At last, the boxing legend is on the ground … knocked out by the bitter truth of life. Only death could bring him down. But Muhammad Ali, who once ruled the boxing ring, will continue to rule the hearts of millions of his fans around the world.
The news of his sad demise brought back many memories. In the late 1970s, when I was a young boy, my friends from a local boxing club in Pune (Maharashtra) invited me to join them. Being a big fan of the “King of Boxing,” I did not think twice.
The owner of the club, Felix, who had won many boxing championships in the feather weight category, always exhorted the boys to follow one and only one — Muhammad Ali.
“Boys, boxing is a gentleman’s game, but offense is the best defense in this sport. Don’t be a sluggish fighter. Fight like Muhammad Ali…move, footwork, jab, jab, jab…” thus went on Felix. Every Sunday, Master Felix also showed the boys, in his home, videos of Ali’s great fights.
Upon learning that Muhammad Ali was coming to Mumbai (Bombay) those days in 1979, I decided to grab the rare opportunity. Took a ticket to Bombay and went straight to Bandra. a suburb in that city, where some local leaders had organized a felicitation ceremony for the boxer.
Muhammad Ali climbed on to the stage, as if he was getting into the ring. He was requested to speak to the audience. Ali started his short speech, slowly because of his health condition: “Bismillah hir Rahmanir Raheem. It is an honor to be in this beautiful country, with beautiful people. I can’t believe i have so many fans here.”
He went on, amid thunderous applause, with his speech. The speech took an interesting turn, when he offered to fight Dara Singh, “provided he does not catch me from behind”. The climax of his talk came when he asked the audience: I am not scared of any fighter in the world, except one. Do you know who he is? There was pin drop silence. The audience was wondering who it could be that Ali is scared of. With a smile, Muhammad Ali said: “You know … it is Amitabh Bachchan! Yes I am scared of this tall man, who can beat 10 people. I have watched him fight on the silver screen!”
The crowd was soon in splits…shouting and cheering and hailing Muhammad Ali. May his soul rest in peace.
The news of his sad demise brought back many memories. In the late 1970s, when I was a young boy, my friends from a local boxing club in Pune (Maharashtra) invited me to join them. Being a big fan of the “King of Boxing,” I did not think twice.
The owner of the club, Felix, who had won many boxing championships in the feather weight category, always exhorted the boys to follow one and only one — Muhammad Ali.
“Boys, boxing is a gentleman’s game, but offense is the best defense in this sport. Don’t be a sluggish fighter. Fight like Muhammad Ali…move, footwork, jab, jab, jab…” thus went on Felix. Every Sunday, Master Felix also showed the boys, in his home, videos of Ali’s great fights.
Upon learning that Muhammad Ali was coming to Mumbai (Bombay) those days in 1979, I decided to grab the rare opportunity. Took a ticket to Bombay and went straight to Bandra. a suburb in that city, where some local leaders had organized a felicitation ceremony for the boxer.
Muhammad Ali climbed on to the stage, as if he was getting into the ring. He was requested to speak to the audience. Ali started his short speech, slowly because of his health condition: “Bismillah hir Rahmanir Raheem. It is an honor to be in this beautiful country, with beautiful people. I can’t believe i have so many fans here.”
He went on, amid thunderous applause, with his speech. The speech took an interesting turn, when he offered to fight Dara Singh, “provided he does not catch me from behind”. The climax of his talk came when he asked the audience: I am not scared of any fighter in the world, except one. Do you know who he is? There was pin drop silence. The audience was wondering who it could be that Ali is scared of. With a smile, Muhammad Ali said: “You know … it is Amitabh Bachchan! Yes I am scared of this tall man, who can beat 10 people. I have watched him fight on the silver screen!”
The crowd was soon in splits…shouting and cheering and hailing Muhammad Ali. May his soul rest in peace.
