When did Muhammad Ali become Muslim?
Muhammad Ali, three-time world heavyweight champion, is an iconic American boxer. Ali, born in 1942 as Cassius Clay, became Muslim soon after his stunning defeat of Sonny Liston in 1964.Liston FightOn February 25, 1964, underdog Clay defeated Sonny Liston for the world heavyweight championship in one of the most “stunning upsets in sports history,” according to Britannica Online Encyclopedia.Conversion to IslamShortly afterward, Clay proclaimed his conversion to the Nation of Islam, shocking the conservative boxing community. Britannica reports that on March 6, 1964, Clay adopted the name Muhammad Ali, given by spiritual mentor Elijah Muhammad, who believed that “white people are ‘devils’ and there is no Heaven or hell.”Conscientious ObjectorAli was drafted during the Vietnam War in 1967. He refused to do military service on the basis of his religious beliefs, but he was denied conscientious-objector status. He was stripped of his heavyweight titles (for three years) and sentenced to f
