Remembering Ali: Gene Kilroy on the man behind the legend

5 Live Boxing with Steve Bunce

BBC

Sports, Sports News

4.8 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 2 June 2025

⏱️ 33 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Nine years on from Muhammad Ali’s death, Buncey sits down with his close friend and longtime business manager, Gene Kilroy, to hear first-hand stories about the man behind the legend. From their first meeting in Germany in 1960 to the way Kilroy has upheld Ali’s legacy, they revisit some key moments from an extraordinary life.

Transcript

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0:00.0	No, but Tom, he says to me, what are you wearing?
0:04.2	He's like, you look ridiculous.
0:05.6	His invite said yoga party.
0:07.5	You were spot on, bro.
0:08.4	No, no, no.
0:09.1	His text auto-corrected.
0:11.0	So what was it meant to say then?
0:12.4	Toga party.
0:13.8	What?
0:14.2	Oh no.
0:14.6	So they all came as Romans.
0:16.4	Well, I never thought of it like that.
0:18.5	You about? Never thought of it like that. You About. Join me, Roman Kemp, and me, Tom Gremlin, for our weekly catch-up,
0:23.0	otherwise known as a podcast.
0:24.9	You About?
0:25.6	Listen on BBC Sounds.
0:29.6	BBC Sounds, music, radio, podcasts.
0:35.0	This is Five Live Boxing.
0:38.0	On June 3rd, 2016, Muhammad Ali passed.
0:42.8	He remains one of the most recognisable names and faces in the world, a sporting and cultural icon.
0:51.2	In 1960, won a gold medal at the Rome Olympics. Glory in the professional business followed.
0:57.0	He was the unbeaten heavyweight champion of the world when he decided to fight the American government.
	...

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