With the passing of one of the greatest human beings ever Mr Muhammad Ali I thought I would tell the story again of my very short moment with this amazing man.
It was 1983 I was 18-19 years old and knew basically nothing about photography. Ali came to Edmonton to do a celebrity boxing charity match with local NHL Edmonton Oiler's tough guy fighter Dave Semenko. As part of the event Ali did a personal appearance at Edmonton's pride and joy the worlds largest shopping mall West Edmonton Mall.
I thought why not go to the mall and try and photograph Ali. I gathered up my gear (one camera, two lens) and made my way to the mall and waited. Our quick meeting that followed was sheer luck, and true Ali. I had anticipated his path through the mall and was waiting at the top of escalator on the 2nd level for him with a few others as he and his entourage came up from the first floor. I was waiting at the top of the escalator trying to figure out how to make a picture in the low light with my film camera (no flash). Suddenly there was Ali in front of me wearing a trim blue jumpsuit, he was a big man, bigger than I thought but his face had a beauty and softness to it, something I did not expect. I was rather stunned and just stood there and stared in silence not sure what to do. The surprising part of the encounter is what happened next. Ali saw me this young kid gawking kid with his Canon AE1 round his neck so he stopped walking and turned and posed for me. Gosh I was shocked!! Ali raised his hands into a boxing position and waited for me to take the picture. There he was the greatest, Muhammad Ali standing there in front of me hands held high waiting for me to take his photograph. I lifted my camera fumbling about and did a single exposure. I tried to I make a picture but it all was such a blur, unfortunately I ended up missing the shot, screwed it up some how. Seeing that I had finished with my photo op he smiled, gave me a quick wink (I think that is what he did, that is my memory of the event anyway) and moved on to the adoring near screaming crowd which was now gathering closer and closer.
That was it our tiny moment in time together, "Me and the The Greatest" : )). For a few seconds there we stood toe to toe and looked in to each others eyes. Always a showman, always kind with people and his fans the champ had taken the time to give a dumbfounded Canadian kid a sweet memory, something he remembers fondly to this day.
Ali was a great man who gave so much to the world. He lead a honorable life and fought for the the good of others, RIP brother, there will never be another like you.
A Story On The Ali-Semenko 1983 Charity Event
It was 1983 I was 18-19 years old and knew basically nothing about photography. Ali came to Edmonton to do a celebrity boxing charity match with local NHL Edmonton Oiler's tough guy fighter Dave Semenko. As part of the event Ali did a personal appearance at Edmonton's pride and joy the worlds largest shopping mall West Edmonton Mall.
I thought why not go to the mall and try and photograph Ali. I gathered up my gear (one camera, two lens) and made my way to the mall and waited. Our quick meeting that followed was sheer luck, and true Ali. I had anticipated his path through the mall and was waiting at the top of escalator on the 2nd level for him with a few others as he and his entourage came up from the first floor. I was waiting at the top of the escalator trying to figure out how to make a picture in the low light with my film camera (no flash). Suddenly there was Ali in front of me wearing a trim blue jumpsuit, he was a big man, bigger than I thought but his face had a beauty and softness to it, something I did not expect. I was rather stunned and just stood there and stared in silence not sure what to do. The surprising part of the encounter is what happened next. Ali saw me this young kid gawking kid with his Canon AE1 round his neck so he stopped walking and turned and posed for me. Gosh I was shocked!! Ali raised his hands into a boxing position and waited for me to take the picture. There he was the greatest, Muhammad Ali standing there in front of me hands held high waiting for me to take his photograph. I lifted my camera fumbling about and did a single exposure. I tried to I make a picture but it all was such a blur, unfortunately I ended up missing the shot, screwed it up some how. Seeing that I had finished with my photo op he smiled, gave me a quick wink (I think that is what he did, that is my memory of the event anyway) and moved on to the adoring near screaming crowd which was now gathering closer and closer.
That was it our tiny moment in time together, "Me and the The Greatest" : )). For a few seconds there we stood toe to toe and looked in to each others eyes. Always a showman, always kind with people and his fans the champ had taken the time to give a dumbfounded Canadian kid a sweet memory, something he remembers fondly to this day.
Ali was a great man who gave so much to the world. He lead a honorable life and fought for the the good of others, RIP brother, there will never be another like you.
A Story On The Ali-Semenko 1983 Charity Event
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| Muhammad Ali, photograpehr unknown |
