Why Cassius clay changed his name?
Cassius Clay, on May 19, 1964, became the first African American boxer to win a major fight when he defeated Sonny Liston. After a brief boxing career, Clay returned to his life as a preacher and changed his name to Muhammad Ali. The reason he chose this new name was to show his pride in his African heritage.
Why did cassius clay change his name?
Cassius Clay was born Cassius Marcellus Clay on January 12, 1942. Cassius Clay’s parents were sharecroppers. They moved around the South looking for work and eventually settled down in Louisville, Kentucky. Cassius Clay’s father, Samuel Clay, was the first African-American to graduate from high school in Louisville.
Why did cassius clay change name?
Cassius Clay was a U.S. boxer who turned professional in 1964. In 1964, he beat Sonny Liston for the world heavyweight championship. He was the first African-American boxer to win the title. He was also the first athlete in U.S. history to earn more than $1 million dollars in career earnings. He changed his name to Muhammad Ali when he refused to return to his birth name Cassius Clay after winning a fight in a rematch with Sonny Liston.
Why change his name Cassius Clay?
Clay was named after Cassius Marcellus Clay, a great American statesman who was a senator from Kentucky and the son of a wealthy plantation owner. Clay, who was born in 1810, was a member of the Clay political family, which included eight other future U.S. presidents. A strong advocate for abolitionism, he was the first southern senator to support the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which abolished slavery.
Why did cassius clay change name at school?
Cassius Clay was a boxer, who was known as the “Louisville Lip” and the “Sugar Sweet”. He was born Cassius Marcellus Clay on January 12, 1942 in South Carolina. Cassius was the first African American to win a gold medal for boxing at the 1960 Rome Olympics. He also won the gold medal at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. Later, in 1963, Clay became the heavyweight champion of the world at the age of 22. He signed
