19 Apr 1991: Muhammad Ali looks on during a bout between Evander Holyfield and George Foreman at Caesar''s Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada. Mandatory Credit: Barry Jarvinan /AllsportHome Boxing Muhammad Ali: Not Just A Boxer But A Man Of Many Wise Words
Muhammad Ali: Not Just A Boxer But A Man Of Many Wise Words
19 Apr 1991: Muhammad Ali looks on during a bout between Evander Holyfield and George Foreman at Caesar''s Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada. Mandatory Credit: Barry Jarvinan /Allsport
Muhammad Ali, ‘The Greatest’, was more than just a sportsperson. He was an inspiration, a legend, an icon.
When lists of the greatest sportsmen are ever compiled, he’s a constant. Many through the years have tried to copy, to capture his wit and his mind games but there will only ever be one Ali.
Developing Parkinson’s disease was an ironic twist to the man that they couldn’t shut up. He talked the talk but he also walked the walk. He stood up for his beliefs, he got knocked down in the ring and in life but he always bounced back.
For all his insults to his opponents, they still respected the man. His boxing ability was backed up with a sharp mind, a quick wit and a great sense of humour. So for a man so good with words, let’s leave the last say to him, below are some of his best quotes.
Rest in peace, Cassius Clay.
“Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they’ve been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It’s an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It’s a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.”“If my mind can conceive it, and my heart can believe it – then I can achieve it.”“I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion’.”“Hating people because of their color is wrong. And it doesn’t matter which color does the hating. It’s just plain wrong.”“Don’t count the days, make the days count.”“I’m a fighter. I believe in the eye-for-an-eye business. I’m no cheek turner. I got no respect for a man who won’t hit back. You kill my dog, you better hide your cat.”
“Champions aren’t made in gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them-a desire, a dream, a vision. They have to have the skill, and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill.”“The best way to make your dreams come true is to wake up.”“To be a great champion you must believe you are the best. If you’re not, pretend you are.”“Often it isn’t the mountains ahead that wear you out, it’s the little pebble in your shoe.”“What you’re thinking is what you’re becoming.”“The man with no imagination has no wings.”“Only a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his soul and come up with the extra ounce of power it takes to win when the match is even.”“The Service you do for others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth.”“Inside of a ring or out, ain’t nothing wrong with going down. It’s staying down that’s wrong.”
Muhammad Ali: “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee, rumble, young man, rumble.” nyti.ms/24o5Jhx
“He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life”“You lose nothing when fighting for a cause … In my mind the losers are those who don’t have a cause they care about.”“If they can make penicillin out of moldy bread, then they can sure make something out of you.”“I’ve wrestled with alligators,
I’ve tussled with a whale.
I done handcuffed lightning
And throw thunder in jail.
You know I’m bad.
just last week, I murdered a rock,
Injured a stone, Hospitalized a brick.
I’m so mean, I make medicine sick.”
Five things you never knew about boxing legend Muhammad Alicnn.it/1U4dOq2
“It’s just a job. Grass grows, birds fly, waves pound the sand. I beat people up.”“Silence is golden when you can’t think of a good answer.”“It’s hard to be humble when you’re as great as I am.”“It’s lack of faith that makes people afraid of meeting challenges, and I believed in myself.”“I am America. I am the part you won’t recognize. But get
used to me. Black, confident, cocky; my name, not yours;
my religion, not yours; my goals, my own; get used to me.”
“Live everyday as if it were your last because someday you’re going to be right.”
Fergal Cantwell, Pundit Arena
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