Rio de Janeiro: The United States are drawing on the memory of heavyweight legend Muhammad Ali to power them to the Rio Olympics boxing gold, team fighters said on Wednesday.
"The greatest", who died two months ago aged 74 after a long battle with Parkinson's disease, announced his name to the world at the 1960 Rome Olympics when he won gold as a little-known 18 year old.
There may be no heavyweight in the Team USA ranks in Rio, but its eight fighters -- six men and two women -- say they will have Ali very much on their minds when the Olympic boxing gets under way on Saturday.
"Muhammad Ali paved the way for me and the rest of the team," said Charles Conwell, a teenage middleweight.
"He coming straight out of high school and into the Olympics, and me doing the same thing, it's a real big inspiration and motivation for me to go and win a gold medal and fight even harder."
Claressa Shields, reigning middleweight Olympic champion who is fancied to repeat the feat in Rio, said she had met another American boxing legend, the recently retired Floyd Mayweather, on the day Ali died.
"On the day he died I felt like a huge part of me had left," said Shields.
"I remember when I met Muhammad Ali, I felt this sense of pride. He was the first African American who stood up and said, 'I'm black and I'm pretty and I can fight.'"
"He gave you that belief that you are beautiful and you are pretty," added Shields.
"He was one of the most dangerous fighters in the game.
"I hope I can do justice to him when I speak about him and when I fight. Nobody else will ever be 'the greatest', ever, but I can try and be close."
AFP
