Muhammad Ali, the former heavyweight champion of the world, dubbed “The Greatest,” died at the at age of 74 on Friday.
“After a 32-year battle with Parkinson’s disease, Muhammad Ali has passed away at the age of 74. The three-time World Heavyweight Champion boxer died this evening,” spokesman Bob Gunnell said in a statement, according to ET.com.
George Foreman, Ali’s friend and rival, told the BBC: “We were like one guy—part of me is gone.”
“Muhammad Ali was one of the greatest human beings I have ever met. No doubt he was one of the best people to have lived in this day and age,” he said. “To put him as a boxer is an injustice.”
Ex-heavyweight champ Evander Holyfield told MSNBC: “I’m glad to have known Ali because when I was a kid, at eight years old, I was told I would be like Ali.”
Jack Phillips is a breaking news reporter with 15 years experience who started as a local New York City reporter. Having joined The Epoch Times' news team in 2009, Jack was born and raised near Modesto in California's Central Valley. Follow him on X: https://twitter.com/jackphillips5