DR Congo remembers Muhammad Ali
June 9, 2016
It has been 42 years since Muhammad Ali met his rival George Foreman, in a boxing match at the Tata Raphael Football stadium in Kinshasa. The memories from the historic match are still fresh in the minds of those who watched it.
60-year-old, Jiress Tshibanda Wata was only 18 when the fight dubbed the 'match of the century' happened. 42 years later, he is the director of the boxing club 'La Tete Haute de Muhammad Ali' or the 'high head of Muhammad Ali'. The club trains both girls and boys and uses the same stadium for their practice.
Modestine Munga, a 22-year-old female boxer is one of the members of the club. In 2013, she won a silver medal at an international match in Cameroon. Although she hadn't been born when the match happened, Muhammad Ali is one of her role models. "I'm like his granddaughter. I know so much about him from our coaches. I know he is the greatest boxer in the world and that is my dream - to be as great as he was."
Coeur de Lion Tshibanda who is the coach of the national boxing team in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) said that although Ali inspired many of the country's boxers, "boxing in Congo will not fade out with the death of Muhammad Ali." Tshibanda met Ali before the match in 1974. He was only 10 years old at the time.
"The Ministry of Sports doesn't give much importance to boxing, but we are asking them to build a Muhammad Ali monument," he said. Coeur de Lion thinks this will be good for tourism.
Reactions to Ali's death
Many Africans reacted to the news of Ali's death through comments on social media. DW users on Facebook noted his sportsmanship and great prowess in the ring. "I will remember him as a black man who set a record as a heavy weight champion, in the history of the world. His speed in the ring was one of a kind," wrote a user by the name of Ayoub Ayoub. Others pointed out his commitment to equality. "As a boxer he was not racist and he defended minority rights," wrote Sombi Mtemi from Tanzania.
In Kinshasa several boxing matches have been organized at the Tata Raphael stadium on Friday as an honorary send-off for the world champion. Ali died of a respiratory illness at the age of 74. For several year he had battled with Parkinson's disease. He will be buried in his hometown Louisville, Kentucky, in the United States.