Muhammad Ali: Elvis of the ring

A sportsperson who was so much more, Muhammad Ali will remain the greatest forever-one who inspired, struggled and stung with both his punches and punchlines.

Muhammad Ali was the planet's most famous person when the idea of fame wasn't yet a manufactured one, the meaning of greatness not PR spiel but burnished after years of struggle and social ostracism.

For the sheer impact on the socio-political narrative of the time he belonged to the turbulent 1960s - Ali ranks alongside Che, Gandhi, Mandela and Malcolm X as the rebel who won.

THE ALI IN ALL OF US
Like them, Ali came through with the stands and swipes he took. Ali was "a fighter, a draft resister, an acolyte, a preacher, a separatist, an integrationist, a comedian, a dancer, an actor, a figure of immense courage... arguably the most famous person on the planet," writes David Remnick in King of the World: Muhammad Ali and the Rise of an American Hero.

But on a more personal level, as someone noted: "With him goes a part of childhood." One didn't have to be a sports nut or even belong to the same era he still seduced you. A viewing of 'When We Were Kings', could help break the ice with your father-in-law, women could re-bond with their fathers over a copy of The Fight, Norman Mailer's account of the epic Rumble In The Jungle.

Mailer's opening lines are magical: "There's always a shock in seeing him again. Not live as on television but standing before you, looking his best. Then the World's Greatest Athlete is in danger of being our most beautiful man...Women draw an audible breath. Men look down. They are reminded of their lack of worth. If Ali never opened his mouth to quiver the jellies of public opinion, he'd still inspire love and hate."

MORE RELEVANT THAN EVER
But Ali opened his mouth, evoking mostly hate at first. The love came later. Africa and Asia welcomed him with open arms; in his native America, it was a delayed, mostly grudging acceptance. As a social force, what he represented for the African-American and his embracing Islam during the Civil Rights Movement makes him the eternal hero.

But we live in strange times. Police atrocities against Blacks in the US are among the highest ever. Islamophobia sweeps the world. In death, is Ali more relevant than ever? "Don't judge those running for office by the eloquence of their tributes to Ali, but how they'd treat a 20-year-old version of him now," Tom Fletcher, former UK Ambassador to Lebanon, said in response to Donald Trump's `tribute' to Ali's passing. "Muhammad Ali is dead at 74! A truly great champion and a wonderful guy. He will be missed by all."

Fletcher was underlining the establishment's historical suspicion of Ali and the growing intolerance in the current times.

Just last year, Ali made a calm, yet rallying response to the Republican presidential hopeful's call for a ban on Muslims entering the US. "We as Muslims have to stand up to those who use Islam to advance their personal agenda," Ali said in a sombre press statement. This was as impactful as his 1967 refusal to serve in Vietnam with the words, "I ain't got nothing against no Viet Cong; no Viet Cong never called me nigger." William C Rhoden, author of 'Forty Million Dollar Slaves' writes how Black youngsters were influenced by Ali. "Ali became the first universal, seemingly omnipresent black man. He said things we only imagined saying, did things many of us had never conceived of doing. Ali brought home the concept of principle, that there was something greater in life than wealth, something greater in life than fame. His example gave many of us strength black and white, rich and poor," says Rhoden.

KNOWING ALI
But there are worries that the real meaning of Ali's struggles and rebellion could be fading, especially among Black sportsmen."My big concern today is that Ali is famous simply for being famous," writes Thomas Hauser, Ali's official biographer, " People know he stood up for his principles, but they really don't know what his principles were. Really, to fully appreciate what he meant, you almost had to live through his times and every day pick up the newspaper to find something about this man."

"The legacy of black athletic culture is a fighting spirit, an elegant style," says Rhoden, "And the legacy of the black athlete is an acceptance of a larger mission...Ignorance of the past makes it difficult for black athletes today to unite and confront issues of the present. Today, the black athlete while potentially more powerful than ever, is at a historical nadir."

In his words, boxing was a lot of white men watching two black men beat each other up. Ali came and changed that. So, whenever DJ Bravo's Champion next lights up a dance floor, pause at the words, "Michel Jordan and Obama a champion Mandela a champion, Serena a champion... 958 BOLT a champion," because don't forget, it all began with Ali being a champion.