John Grasso - Historical Dictionary of Boxing

ABDUL-AZIZ, MALIK

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AFRICAN BOXING

Since the 1960s, when many African nations became independent, most African countries have entered the OlympicGames boxing competition at least once. South Africa, one of the few nations in Africa where boxing was popular during the first half of the 20th century, has had 19 Olympic boxing medalists. Kenya has had seven, Algeria and Nigeria have each had six, Uganda has had four, and Egypt, Ghana, and Morocco have each had three.

There have been quite a few professional world champions born in Africa. Probably the most famous was the Nigerian Dick Tiger, born Richard Ihetu, who won the worlds middleweight and light heavyweight championships during the 1960s. One of the first Africans to achieve fame in the boxing ring was Amadou MBarick Fall, a native of Senegal who competed in France during the 1920s as Battling Siki and won the worlds light heavyweight championship in 1922. Siki then made the mistake of defending his title against an Irishman, Mike McTigue, in Dublin, Ireland, on St. Patricks Day in 1923 and lost a 20-round decision.

Other central African world champions include Cameroons Hassan NDam NJikam; Congos Anaclet Wamba; Ghanas Joseph Agbeko, Joshua Clottey, Nana Konadu, David Kotei, Alfred Kotey, Azumah Nelson, and Ike Quartey; Namibias Paulus Moses and Harry Simon; Nigerias Hogan Kid Bassey and Samuel Peter; and Ugandas Cornelius Boza-Edwards, Ayub Kalule, John The Beast Mugabi, and Kassim Ouma. South Africa has had more than 20 professional champions. North African champions include Algerian-born Marcel Cerdan and Alphonse Halimi; Moroccan Khalid Rahilou; and Tunisians Taoufik Belbouli, Kamel Bou Ali, and Victor Young Perez.

A few other boxers with ties to Africa are Henry Akinwande, born in England but raised in Nigeria, Herbie Hide (Herbert Okechukwu Maduagwu), born in Nigeria but raised in England, and Sumbu Kalambay, born in Zaire but raised in Italy.

The most significant boxing match to take place on the African continent did not include any native Africans (although it featured two African Americans, had an African American referee, and was promoted by an African American), but was the 30 October 1974 heavyweight championship bout in Zaire between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, refereed by Zach Clayton and promoted by Don King, known as the Rumble in the Jungle.

AIBA

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ALI, MUHAMMAD THE LOUISVILLE LIP, THE GREATEST (n CASSIUS MARCELLUS CLAY)ALI, MUHAMMAD (n CASSIUS MARCELLUS CLAY)

B. 17 January 1942, Louisville, Kentucky. At the peak of his career, Muhammad Ali was the person most widely recognized throughout the world. For those who were not alive during the 1960s and 1970s, it is impossible to accurately convey a clear picture of his life and his impact upon the world through words alone.

As a 12-year-old in Louisville, he was steered into a boxing program by police sergeant Joe E. Martin, who reportedly encountered Clay after he was enacting revenge upon a thief who had stolen his bicycle. Clay had an excellent amateur boxing career and won six Kentucky Golden Gloves titles, the 1959 and 1960 Chicago Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions light heavyweight titles, and the 1959 and 1960 Intercity Golden Gloves titles.

His 1959 final bout for the Chicago Tournament of Champions light heavyweight title was against a boxer named Jefferson Davis. Clay also won the 1959 and 1960 National Amateur Athletic Union light heavyweight title. He won the 1960 Olympic Games gold medal in the light heavyweight class, with one of his preliminary bouts in the games a victory over Australian Tony Madigan, whom he had previously defeated to win the 1959 Intercity Golden Gloves. Clays amateur record has been reported with various totals ranging from 998 to 1377.