RIP Muhammad Ali

[Big Boy]

The Greatest, has fallen - he has passed, after suffering with respiratory problems.

[PeteC]

Very sad. His health has been going downhill for some time. I remember as a kid listening to the first Clay-Liston fight on the radio. One of his best moments much later was lighting the 1996 Olympic cauldron in Atlanta. RIP. Pete

[Zidane]

A true legend and,quite possibly,"The Greatest".....remember "The Rumble in the Jungle" and "The Thrilla in Manila".
RIP.

[Dannie Boy]

Indeed, the "Greatest" has left us, and for those of us old enough to have seen him fight back in the 60's, we witnessed some of the best boxing ever to be seen. Ali had his critics, but I found him thoroughly entertaining inside and outside the ring, maybe somebody will find a You Tube clip of his interview with Parkinson?

[dtaai-maai]

... maybe somebody will find a You Tube clip of his interview with Parkinson?

Lots of short clips on Youtube, but this is one of the better longer versions I could find http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x16z1c ... sound_news

EDIT: The above interview was in 1981, after he retired, but before it was generally known that he was suffering from Parkinson's. There was already speculation about his health. The interview Dannie Boy refers to is presumably the first one, in 1971. Clips can be found by googling Michael Parkinson interview with Muhammad Ali 1971.

[JD]

Very sad. He was the greatest. As a kid; when boxing still belonged to anyone and everyone; when it was on TV at least once a week; I looked forward to every Ali contest. He brought boxing into the modern era, not just a brilliant boxer but a true tactician of the art.

His passing is going to see a huge, worldwide, outpouring of love and respect for (in my opinion) one of the greatest ever human beings to have lived.

RIP

[PeteC]

^ It's started. BBC and CNN are in full time mode with coverage and history. Pete

[arcadianagain]

When he first appeared on the scene he was probably one of the most hated men in sport due to his boasting and antics outside the ring, but after beating Liston twice (the second fight was a bit dodgy from Liston) he was taken more seriously and his entertainment value was backed up by results. Unlike some of the current day sportsmen he was a true legend.

[Terry]

Very sad
An incredible human being is lost

[JimmyGreaves]

Great memories of Ali and Frazier for one and the Liston fights.

Ali - Clough - Spurs

[Khundon1975]

RIP to the greatest boxer ever. Mind you, our Henry almost had him.

[arcadianagain]

RIP to the greatest boxer ever. Mind you, our Henry almost had him.

He certainly did, Highbury Stadium 1965 I think, `enerie`s `ammer put him down at the end of a round and only the jiggery pokery by his corner faking a defective glove/bandage delayed the start of the next round which allowed Ali to recover and win the fight by a cut eye retirement.

[Bristolian]

Ali said several decades later that Cooper had hit him so hard that his ancestors felt it.

A genuine man and incredible talent that brought boxing into the main stream and was simply so much more than a boxer.

Incredible man.....

[Siani]

Fly like a butterfly......RIP

[dtaai-maai]

After all these years, this still gets the adrenalin pumping.