Restate the questions
Answer in a complete sentence
Provide textual evidence from the passage
Question 1. Give three examples from the text which support Muhammad Ali’s statement that, “I have always believed in myself.”
Question 2. How was Muhammad Ali’s will tested after he retired?
Poem:
I have always believed in myself, even as a young child
growing up in Louisville, Kentucky. My parents instilled a sense of
pride and confidence in me, and taught me and my brother
that we could be the best at anything. I must have believed
them, because I remember being the neighborhood marble
champion and challenging my neighborhood buddies to
see who could jump the tallest hedges or run a foot race
the length of the block. Of course I knew when I made the
challenge that I would win. I never even thought of losing.
In high school, I boasted weekly — if not daily — that
one day I was going to be the heavyweight champion of the
world. As part of my boxing training, I would run down
Fourth Street in downtown Louisville, darting in and out of
local shops, taking just enough time to tell them I was
training for the Olympics and I was going to win a gold
medal. And when I came back home, I was going to turn
pro and become the world heavyweight champion in
boxing. I never thought of the possibility of failing — only
of the fame and glory I was going to get when I won. I
could see it. I could almost feel it. When I proclaimed that I
was the "Greatest of All Time" I believed in myself. And I still do.
Throughout my entire boxing career, my belief in my
abilities triumphed over the skill of an opponent. My will
was stronger than their skills. What I didn't know was that
my will would be tested even more when I retired.
In 1984, I was conclusively diagnosed with Parkinson's
disease. Since that diagnosis, my symptoms have increased
and my ability to speak in audible tones has diminished. If
there was anything that would strike at the core of my
confidence in myself, it would be this insidious disease. But
my confidence and will to continue to live life as I choose
won't be compromised.
Early in 1996, I was asked to light the caldron at the
Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta. Of course my
immediate answer was yes. I never even thought of having
Parkinson's or what physical challenges that would present for me.
When the moment came for me to walk out on the
140-foot-high scaffolding and take the torch from Janet
Evans, I realized I had the eyes of the world on me. I also
realized that as I held the Olympic torch high above my
head, my tremors had taken over. Just at that moment, I
heard a rumble in the stadium that became a pounding
roar and then turned into a deafening applause. I was
reminded of my 1960 Olympic experience in Rome, when I
won the gold medal. Those 36 years between Rome and
Atlanta flashed before me, and I realized that I had come full circle.
Nothing in life has defeated me.
I am still the "Greatest." This I believe.