PBS高端访谈:回顾拳王穆罕默德·阿里的一生

 HARI SREENIVASAN: Fight night – Miami Beach – February 1964

ANNOUNCER: Clay's jab is stronger than it has been at any point in the fight

HARI SREENIVASAN: Clay is a decided¹ underdog, but he pounds the champ into submission² in just six rounds.

ANNOUNCER: At the end of this round, Liston's corner will call the doctor to the ring and – over the champion's protest – stop the fight.

HARI SREENIVASAN: Now, Clay is boxing's new heavyweight champion.

ANNOUNCER: Clay is proclaiming 'I am the greatest … I am the king.

HARI SREENIVASAN: Just that quickly, a unique figure emerges in American sport, and will go on to become a global icon³.

MUHAMMAD ALI: I am just like oxygen – all over the world.

回顾拳王穆罕默德·阿里的一生

HARI SREENIVASAN: Born January 17, 1942, Cassius Marcellus Clay, Junior, grew up in Louisville, Kentucky. He learned to fight at an early age, seeking vengeance⁴ for a stolen bicycle. And he piled up awards as a young boxer⁵.

In the 1960 Rome Olympics, Clay stopped a Polish fighter to take the light-heavyweight gold. But returning home to segregated⁶ Louisville, he was denied service at a whites-only restaurant and threw his Olympic medal into the Ohio River.

Despite that frustration⁷, Clay landed a sponsorship deal the same year and won 19 straight professional bouts⁹. The perfect mark earned him the shot at Liston for the heavyweight title, at just 22 years old.

MUHAMMAD ALI: I whooped¹⁰ him so bad he had to go to the hospital. And I'm still pretty. Whatcha gonna say about that? Huh?!"

HARI SREENIVASAN: Clay was already known as "The Louisville Lip" for his outlandish self-promotion, even writing lyrics¹¹ about himself. As Rock Newman recalled…

ROCK NEWMAN: This is the legend of Cassius Clay, the most beautiful fighter in the world today. He talks a great deal, and brags¹² indeed-y, of a muscular punch that's incredibly speed-y. This kid fights great; he's got speed and endurance, but if you sign to fight him, increase your insurance. Ah, rumble¹³, young man, rumble.

HARI SREENIVASAN: Newman is an ex-boxing promoter who went on to host a public TV talk show in Washington.

ROCK NEWMAN: He was so physically¹⁴ gifted, with blinding, lightning-like speed for a heavyweight fighter. He did most things wrong technically¹⁵ in the ring, but he could get away with it because of his blinding speed and his superior reflexes.

HARI SREENIVASAN: Clay basked¹⁶ in the boxing spotlight¹⁷. But he was also undergoing momentous¹⁸ changes outside the ring. Earlier, he had met Malcolm X, the black nationalist leader, and at the time, spokesman for the nation of Islam.

After the Liston fight, Clay officially joined "the nation and changed his name to Cassius "X." Soon, the group's leader, Elijah Muhammad, renamed him again as "Muhammad Ali."

REPORTERS: Cassius? Cassius?

MUHAMMAD ALI: You know my new name, why do you keep calling me that?

REPORTER: Will your next fight be billed as Cassius Clay or as Muhammad Ali?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Muhammad Ali!

REPORTER: On all the fights?

MUHAMMAD ALI: Yes sir!"

HARI SREENIVASAN: Ali's religious conversion¹⁹ and outspoken²⁰ views made him a lightning rod in the turmoil²¹ of 1960's America. But his boxing dominance continued. In 1965, he faced off against Liston again, in Lewiston, Maine. This time, the fight lasted less than two minutes. As Liston lay on the mat, Ali stood over him, taunting²² him, in what became an iconic image. Questions swirled²³ about whether Liston threw the fight, but Ali waved aside all doubts, with what became his signature phrase.

MUHAMMAD ALI: Look at that beautiful face, fella. You've never seen a man in history move like this. Ain't that beautiful? Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee, that's what I'm saying."

HARI SREENIVASAN: Then, as Ali entered his prime, the escalating²⁴ war in Vietnam confronted him with an entirely²⁵ different opponent – the United States government. He was drafted in 1967, but claimed conscientious²⁶ objector status.

MUHAMMAD ALI: Why should me and other so-called negroes go 10,000 miles away from here in America to drop bombs and bullets on other innocent brown people who've never bothered us? I will say directly, no I will not go.

HARI SREENIVASAN: The Justice Department ruled the objection was political, not religious and Ali was stripped of his title, and did not fight again for three and a-half years. He also faced a potential prison term, but remained free on appeal…

MUHAMMAD ALI: I don't worry about jail. I believe in Allah. I believe in Elijah Muhammad as the Messenger of God and many great men have to go to jail and so I don't pay no attention to it. If the time comes, I'll just have to go.

HARI SREENIVASAN: By 1970, with the anti-war movement at a crescendo²⁷, boxing authorities allowed Ali to return to the ring. That set up a match with the man who'd claimed the heavyweight title in his absence – Joe Frazier. Their bout⁸ at Madison Square Garden in march 1971 was billed as "the fight of the century." But the long layoff²⁸ had robbed ali of his speed…

ANNOUNCER: Muhammad Ali has never taken such a battering²⁹.

HARI SREENIVASAN: Frazier kept the title after 15 grueling rounds. Within months, though, Ali scored a major legal victory when the u-s supreme³⁰ court upheld his conscientious objector claim, and wiped away his prison sentence. Freed of all obstacles, he launched a rise back to boxing prominence³¹.

ANNOUNCER: Rumble in the jungle.

HARI SREENIVASAN: Culminating in Kinshasa, Zaire, 1974, and the fight dubbed³² "the rumble in the jungle." Ali faced the younger, hard-hitting George Foreman, who had beaten Frazier.

ANNOUNCER: Round 1 – the heavyweight championship of the world at stake.

HARI SREENIVASAN: This time, he used a strategy he named "rope-a-dope" to wear out Foreman.

ANNOUNCER: The punches aren't doing any damage, though.

HARI SREENIVASAN: It worked. Late in the 8th round, Ali landed a combination that sent foreman to the mat, and once again, he was champion.

MUHAMMAD ALI: I told you, all of my critics, I told you all that I was the greatest of all time when I beat Sonny Liston. I told you today I'm still the greatest of all time.

HARI SREENIVASAN: Less than a year later in the Philippines Ali was back in the ring with Frazier for the rematch called the "Thrilla in Manila." This time, the champion took a beating, but finally won on a technical knockout in 14 rounds. After that, Ali lost the heavyweight championship to Leon Spinks in February 1978, then reclaimed³³ it one more time, before losing his final fight in 1981. He retired³⁴ from boxing at the age of 39 with a record of 56-and-5. Poet and author Nikki Giovanni knew Ali well.

NIKKI GIOVANNI: Ali was not a politician, he had no ambition in that way. he was an athlete and he shown all the athletes – he was an athlete, who said, 'no, it doesn't matter what you all think about me or what you say. It doesn't matter your praise. I need to stand for something.' and he's done that.

HARI SREENIVASAN: Three years into retirement³⁵, Ali revealed he had Parkinson's disease. But he stayed active, despite his symptoms.

MUHAMMAD ALI: Thank all of you for your support and following me over the years in boxing.

HARI SREENIVASAN: In 1990, he visited Iraq to help win the release of 14 u-s hostages from Saddam Hussein. Six years later, he took center stage once again, lighting³⁶ the Olympic flame at the summer games in Atlanta, amid a sea of flashbulbs. And in 2005, President George W. Bush awarded him the medal of freedom. Even in old age, Muhammad Ali remained a larger-than-life figure As the subject of movies and documentaries, commercials and posters. These days, his legacy³⁷ lives on, in gyms around the country, among young fighters and their trainers.

LAMONT PETERSON, FORMER WORLD JUNIOR WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPION: First thing your coaches tell you about him and start looking at his skill and to try to pick up things in the ring, but there was more to Ali more than just boxing – people love him and make movies of him it's for a reason

BARRY HUNTER, FORMER TRAINER FOR LAMONT PETERSON: The name itself is synonymous with boxing. Ali – boxing. Boxing – Ali. And I doubt very seriously in our lifetime that we will ever see another one like him.

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 submission   

n.服从，投降；温顺，谦虚；提出

参考例句：

• The defeated general showed his submission by giving up his sword.战败将军缴剑表示投降。
• No enemy can frighten us into submission.任何敌人的恐吓都不能使我们屈服。

3 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

4 vengeance   

n.报复，报仇，复仇

参考例句：

• He swore vengeance against the men who murdered his father.他发誓要向那些杀害他父亲的人报仇。
• For years he brooded vengeance.多年来他一直在盘算报仇。

5 boxer   

n.制箱者，拳击手

参考例句：

• The boxer gave his opponent a punch on the nose.这个拳击手朝他对手的鼻子上猛击一拳。
• He moved lightly on his toes like a boxer.他像拳击手一样踮着脚轻盈移动。

6 segregated   

分开的； 被隔离的

参考例句：

• a culture in which women are segregated from men 妇女受到隔离歧视的文化
• The doctor segregated the child sick with scarlet fever. 大夫把患猩红热的孩子隔离起来。

7 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

8 bout   

n.侵袭，发作；一次(阵，回)；拳击等比赛

参考例句：

• I was suffering with a bout of nerves.我感到一阵紧张。
• That bout of pneumonia enfeebled her.那次肺炎的发作使她虚弱了。

9 bouts   

n.拳击（或摔跤）比赛( bout的名词复数 )；一段（工作）；（尤指坏事的）一通；（疾病的）发作

参考例句：

• For much of his life he suffered from recurrent bouts of depression. 他的大半辈子反复发作抑郁症。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It was one of fistiana's most famous championship bouts. 这是拳击界最有名的冠军赛之一。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

10 whooped   

叫喊( whoop的过去式和过去分词 )； 高声说； 唤起

参考例句：

• The bill whooped through both houses. 此提案在一片支持的欢呼声中由两院匆匆通过。
• The captive was whooped and jeered. 俘虏被叱责讥笑。

11 lyrics   

n.歌词

参考例句：

• music and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart 由罗杰斯和哈特作词作曲
• The book contains lyrics and guitar tablatures for over 100 songs. 这本书有100多首歌的歌词和吉他奏法谱。

12 brags   

v.自夸，吹嘘( brag的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He constantly brags about how well he plays football. 他老是吹嘘自己足球踢得多么好。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• \"I don't care to listen to your brags.\" \"我没有兴趣听你吹了！ 来自飘（部分）

13 rumble   

n.隆隆声；吵嚷；v.隆隆响；低沉地说

参考例句：

• I hear the rumble of thunder in the distance.我听到远处雷声隆隆。
• We could tell from the rumble of the thunder that rain was coming.我们根据雷的轰隆声可断定，天要下雨了。

14 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

15 technically   

adv.专门地，技术上地

参考例句：

• Technically it is the most advanced equipment ever.从技术上说，这是最先进的设备。
• The tomato is technically a fruit,although it is eaten as a vegetable.严格地说，西红柿是一种水果，尽管它是当作蔬菜吃的。

16 basked   

v.晒太阳，取暖( bask的过去式和过去分词 )；对…感到乐趣；因他人的功绩而出名；仰仗…的余泽

参考例句：

• She basked in the reflected glory of her daughter's success. 她尽情地享受她女儿的成功带给她的荣耀。
• She basked in the reflected glory of her daughter's success. 她享受着女儿的成功所带给她的荣耀。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

18 momentous   

adj.重要的，重大的

参考例句：

• I am deeply honoured to be invited to this momentous occasion.能应邀出席如此重要的场合，我深感荣幸。
• The momentous news was that war had begun.重大的新闻是战争已经开始。

19 conversion   

n.转化，转换，转变

参考例句：

• He underwent quite a conversion.他彻底变了。
• Waste conversion is a part of the production process.废物处理是生产过程的一个组成部分。

20 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

21 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

22 taunting   

嘲讽( taunt的现在分词 )； 嘲弄； 辱骂； 奚落

参考例句：

• She wagged a finger under his nose in a taunting gesture. 她当着他的面嘲弄地摇晃着手指。
• His taunting inclination subdued for a moment by the old man's grief and wildness. 老人的悲伤和狂乱使他那嘲弄的意图暂时收敛起来。

23 swirled   

v.旋转，打旋( swirl的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The waves swirled and eddied around the rocks. 波浪翻滚着在岩石周围打旋。
• The water swirled down the drain. 水打着旋流进了下水道。

24 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

25 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

26 conscientious   

adj.审慎正直的，认真的，本着良心的

参考例句：

• He is a conscientious man and knows his job.他很认真负责，也很懂行。
• He is very conscientious in the performance of his duties.他非常认真地履行职责。

27 crescendo   

n.(音乐)渐强，高潮

参考例句：

• The gale reached its crescendo in the evening.狂风在晚上达到高潮。
• There was a crescendo of parliamentary and press criticism.来自议会和新闻界的批评越来越多。

28 layoff   

n.临时解雇，操作停止，活动停止期间，失业期

参考例句：

• Finally, prepare an explanation about what led to your layoff.最后，要准备好一套说辞来解释你被解雇的原因。
• Workers were re-employed after the layoff.在暂时解雇不久后工人们又被再度雇用了。

29 battering   

n.用坏，损坏v.连续猛击( batter的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The film took a battering from critics in the US. 该影片在美国遭遇到批评家的猛烈抨击。
• He kept battering away at the door. 他接连不断地砸门。 来自《简明英汉词典》

30 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

31 prominence   

n.突出；显著；杰出；重要

参考例句：

• He came to prominence during the World Cup in Italy.他在意大利的世界杯赛中声名鹊起。
• This young fashion designer is rising to prominence.这位年轻的时装设计师的声望越来越高。

32 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

33 reclaimed   

adj.再生的；翻造的；收复的；回收的v.开拓( reclaim的过去式和过去分词 )；要求收回；从废料中回收（有用的材料）；挽救

参考例句：

• Many sufferers have been reclaimed from a dependence on alcohol. 许多嗜酒成癖的受害者已经被挽救过来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They reclaimed him from his evil ways. 他们把他从邪恶中挽救出来。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

34 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

35 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

36 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

37 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。