Sport
Muhammad Ali turns 70
Muhammad Ali’s wife says the boxing great is still a “big kid” who enjoys his birthday parties.
The three-time heavyweight boxing champion will celebrate a milestone birthday Tuesday when he turns 70. Ali will be surrounded by friends who are gathering Saturday evening for a private birthday party at the Muhammad Ali Center in his hometown of Louisville.
“Muhammad likes celebrations that involve him and are centered around him,” Lonnie Ali said. “He’s still a big kid in that area. He loves birthdays.”
He always stood for something, even now when he cannot stand on his own — a guy who stood for more than making a buck or winning a championship. In fact, he risked all that in the prime of his career to declare who and what he was.
He was a black man proud of that fact, and so he gave others the strength to be proud. He was a Muslim proud of his faith, and so he gave others the strength to pray as they wanted. He was a fighter boastfully proud of his gifts, and so he gave a generation a joyful though sharp-edged, and at times mean-spirited, voice to follow.
