Sports Quote of the Day: Muhammad Ali's Confident Affirmation

Muhammad Ali is widely considered the best heavyweight boxer of all time, but his cultural impact goes beyond that. The Louisville native was an activist, civil rights movement figure, and hip-hop pioneer.

Ali, a member of the Nation of Islam, changed his name from Cassius Clay in 1964, which he called his "slave name." That was the same year he defeated Sonny Liston for the world heavyweight championship, but he was stripped of his boxing titles three years later after refusing to be drafted into the military. He cited his religion and moral opposition to the Vietnam War as his reasons.

Ali's opposition to the war made him an icon outside of sports, and he didn't fight again until 1970. However, he didn't lose his skill, as he fought until 1981 and defeated George Foreman to reclaim the world heavyweight title in 1974.

Muhammad Ali's Strategy to Achieve Greatness

Ali continuously called himself "the greatest" throughout his career, even at the beginning. He released a spoken word album titled "I Am the Greatest" in 1963, which was before he defeated Liston for his first title reign.

Ali had a famous quote that revealed his strategy of affirmation, which gave him the confidence to rise to the top, via alicenter.org.