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Boxing great Muhammad Ali hospitalized in ‘grave condition’

Saturday, 04 June 2016 2:04 AM [ Last Update: Saturday, 04 June 2016 5:21 AM ]

Muhammad Ali was close to death in a Phoenix hospital on Friday, a source close to the family said.

The all-time boxing legend Muhammad Ali is in “grave condition” following a serious respiratory issue, media reports say.

The 74-year-old former heavyweight champion's family has been told by doctors that he is feared to be "near the end.”

Ali, born Cassius Clay, is currently receiving intensive care at a hospital in Phoenix, Arizona only a day after being hospitalized in what his spokesman Bob Gunnell described on Thursday as a "brief" stay.

The Olympic gold medalist’s breathing condition is attributed to his advanced Parkinson's disease which he has been battling for more than 30 years.

“Like in the ring, Ali is a fighter on the ward,” said a source. “Doctors are working to regulate his breathing but it is being hampered by his Parkinson’s.”

“His children are all extremely concerned and dropped everything to be with him. They fear the worst.”

Ali, who led sensational rivalries with Joe Frazier and George Foreman, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 1981, some three years after retiring from boxing.

The ring icon’s public appearances have faded over the past several years because of his ailing health.

In 2014, his brother Rahman Ali sparked concerns by stating that Ali was unable to speak because of his frailty.

His deteriorating health condition caused the boxing great to miss the Hollywood premiere of the new I Am Ali documentary in 2014.

Abraham Lieberman, Ali’s doctor, said Friday that he could not discuss the legend's condition. “I can't really say much more than what's in the papers.”

Generally referred to as one of the greatest boxing heavyweights of all time, Ali was known for his highly unusual fighting style which involved dazzling speed, lightning-fast reflexes and constant movement around his opponents, perfectly summed up in his catchphrase: “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.”

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