Muhammad Ali
Gave up his title and three peak years rather than betray his conscience — then won it all back.
The episode
On April 28, 1967, the undefeated heavyweight champion of the world stood in an induction center in Houston. Three times an officer called "Cassius Marcellus Clay" — and three times Ali refused to step forward, though refusal was a felony. Warned of the consequences, he refused once more. The same day, boxing authorities stripped his title and suspended his license; in June a jury convicted him — a $10,000 fine and five years in prison, with Ali freed pending appeal. He lost three and a half years of his athletic prime rather than renounce his beliefs. On June 28, 1971, the Supreme Court unanimously overturned the conviction, and in 1974 Ali took the heavyweight title back in the ring.
The move — copy this today
Your turn
Whose life would you trade for — and why?
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