News

Actions

Baltimore boxers remember Muhammad Ali

Posted at
and last updated
He's been called the greatest that ever lived. Muhammad Ali died at 74 over the weekend and people are still talking about the contributions he made to boxing and the world.
 
Ali even touched young lives. At Upton Boxing Center, kids long to be like the legend. Older boxers say there's never been anyone like him.
 
"When you look at the story of him, he persevered through all the hardships he had and still came back out on top," said boxing coach, Calvin Ford.
 

Follow Nadia Singh on Twitter @NadiaSinghNews and like her on Facebook.

 
Ali won and lost, an important lesson that Ford is passing onto his young boxers. 
 
"What made him so great as a fighter? His will. His will not to lose," Ford told ABC2.
 
He says that will inspired him and has inspired many young athletes.
 
"He was a champ," For said. "When he wasn't a champ he was still a champ. That's what he wanted to show all of us today that you're a champ you just have to believe in yourself." 
 
Ford is also a boxer. For him, Ali's trailblazing style is hard to match.
 
 
"His drive first and foremost," he said. " Like when you say you're going to do something then do it.  To  be a heavy weight how he used his reach, how he used his jab, his foot work." 
 
"He brought that flash.  He brought that flash and he was just exciting," Ford said.
 
That excitement got young boxer Marcus Redd's attention.
 
"He's flashy!  he's the flashiest boxer I've ever seen. Hands down," Redd said.
 
But outside the ring, Ali was vocal about racism, Islam and equality.
 
"His legacy is stand up for what you believe in. Stand up for what you believe in and stand firm," Ford said.
 
Now, young boxers, who weren't alive to see his greatness, hope to carry on that legacy.
 
"I will stand up for people who can't stand up for themselves and standup for myself. He left his mark on the world.  He basically showed that there's no dream that's too big, if you want it, just go get it," Redd said.
 
A spokesperson for Ali's family said a public funeral service will be held in the boxer's hometown of Louisville, Kentucky on Friday.
 

Download the ABC2 News app for the iPhone, Kindle and Android.

Like us on Facebook