That’s weird. I always maligned him for changing his name and religion. Maybe it’s just me. I even name a dog after him as a kid. Black poodle with a big mouth. Cassius. I sure miss that dog.
Irrespective of his choices in religion and politics, which I don’t agree with, as a pure athlete, he was incredible. Absolutely incredible. The reflexes he displayed were amazing. No credible boxing coach would teach their students to do what Ali did - hands low, pulling away from punches instead of ducking under them, but he got away with it because of those amazing reflexes. That the person with those reflexes went on to have Parkinson’s is a sad irony. But it’s also an incredible testimony to how fragile life is, and how what we have on Earth is fleeting.