Watch: Team USA pays tribute to Muhammad Ali with video
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The U.S. Olympic team paid tribute to 1960 gold medalist Muhammad Ali following his death late Friday night.
Ali, born Cassius Clay, won gold fighting as a light heavyweight at the games in Rome just months after his 18th birthday. In 1964, a 22-year-old Ali defeated Sonny Liston in a massive upset to claim his first world heavyweight championship.
In 1967, three years after joining the Nation of Islam, Ali was arrested and stripped of his boxing title for refusing to join the United States military for the Vietnam War. He appealed his arrest and returned to the ring nearly four years later to resume his decorated career. He is widely considered one of the greatest boxers of all time.
In 1984, Ali was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, and gradually moved out of the public spotlight. He appeared at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, where he famously lit the torch at the opening ceremonies.
[youtube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEhNDUwksvU]
The Olympic team shared a video tribute late Friday featuring Ali highlights, and narrated using clips of his voice.
• Muhammad Ali—boxer, activist and provocateur—dead at 74
Ali is survived by his wife Lonnie and nine children.
