The late Muhammad Ali was the greatest athlete of all time to many and a human rights activist to others, but to four Indianapolis residents of contrasting backgrounds, he is an inspirational leader who brought relentless joy to a perpetually chaotic world.
Bob Chambers
Bob Chambers is a boxing professional at his gym in Washington Park in Indianapolis, and also founded the Indiana Black Expo Amateur Boxing program. The U.S. Air Force veteran has traveled the world, including Korea and Japan, where he fought in war. He considered the late Ali a dear friend. In fact, he remembers him from before his glory days, when he was Cassius Clay, the young, eager lad who was training at Chambers’ boxing gym at Riverside Park.
Chambers recollects the time then-Clay, a teenager, fought Cleo Hardin at the old softball stadium off Sherman Drive, which became one of his first times connecting with his longtime friend. “Cleo gave him the fight of his life. Every time we met, he always asked about this guy. He never forgot Cleo,” Chambers says.
As Ali continued on to make history in the boxing world, in 1990, the Indiana Black Expo honored him and renamed its tournament after Ali, which ended up becoming one of the most monumental experiences with Ali that Chambers remembers.
Chambers says he knew Ali was destined for greatness. “I don’t know another person that could do what he did. God put him here. He lit up the world.”
The last time Chambers saw Ali was less than five years ago. He was very involved with the children at Chambers’ gym whom he frequently joked with, pretending he was going to strike them and intriguing them with magic tricks. “He was really great with the kids. He loved them. The man really enjoyed life. I’m definitely going to miss him.”
Chambers says his favorite quote from Ali is, “Float like a butterfly and sting like a bee,” which embodies the spirit of the late and great legend who has impacted the Black community, and likewise transformed communities across the globe.
Patrick Harmon
Patrick Harmon is a Louisville native who has worked in the media industry for more than 20 years. The veteran production assistant at a news station in Indiana has met many greats in his lifetime, including then-senator Barack Obama, former President George Bush and retired NBA player Michael Jordan, but his most favorite of them all was the late heavyweight champion, Ali.
The media professional recollects when he was a child who looked up to the champ. “Muhammad Ali, to me, was my favorite of all. Growing up in the Louisville area in the ’70s, he was iconic.”
His political activism stood out to Harmon. “You see activists a lot today.” Harmon elaborates, “Back then, actors and actresses weren’t like that at all. He was a man who was iconic and not afraid to speak his mind. Everyone respected him because of that.”
That day in history, Harmon was performing his duties as a production assistant at the 2002 Indianapolis 500 Pacers game, where he was star struck. He said to himself, “I got to introduce myself,” and soon after, found himself greeting the heavyweight champion as a fan from Louisville. Ali told Harmon that he knew he was from Kentucky, because “all the ugly people grew up on the other side of the river” in southern Indiana. Harmon erupted with laughter as Ali took his own hand and playfully hit Harmon in the stomach. “I laughed so hard,” he exclaimed.
From that experience, Harmon knew he was living his calling. “I never have to second guess what I do. I always wanted to work in TV. I found out we are all human beings. We always have a common mind one way or another, and that makes us equal.”
José Lusende
José Lusende was born in Mbandaka, Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire), where he grew up as an avid follower of Muhammad Ali ever since the days Ali led Lusende and crowds through the streets with chants and drums.
Lusende, senior consultant of the Office of Institutional Advancement at Martin University, recalls the day of the “Rumble in the Jungle” fight, when he was just 7. It was 1974 when Lusende and his family were awakened by an eruption of chants and drums. “Ali, boma ye! Ali, boma ye!” It was the revolution of the century for Africans. Lusende even recalls households creating boxing bags that were placed outside, as Americans place basketball courts.
Ali was widely considered the underdog at that time. Upon his defeat of George Foreman, a transformation of a new era had arisen for Lusende and his country. “It gave us all hope that the underdog could win,” he says.
“Ali touched the Congo. It was a phenomenon. It transformed cultures. Many of us, like me personally, came to America because of that … because at that point, I was introduced to America. Later on, my dream was realized because of that.”
Lusende’s story is a true testament of the impact of Ali on not just America, but the entire world. “The impact is so immense, it’s immeasurable. Ali is bigger than big!”
Tevin Studdard
Tevin Studdard is a recent college graduate of Indiana State University who majored in communications and public relations. The music producer wrote theme songs for nearly 80 universities across the United States before graduating college, and he, too, can attribute some of his inspiration to the late boxing legend, whom he met as a child.
The ISU graduate owes his phenomenal encounter with Ali to his father, a local photographer who has captured the essence of many great stars. One of his greatest became Ali one day when he was on assignment at the Indiana Black Expo.
Of that memorable night, Studdard recalls, “I met a lot of celebrities, and when I met him, I was smiling the hardest. It was something I can look back on. I met so many people, but after I met him, I realized everything he lived for.”
Ali was a vocal political activist. He publicly refused to fulfill his U.S. Army draft duty to fight in the Vietnam War in 1967, and was consequently stripped of his heavyweight champion title and lost his privilege to box for more than three years.
Studdard says, “He stood on his religious beliefs since Blacks weren’t given equal rights in America at that time. I feel like that’s a testament to his character and his principles. I feel like if every person on this earth has an ounce of the impact that Ali did, it would be a better place.”
