ABSTRACT
Muhammad Ali has recently re-emerged into the media spotlight, lighting the Olympic flame in Atlanta and the subject of Hollywood films When We Were Kings and Ali. Considering his last fight was a devastating and embarrassing defeat in December 1981 the endurance of his appeal is all the more remarkable. His legacy cannot be confined neatly into anyone category; to label him as simply a boxer or athlete not only represents an injustice to him, but also displays an ignorance of what he represented to the world. As the cover of I'm A Little Special notes, 'Fighter, celebrity, draft dodger, activist, poet, victim, inspiration, champion - pick a year and choose a label. Muhammad Ali has been them all. '1
