, the Associated Press reported that Ali was tied with Babe Ruth as the most recognized athlete, out of over 800 dead or alive athletes, in America. The study found that over 97% of Americans, over 12-years of age, identified both Ali and Ruth.

He was the recipient of the 1997 Arthur Ashe Courage Award.

In retirement

Ali was diagnosed with Parkinson's syndrome in 1984, a disease to which those subject to severe head trauma, such as boxers, are many times more susceptible than average. Despite the disability, he remains a beloved and active public figure. In 1985, he served as a guest referee at the inaugural WrestleMania event. In 1987 he was selected by the California Bicentennial Foundation for the U.S. Constitution to personify the vitality of the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights in various high profile activities. Ali rode on a float at the 1988 Tournament of Roses Parade, launching the U.S. Constitution's 200th birthday commemoration. He published an oral history, ''Muhammad Ali: His Life and Times'' by Thomas Hauser, in 1991. That same year Ali traveled to Iraq during the Gulf War and met with Saddam Hussein in an attempt to negotiate the release of American hostages. Ali received a Spirit of America Award calling him the most recognized American in the world. In 1996, he had the honor of lighting the flame at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia.

He appeared at the 1998 AFL (Australian Football League) Grand Final, where Anthony Pratt invited him to watch the game. He greets runners at the start line of the Los Angeles Marathon every year.

In 1999, the ''BBC'' produced a special version of its annual BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award ceremony, and Ali was voted their Sports Personality of the Century, receiving more votes than the other four contenders combined. His daughter Laila Ali became a boxer in 1999, despite her father's earlier comments against female boxing in 1978: "Women are not made to be hit in the breast, and face like that... the body's not made to be punched right here [patting his chest]. Get ''hit'' in the breast... ''hard''... and all that."

On September 13, 1999, Ali was named "Kentucky Athlete of the Century" by the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame in ceremonies at the Galt House East.

In 2001, a biographical film, entitled ''Ali'', was made, directed by Michael Mann, with Will Smith starring as Ali. The film received mixed reviews, with the positives generally attributed to the acting, as Smith and supporting actor Jon Voight earned Academy Award nominations. Prior to making the Ali movie, Will Smith had continually rejected the role of Ali until Muhammad Ali personally requested that he accept the role. According to Smith, the first thing Ali said about the subject to him was: "Man, you're almost pretty enough to play me."

On November 17, 2002, Muhammad Ali went to Afghanistan as "U.N. Messenger of Peace". He was in Kabul for a three-day goodwill mission as a special guest of the UN.

On January 8, 2005, Muhammad Ali was presented with the Presidential Citizens Medal by President George W. Bush.

He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom at a White House ceremony on November 9, 2005, and the "Otto Hahn Peace Medal in Gold" of the UN Association of Germany (DGVN) in Berlin for his work with the US civil rights movement and the United Nations (December 17, 2005).

On November 19, 2005 (Ali's 19th wedding anniversary), the $60 million non-profit Muhammad Ali Center opened in downtown Louisville. In addition to displaying his boxing memorabilia, the center focuses on core themes of peace, social responsibility, respect, and personal growth.

According to the Ali Center website, "Since he retired from boxing, Ali has devoted himself to humanitarian endeavors around the globe. He is a devout Muslim, and travels the world over, lending his name and presence to hunger and poverty relief, supporting education efforts of all kinds, promoting adoption and encouraging people to respect and better understand one another. It is estimated that he has helped to provide more than 22 million meals to feed the hungry. Ali travels, on average, more than 200 days per year."

At the FedEx Orange Bowl on January 2, 2007, Ali was an honorary captain for the Louisville Cardinals wearing their white jersey, number 19. Ali was accompanied by golf legend Arnold Palmer, who was the honorary captain for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, and Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade.

A youth club in Ali's hometown and a species of rose (''Rosa ali'') have been named after him. On June 5, 2007, he received an honorary doctorate of humanities at Princeton University's 260th graduation ceremony.

Ali lives in Scottsdale, Arizona with his fourth wife, Yolanda "Lonnie" Ali. They own a house in Berrien Springs, Michigan, which is for sale. On January 9, 2007, they purchased a house in eastern Jefferson County, Kentucky for $1,875,000. Lonnie converted to Islam from Catholicism in her late 20s.

On the August 17, 2009, it was voted unanimously by the town council of Ennis, Co Clare, Ireland to make Ali the first Freeman of Ennis. Ennis was the birthplace of Ali's great grandfather before he emigrated to the U.S. in the 1860s, before eventually settling in Kentucky. On September 1, 2009, Ali visited the town of Ennis and at a civic reception he received the honour of the freedom of the town.

Ranking in heavyweight history

Ali is generally considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights of all time by boxing commentators and historians. ''Ring Magazine'', a prominent boxing magazine, named him number 1 in a 1998 ranking of greatest heavyweights from all eras.

Ali was named the second greatest fighter in boxing history by ''ESPN.com'' behind only welterweight and middleweight great Sugar Ray Robinson. In December 2007, ''ESPN'' listed Ali second in its choice of the greatest heavyweights of all time, behind Joe Louis.

Personal life

Muhammad Ali has been married four times and has seven daughters and two sons. Ali met his first wife, cocktail waitress Sonji Roi, approximately one month before they married on August 14, 1964. Roi's objections to certain Muslim customs in regard to dress for women contributed to the breakup of their marriage. They divorced on January 10, 1966.

On August 17, 1967, Ali (aged 25) married 17-year old Belinda Boyd. After the wedding, she converted to Islam and changed her name to Khalilah Ali, though she was still called Belinda by old friends and family. They had four children: Maryum (b. 1968), Jamillah and Rasheda (b. 1970), and Muhammad Ali Jr. (b. 1972).

In 1975, Ali began an affair with Veronica Porsche, an actress and model. By the summer of 1977, Ali's second marriage was over and he had married Veronica. At the time of their marriage, they had a baby girl, Hana, and Veronica was pregnant with their second child. Their second daughter, Laila, was born in December 1977. By 1986, Ali and Veronica were divorced.

On November 19, 1986, Ali married Yolanda Ali. They had been friends since 1964 in Louisville. Asaad Amin, who they adopted when Amin was five.

Ali has two other daughters, Miya and Khaliah, from extramarital relationships.

Ali in the media and popular culture

As a world champion boxer and social activist, Ali has been the subject of numerous books, films and other creative works. In 1963, he released an album of spoken word on Columbia Records titled ''I am the Greatest!'' He has appeared on the cover of ''Sports Illustrated'' on 37 different occasions, second only to Michael Jordan. He appeared in the documentary film ''Black Rodeo'' (1972) riding both a horse and a bull. His autobiography ''The Greatest: My Own Story'', written with Richard Durham, was published in 1975. In 1977 the book was adapted into a film called ''The Greatest'', in which Ali played himself and Ernest Borgnine played Angelo Dundee. ''When We Were Kings'', a 1996 documentary about the Rumble in the Jungle, won an Academy Award, and the 2001 biopic ''Ali'' garnered an Oscar nomination for Will Smith's portrayal of the lead role.

For contributions to the entertainment industry, Muhammed Ali was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard.

Professional boxing record

|- | style="text-align:center;" colspan="8"|56 Wins (37 knockouts, 19 decisions), 5 Losses (4 decisions, 1 TKO), 0 Draws |- style="text-align:center; background:#e3e3e3; background:#e3e3e3;" | style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Res. | style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Opponent | style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Type | style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Round, Time | style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Date | style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Age | style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Location | style="border-style:none none solid solid; "|Notes |- style="text-align:center;" | Loss | Trevor Berbick | Decision | 10 | | | Align=left| Nassau, Bahamas | |- style="text-align:center;" | Loss | Larry Holmes | TKO | 10 | | | Align=left| Las Vegas, NV | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Leon Spinks | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| New Orleans, LA | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Loss | Leon Spinks | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| Las Vegas, NV | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Earnie Shavers | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| New York City, NY | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Alfredo Evangelista | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| Landover, MD | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Ken Norton | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| The Bronx, New York | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Richard Dunn | TKO | 5 | | | Align=left| Munich, West Germany | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Jimmy Young | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| Landover, MD | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Jean-Pierre Coopman | KO | 5 | | | Align=left| San Juan, Puerto Rico | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Joe Frazier | TKO | 14 , 0:59 | | | Align=left| Quezon City, Philippines | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Joe Bugner | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Ron Lyle | TKO | 11 | | | Align=left| Las Vegas, NV | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Chuck Wepner | TKO | 15 , 2:41 | | | Align=left| Richfield, OH | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | George Foreman | KO | 8 , 2:58 | | | Align=left| Kinshasa, Zaire | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Joe Frazier | Decision | 12 | | | Align=left| New York City, NY | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Rudi Lubbers | Decision | 12 | | | Align=left| Jakarta, Indonesia | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Ken Norton | Decision | 12 | | | Align=left| Inglewood, CA | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Loss | Ken Norton | Decision | 12 | | | Align=left| San Diego, CA | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Joe Bugner | Decision | 12 | | | Align=left| Las Vegas, NV | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Bob Foster | KO | 7 | | | Align=left| Stateline, NV | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Floyd Patterson | TKO | 7 | | | Align=left| New York City, NY | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Alvin Lewis | TKO | 11 , 1:15 | | | Align=left| Dublin, Ireland | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Jerry Quarry | TKO | 7 , 0:19 | | | Align=left| Las Vegas, NV | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | George Chuvalo | Decision | 12 | | | Align=left| Vancouver, Canada | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Mac Foster | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| Tokyo, Japan | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Jürgen Blin | KO | 7 , 2:12 | | | Align=left| | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Buster Mathis | Decision | 12 | | | Align=left| Houston, TX | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Jimmy Ellis | TKO | 12 , 2:10 | | | Align=left| Houston, TX | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Loss | Joe Frazier | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| New York City, NY | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Oscar Bonavena | TKO | 15 , 2:03 | | | Align=left| New York City, NY | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Jerry Quarry | TKO | 3 | | | Align=left| Atlanta, GA | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Zora Folley | KO | 7 , 1:48 | | | Align=left| New York City, NY | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Ernie Terrell | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| Houston, TX | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Cleveland Williams | TKO | 3 | | | Align=left| Houston, TX | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Karl Mildenberger | TKO | 12 | | | Align=left| Frankfurt, West Germany | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Brian London | KO | 3 | | | Align=left| London, England | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Henry Cooper | TKO | 6 , 1:38 | | | Align=left| London, England | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | George Chuvalo | Decision | 15 | | | Align=left| Toronto, Canada | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Floyd Patterson | TKO | 12 , 2:18 | | | Align=left| Las Vegas, NV | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Sonny Liston | KO | 1 , 2:12 | | | Align=left| Lewiston, ME | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Sonny Liston | TKO | 7 | | | Align=left| Miami Beach, FL | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Henry Cooper | TKO | 5 , 2:15 | | | Align=left| London, England | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Doug Jones | Decision | 10 | | | Align=left| New York City, NY | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Charley Powell | KO | 3, 2:04 | | | Align=left| Pittsburgh, PA | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Archie Moore | TKO | 4 , 1:35 | | | Align=left| Los Angeles, CA | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Alejandro Lavorante | KO | 5 , 1:48 | | | Align=left| Los Angeles, CA | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Billy Daniels | TKO | 7 , 2:21 | | | Align=left| New York City, NY | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | George Logan | TKO | 4 , 1:34 | | | Align=left| New York City, NY | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Don Warner | TKO | 4, 0:34 | | | Align=left| Miami Beach, FL | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Sonny Banks | TKO | 4 , 0:26 | | | Align=left| New York City, NY | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Willi Besmanoff | TKO | 7 , 1:55 | | | Align=left| Louisville, KY | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Alex Miteff | TKO | 6 , 1:45 | | | Align=left| Louisville, KY | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Alonzo Johnson | Decision | 10 | | | Align=left| Louisville, KY | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Duke Sabedong | Decision | 10 | | | Align=left| Las Vegas, NV | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | LaMar Clark | KO | 2 , 1:27 | | | Align=left| Louisville, KY | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Donnie Fleeman | TKO | 7 | | | Align=left| Miami Beach, FL | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Jimmy Robinson | KO | 1 , 1:34 | | | Align=left| Miami Beach, FL | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Tony Esperti | TKO | 3 , 1:30 | | | Align=left| Miami Beach, FL | Align=left| |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Herb Siler | KO | 4 | | | Align=left| Miami Beach, FL | |- style="text-align:center;" | Win | Tunney Hunsaker | Decision | 6 | | | Align=left| Louisville, KY |

See also

List of heavyweight boxing champions

List of North American Muslims

List of people from Louisville, Kentucky

List of WBA world champions

List of WBC world champions

Notable boxing families

Conscientious Objector

Notes

References

External links

Barrow Neurological Institute: Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center

WLRN: Muhammad Ali: Made in Miami

Life Magazine: Cassius Clay: Before He Was Ali (photo essay)

Honors and Awards.com – Presidential Citizens Medal

BoxRec: list of world heavyweight champions?

BoxRec: list of world P4P champions?

William Addams Reitwiesner Genealogical Services: Ancestry of Muhammad Ali

{{S-ttl| title = WBA Heavyweight boxing champion | years = February 25, 1964 – June 19, 1964 (Stripped) }} {{S-ttl| title = WBC Heavyweight boxing champion | years = February 25, 1964 – March 11, 1969 (Stripped) }}

{{S-ttl| title = WBA Heavyweight boxing champion| | years = February 6, 1967 – April 28, 1967 (Stripped) }}

{{S-ttl| title = NABF Heavyweight boxing champion | years = December 17, 1970–1971 (Vacated) }}

{{S-ttl| title = NABF Heavyweight boxing champion | years = Ju1y 26, 1971 – March 31, 1973 }}

{{S-ttl| title = NABF Heavyweight boxing champion | years = September 10, 1973–1974 (Vacated) }}

{{S-ttl| title = WBA Heavyweight boxing champion | years = October 30, 1974 – February 15, 1978 }} {{S-ttl| title = WBC Heavyweight boxing champion | years = October 30, 1974 – February 15, 1978 }}

{{S-ttl| title = WBA Heavyweight boxing champion | years = September 15, 1978 – September 6, 1979 (Vacated) }}

Category:1942 births Category:Living people Category:African American boxers Category:American boxers of Irish descent Category:American people of English descent Category:American anti–Vietnam War activists Category:Boxers from Kentucky Category:World heavyweight boxing champions Category:Heavyweight boxers Category:World Boxing Association Champions Category:World Boxing Council Champions Category:African American Muslims Category:American conscientious objectors Category:American Sufis Category:Boxers at the 1960 Summer Olympics Category:COINTELPRO targets Category:Converts to Islam from Christianity Category:International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees Category:Kentucky colonels Category:Olympic boxers of the United States Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States Category:Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Category:Presidential Citizens Medal recipients Category:Professional wrestling referees Category:People from Louisville, Kentucky Category:People from Paradise Valley, Arizona Category:Winners of the United States Championship for amateur boxers Category:African American Muslims Category:Converts to Islam Category:Former Nation of Islam members Category:Olympic medalists in boxing Category:Converts to Sufism

af:Muhammad Ali ar:محمد علي (ملاكم) ast:Muhammad Ali az:Məhəmməd Əli (boksçu) bn:মোহাম্মদ আলী be:Махамед Алі bcl:Muhammad Ali bs:Muhammad Ali bg:Мохамед Али (боксьор) ca:Muhammad Ali (boxador) cs:Muhammad Ali cy:Muhammad Ali da:Muhammad Ali de:Muhammad Ali et:Muhammad Ali el:Μοχάμεντ Άλι es:Muhammad Ali eo:Muhammad Ali eu:Muhammad Ali fa:محمدعلی کلی fr:Mohamed Ali (boxe) ga:Muhammad Ali gd:Muhammed Ali gl:Muhammad Ali ko:무하마드 알리 hr:Muhammad Ali id:Muhammad Ali it:Muhammad Ali he:מוחמד עלי (מתאגרף) jv:Muhammad Ali kn:ಮುಹಮ್ಮದ್ ಅಲಿ ka:მუჰამედ ალი sw:Muhammad Ali la:Mahometus Ali lv:Muhameds Ali lt:Muhammad Ali hu:Muhammad Ali mk:Мoхамед Али ml:മുഹമ്മദ് അലി mr:महम्मद अली ms:Muhammad Ali mn:Мохаммед Али nl:Muhammad Ali ja:モハメド・アリ ce:Мохаммед Али (боксёр) no:Muhammad Ali uz:Ahmedov, Muhammad Ali ps:محمد علي کلي pl:Muhammad Ali (bokser) pt:Muhammad Ali ro:Muhammad Ali qu:Muhammad Ali ru:Али, Мохаммед sc:Muhammad Ali sq:Muhammad Ali scn:Muhammad Ali si:මොහොමඩ් අලී simple:Muhammad Ali sk:Muhammad Ali sl:Muhammad Ali so:Mohammed ali Clay, sr:Мухамед Али sh:Muhammad Ali fi:Muhammad Ali sv:Muhammad Ali tl:Muhammad Ali ta:முகம்மது அலி tt:Мөхәммәт Али te:మహమ్మద్ అలీ th:มูฮัมหมัด อาลี tr:Muhammed Ali uk:Мухамед Алі (боксер) ur:محمد علی (مکے باز) vi:Muhammad Ali vls:Muhammad Ali war:Muhammad Ali yo:Muhammad Ali zh:穆罕默德·阿里