{"id":37474,"date":"2023-09-01T18:50:23","date_gmt":"2023-09-01T18:50:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging.alicenter.org\/?page_id=37474"},"modified":"2025-09-08T19:26:38","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T19:26:38","slug":"in-his-own-words","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/alicenter.org\/meet-ali\/in-his-own-words\/","title":{"rendered":"In His Own Words"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n
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In His Own Words<\/h1>

Muhammad Ali was known for his quick wit and quips, read some of his greatest in and out of the ring.<\/p>\n<\/div>\r\n

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\n\n <\/svg><\/span>Howard Bingham<\/span> \n <\/div>\n\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/header>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n\n\n\r\n
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\r\n \"I\u2019m young, handsome, fast, pretty, and can\u2019t possibly be beat!\" <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n \r\n
Muhammad Ali<\/figcaption>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div> \r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n
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\n\n <\/svg><\/span>Howard Bingham<\/span> \n <\/div>\n\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n
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Confidence<\/h2>\r\n <\/header>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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\u201cIf my mind can conceive it, and my heart can believe it \u2013 then I can achieve it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTo be a great champion you must believe you are the best. If you\u2019re not, pretend you are.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cI\u2019ve wrestled with alligators,\u00a0 I\u2019ve tussled with a whale. I done handcuffed lightning and thrown thunder in jail.\u00a0 You know I\u2019m bad. Just last week, I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalized a brick. I\u2019m so mean, I make medicine sick!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI am America. I am the part you won\u2019t recognize. But get used to me. Black, confident, cocky; my name, not yours; my religion, not yours; my goals, my own; get used to me.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to be humble when you\u2019re as great as I am.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m the greatest, I\u2019m a bad man, and I\u2019m pretty!\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n

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\r\n \"I know where I'm going and I know the truth, and I don't have to be what you want me to be. I'm free to be what I want.\" <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n \r\n
Muhammad Ali<\/figcaption>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div> \r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n
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\r\n\r\n \n \"Muhammad \n\n \n \r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \n
\n\n <\/svg><\/span>Howard Bingham<\/span> \n <\/div>\n\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n
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Conviction<\/h2>\r\n <\/header>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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\u201cHe who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou lose nothing when you fight for a cause\u2026 In my mind the losers are those who don\u2019t have a cause they care about.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe fight is won or lost far away from witnesses – behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI figured that if I said it enough, I would convince the world that I really was the greatest.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n

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\r\n \"I hated every minute of training, but I said, \u2018Don\u2019t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'\" <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n \r\n
Muhammad Ali<\/figcaption>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div> \r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n
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Dedication<\/h2>\r\n <\/header>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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\u201cI never thought of losing, but now that it\u2019s happened, the only thing is to do it right. That\u2019s my obligation to all the people who believe in me. We all have to take defeats in life.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cChampions aren\u2019t made in gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them \u2013 a desire, a dream, a vision. They have to have the skill, and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe fight is won or lost far away from witnesses – behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cInside or a ring or out, ain\u2019t nothing wrong with going down. It\u2019s staying down that\u2019s wrong.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOnly a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his soul and come up with the extra ounce of power it takes to win when the match is even.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n

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\r\n \"Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth.\" <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n \r\n
Muhammad Ali<\/figcaption>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div> \r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n
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Giving<\/h2>\r\n <\/header>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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\u201cI wish people would love everybody else the way they love me. It would be a better world.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI try not to speak about all the charities and people I help, because I believe we can only be truly generous when we expect nothing in return.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWars of nations are fought to change maps. But wars of poverty are fought to map change.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve made my share of mistakes along the way, but if I have changed even one life for the better, I haven’t lived in vain.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to use my fame and this face that everyone knows so well to help uplift and inspire people around the world.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTo be able to give away riches is mandatory if you wish to possess them. This is the only way that you will be truly rich.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n

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\r\n \"Think well of all, be patient with all, and try to find the good in all.\" <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n \r\n
Muhammad Ali<\/figcaption>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/figure>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div> \r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n
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Respect<\/h2>\r\n <\/header>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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\u201cSilence is golden when you can\u2019t think of an answer.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHating people because of their color is wrong. And it doesn\u2019t matter which color does the hating. It\u2019s just plain wrong.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThroughout my life, I never sought retribution against those who hurt me because I believe in forgiveness. I have practiced forgiving, just as I want to be forgiven.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c Friendship… is not something you learn in school. But if you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven’t learned anything.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n

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\r\n \"What you\u2019re thinking is what you\u2019re becoming.\" <\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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Spirituality<\/h2>\r\n <\/header>\r\n\r\n \r\n
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\u201cOthers may know pleasure, but pleasure is not happiness. It has no more importance than a shadow following a man.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cRivers, ponds, lakes, and streams \u2013 they all have different names, but they all contain water. Just as all religions do \u2013 they all contain truths.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAllah is the Greatest. I\u2019m just the greatest boxer.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI’m no leader; I’m a little humble follower.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe only thing that matters is submitting to the will of God.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n<\/div>\n\n\r\n

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The Man
Behind The Quotes<\/h2>

Learn more about Muhammad Ali and his legacy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n \n Meet Ali<\/a>\n\n \n <\/div>\n\n \t\t\t \r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\r\n\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\t <\/div>\r\n\r\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\r\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\r\n\r\n\t\t\t\r\n\t\t<\/div>\r\n\r\n\t<\/div>\r\n \r\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":354,"menu_order":4,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-37474","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alicenter.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/37474","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alicenter.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alicenter.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alicenter.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alicenter.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37474"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alicenter.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/37474\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alicenter.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/354"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alicenter.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37474"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}