MANSFIELD — The death of Muhammad Ali on Friday brought a wave of reaction from the sports community around the world.
Locally, it triggered thoughts from the three-time heavyweight champion’s lone visit to Mansfield in 1971. Ali was one of just two heavyweight champions to visit the city. The other was James Jeffries, who was champion from 1899 to 1905. Ali owned the heavyweight crown from 1964-1967, from 1974-1978 and from 1978-1979.
Ali stopped at the Ohio State University Mansfield campus on May 28, 1971, just two months after losing a decision to Joe Frazier in their first fight at Madison Square Garden. Ali was still earning money as a sought-after speaker on college campuses due to his stance on the Vietnam War.
He refused induction in 1967 and was promptly stripped of his title. He spoke about that and numerous other subjects, joking with the crowd and even singing. It was an unforgettable night for numerous Mansfielders.
“I was there,” Mansfield native John Futty said. “My dad took me and my brothers. I was 13 years old. I got his autograph on one of the 8 x 10 glossies he brought along and still have it.”
Harold Roane, who tipped Richland Source to a story last month of Ali’s visit to Mansfield was moved by the boxer’s death.
“I prefer to remember Ali in my mind’s pictures as that brash, vibrant, handsome, enthusiastic icon that indeed shook up the world,” Roane said. “Ali never tried to hide his ailments and afflictions from the public. I once read despite his health problems his faith made him feel that this was Allah’s will and he was going to face it with determination and not go into seclusion. He wanted the public to know and see he accepted his disabilities and he never tried to hide his condition from the public.
“My first recollections of Ali having a physical problem was when I saw him lighting the Olympic torch (in Atlanta) and I was wondering why is he walking so slow? I admire the fact that he did not let the Parkinson’s disease affect his pride and he felt obligated to make as many public appearances as he could.
“It made me sad to see him deteriorating over the years to the point where he could not speak coherently and walking became difficult. Ali’s wife and close friends said they have never once heard him say anything bad about the cards he was played in life and he never complained publicly about his condition.”
Ali’s passing knit together sorrow and admiration from across the world, too:
“God came for his champion. So long great one,” former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson tweeted.
“He represented what a man should be in an America that’s free because he made people accept him as a man, as an equal and he was not afraid to represent himself in that way,” said Cleveland Browns Hall of Famer Jim Brown. “That’s what I loved about him, very few people ever comported themselves in a manner of being equal in a society where he could have definitely played it a different way.”
“When an icon like Muhammad Ali passes away, it’s very emotional. It’s also gratifying to know that a guy, one man, would sacrifice so much in his individual life knowing that it would better the next generation of men and women after him,” said Cleveland Cavaliers’ star LeBron James. “Today I can go to China and all over the world and people know my name and know my face. I give all credit to Muhammad Ali because he was the first icon. He is the GOAT. He’s the greatest of all time and it has zero to do with his accomplishments inside the ring.”
“This is a sad day for me — and for the world. Muhammad Ali was bigger than sports and larger than life. He said he was ‘The Greatest’ and he was right,” said NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan. “He was the greatest of his era in the ring and a global icon in sports. I was a kid during his prime, but I remember some of his epic fights and his incredible style. My sincerest condolences go out to his wife, Lonnie, his kids and family.”
“The sporting universe has just suffered a big loss,” noted soccer immortal Pele on Twitter. “Muhammad Ali was my friend, my idol, my hero. We spent many moments together and always kept a good connection throughout the years. The sadness is overwhelming. I wish him peace with God. And I send love and strength to his family.”
“I gave Ali the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005 and wondered aloud how he stayed so pretty throughout so many fights,” noted former President George W. Bush. “It probably had to do with his beautiful soul. He was a fierce fighter and he’s a man of peace, just like Odessa and Cassius Clay Sr., believed their son could be.”
“Ali, the G-O-A-T. A giant, an inspiration, a man of peace, a warrior for the cure. Thank you.” — tweeted actor Michael J. Fox, who also has Parkinson’s disease.
“The best of all time has left. I remember the emotion of my dad when he saw him face to face in Las Vegas, in the fight between Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Herns in 1981. So how can I not feel this loss if he was most admired by my father?” soccer great Diego Maradona wrote on Facebook. “In the ring he was a dancer. Surely he left because he could no longer give us more happiness. My condolences to his family.”
“He sacrificed the heart of his career and money and glory for his religious beliefs about a war he thought unnecessary and unjust,” stated Rev. Jesse Jackson. “His memory and legacy lingers on until eternity. He sacrificed, the nation benefited. He was a champion in the ring, but, more than that, a hero beyond the ring. When champions win, people carry them off the field on their shoulders. When heroes win, people ride on their shoulders. We rode on Muhammad Ali’s shoulders.”
