The famous 1974 Rumble in the Jungle between Muhammad Ali (R) and his compatriot and the titleholder George Foreman in Kinshasa/AFP
LOS ANGELES, United States, Jun 4 – Muhammad Ali – who died on Friday in Arizona at age 74 – was one of the iconic sporting heroes of the 20th century, the three-time heavyweight champion of the world who said he could “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.”
Ali, who came of age amid the turmoil of the civil rights movement and the Vietnam War, dazzled the boxing world as a youngster with his speed, never before seen in his weight class.
He also rattled the established order with an equally quick wit and colourful personality that lifted him into the realm of super-stardom and ushered in the age of globally televised multi-million-dollar fights.
The legendary fighter spent his last years ravaged by Parkinson’s disease but never retreated from public view.
Instead he added a crusade against the illness to the list of battles of his extraordinary life.
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