As Ali nears 70th birthday, old friends reminisce (AP)

- (sports.yahoo.com) - 4 months, 1 week ago...

Long before his dazzling footwork and punching prowess made him a three-time world heavyweight boxing champion known as Muhammad Ali, a young Cassius Clay honed his skills by sparring with neighborhood friends and running alongside the bus on the way to school. The man who became the world's most recognizable athlete was a baby sitter, a jokester and a dreamer in the predominantly black West......

To view this article in full, click here.