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Boxer named Muhammad Ali headed to the Rio Olympics

By Brad Weiss

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - JULY 21: Children pose with the Olympic Rings after its inauguration ceremony at the Copacabana Beach ahead 2016 Rio Olympics on July 21, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - JULY 21: Children pose with the Olympic Rings after its inauguration ceremony at the Copacabana Beach ahead 2016 Rio Olympics on July 21, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images) /
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Boxing fans will get to see Muhammad Ali fight in this year’s Olympics, though this Ali is no heavyweight.

In 1960, Cassius Clay dominated the light heavyweight division in the Summer Olympics in Rome, Italy. Clay, who would later change his name to Muhammad Ali, went on to be arguably the best boxer of all-time, winning the heavyweight title three times. Ali was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990, and spent his life as a source of inspiration for millions of people around the world.

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During the 2016 Rio Olympics, another Muhammad Ali will step into the ring looking for Olympic gold, but this time it will be a 5-foot-6 flyweight from Great Britain.

Ali was actually named after the famous fighter, but it was Amir Khan who got the him interested in boxing. Khan won a silver medal in the 2004 Summer Games in Athens, and went to to win a few championships of his own during his career. For Ali, it was watching Khan box in the Olympics that gave him the idea to start boxing.

“I started boxing because of Amir Khan, I remember watching him at the 2004 Olympics,” Ali told BBC.

Ali, who is an amateur, will be fighting in the first Olympics to allow professionals to box. In addition, fighters will no longer wear head gear, which will give the Games the feel of an actual professional bout. However, no one in Ali’s division is a professional, so he will not be at a disadvantage during his quest for a gold medal.

It has been 66 years since Clay defeated Zbigniew Pietryzkowski from Poland to win the gold medal, and just maybe the kid named after the legend can grab gold of his own this summer.

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