WIFE OF LATE BOXING LEGEND MOHAMMAD ALI IN KABUL TO BUILD A STADIUM

Fri 01 November 2024:

Khalilah Ali, wife of the late boxing great Mohammad Ali, arrived in Kabul on last week Thursday to build a sports stadium.

The General Directorate of Physical Education and Sports of Afghanistan said in a statement that the stadium will be named Pirozi (victory). Khalilah Ali will also establish a sports association named “Mohammad Ali”.

This is the third time that Khalilah Ali has visited Afghanistan.

Khalilah Ali married Mohammad Ali in 1967, before the two divorced in 1977.

She held a meeting with officials of the Olympic Committee and Physical Training in Kabul on Sunday.

She said that Afghan athletes have a good name at the world level and they have a good opportunity in the field of sports, they should use it and participate in the world Olympic competitions.

Khalilah Ali said that she visited Afghanistan in the past as well but now security is stable and the law and order situation has improved.

Atta Amin, one of the delegation members, said that they were interested in using Afghanistan lapis lazuli in the manufacturing of trophies for FIFA and Olympic competitions.

He said they have planned to construct a stadium for sports and Olympic games but did not provide more details about the time and financial cost of the project.

He also exhibited the lapis lazuli of Afghanistan, in which the fingerprint of the world boxing player Muhammad Ali was engraved.

Hafiz Ahmad Jan Zadran, professional and technical head of the Olympic Committee, said that now Afghanistan is stable and peaceful and everyone can come and visit.

He said there is more development and progress in Afghanistan’s sport in the past three years.

He said if an individual or a firm wanted to build sports stadium in Afghanistan they were ready to provide land. He assured the visiting delegation of full cooperation.

Muhammad Ali was a boxer, philanthropist, and social activist who is universally regarded as one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century.

He became an Olympic gold medalist in 1960 and the world heavyweight boxing champion in 1964.

Following his suspension for refusing military service in the Vietnam War, Ali reclaimed the heavyweight title two more times during the 1970s, winning famed bouts against Joe Frazier and George Foreman along the way.

Ali retired from boxing in 1981 and devoted much of his time after to philanthropy. He died in 2016 at the age of 74.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

__________________________________________________________________________