Timeline Description: Muhammad Ali is a champion boxer with heavyweight titles and Olympic gold medals. His legacy has reached around the world. This is a timeline of key points of his life.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1942 | Muhammad Ali is born Muhammad Ali was born with the name Cassius Clay. |
| 1954 | Cassius has his bike stolen At 12 years old Cassius had his bike stolen. He was very angry, and a local policeman suggested he try boxing to help get his anger out. |
| 1960 | Cassius is a winner Cassius Clay worked hard and won many titles, including a gold medal at the Olympics. |
| October 1960 | Cassius wins his first pro fight Clay won his first pro fight against a police chief named Tunney Hunsaker. |
| 1964 | Cassius Clay has his name changed After joining the Islam faith in 1964 Cassius changed his name to Muhammad Ali. |
| February 1964 | Ali's first heavyweight title Muhammad Ali won his first heavyweight title against Sonny Listen. |
| August 1964 | Ali gets married Muhammad married Sonji Roi after knowing her for only one month. |
| 1967 | Ali refused to serve in the army Ali was drafted into the United States Army, but he refused to serve his country based on religious reasons. He was arrested and stripped of his titles. |
| 1970 | Muhammad fights again Muhammad was allowed to fight in Georgia, because Georgia didn't have a boxing commission to stop him. He won his fight against Jerry Quarry. |
| 1971 | The Fight of the Century Muhammad challenged the boxing champion Joe Frazier. It was called the fight of the century, and Ali lost. |
| 1971 | Muhammad is allowed to fight officially The Supreme Court reversed Ali's charges from his refusal to join the army. He was officially allowed to box again in any state. |
| 1979 | Muhammad retires from boxing Muhammad Ali announced he was retiring from boxing in 1979, but he came out of retirement in 1980. |
| 1984 | Muhammad is struck with Parkinson's disease Muhammad was diagnosed with Parkinson's, a disease that is common among boxers. |
| 1996 | Ali visits the Olympic Games again At the summer games in Atlanta, Muhammad Ali lit and carried the torch for the Olympic Games. |
| 2005 | Muhammad Ali is awarded by the president President George W. Bush presented Ali with two special medals, the Presidential Citizens Medal and the Medal of Freedom. Muhammad has inspired generations of people to overcome obstacles and achieve their dreams. He will forever be remembered as "great". |