Muhammad Ali has died at the age of 74. The boxing legend had been admitted to hospital in Phoenix, Arizona with respiratory problems last week.
Ali was born “Cassius Clay” in Louisville, Kentucky in January 1942. He began boxing as an amateur when he was 12 years old. In 1964 he became heavyweight champion when he knocked out Sonny Liston.
Fellow boxers like Sugar Ray Leonard have paid tribute: “Prayers & blessings to my idol, my friend, & without question, the Greatest of All Time @MuhammadAli !”
Ali’s last public appearance was in April at the “Celebrity Fight Night” gala in Arizona, a charity that benefits sufferers of Parkinson’s disease, of which Ali was diagnosed three years after his retirement in 1981 with a record of 56 wins, 37 by knockout, and five losses.