When Ali Came to Ireland

{{Short description|Documentary film (2013) about a Muhammad Ali boxing fight (1972) in Ireland}}

{{Use Hiberno-English|date=February 2014}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2014}}

{{Infobox television

| image = When Ali Came to Ireland (screenshot).jpg

| alt = Talking man facing camera

| caption = Ali during a 1972 interview in Ireland

| director = Ross Whitaker

| producer = Aideen O'Sullivan

| writer =

| starring = {{Plainlist |

• Muhammad Ali
• Alvin Lewis
• Cathal O'Shannon
• Jimmy Magee }}

| music =

| cinematography =

| editor =

| company = True Films

| network = RTÉ One

| released = {{Start date|2013|01|01|df=y}}

| runtime = 50 minutes

| country = Ireland

| language = English

}}

When Ali Came to Ireland is a 2013 Irish documentary film directed by Ross Whitaker. It tells the story of how Killorglin-born circus strongman and publican Michael "Butty" Sugrue put up £300,000 and persuaded the renowned American boxing champion Muhammad Ali to make his first visit to Ireland to fight against ex-convict Alvin Lewis in Croke Park, Dublin in 1972.[http://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/columnists/michael-moynihan/new-years-treat-as-alis-dublin-date-relived-on-the-box-217226.html New year's treat as Ali's Dublin date relived on the box] Irish Examiner, 2012-12-17.

Ali went to Ireland with an entourage on 11 July 1972 to spend time training for the fight on the 19th."The Big Fight: Muhammad Ali v Al 'Blue' Lewis", Dave Hannigan (2002). {{ISBN|978-0-224-06306-7}}. While there, he was interviewed for RTÉ Television by Cathal O'Shannon and was taught the rudiments of hurling (an Irish stick-and-ball field sport) by the champion hurler, Eddie Keher.{{cite web

| title = How a circus strongman lured the ringmaster Muhammad Ali to Dublin

| first = Joe

| last = O'Shea

| date = 2012-12-22

| website = Irish Independent

| quote = When Ali Came To Ireland – RTÉ One – 6.30pm New Year's Day [2013]

| url = http://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/how-a-circus-strongman-lured-the-ringmaster-muhammad-ali-to-dublin-28951041.html

}}[http://www.irishtimes.com/sport/end-of-the-long-road-to-get-ali-s-visit-on-film-1.5760 End of the long road to get Ali's visit on film] Irish Times, 2012-12-31. He revealed to the media that, apart from winning the fight, his main ambition in Ireland was to meet the Northern Irish member of parliament, Bernadette Devlin, whom he admired. He wanted to talk about her politics, philosophy, and aims in public life. Devlin visited Ali's camp and had dinner with him.{{cite book | last=O'Toole | first=Fintan | date=2023 | title=We Don't Know Ourselves: A Personal History of Modern Ireland | location=New York | publisher=Liveright Publishing Corporation | page=236 | isbn=978-1-324-09287-2}}

He won the Lewis fight, attended by a little over 18,000 people,{{cite news

| title = When Ali came to Ireland

| first = Éanna

| last = Ó Caollaí

| date = 2016-06-04

| newspaper = The Irish Times

| url = https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/when-ali-came-to-ireland-1.2673128

| url-access=subscription}} with a technical knockout in the 11th round, and Butty Sugrue lost a lot of money bankrolling it. The documentary was first broadcast on RTÉ One on New Year's Day, 2013.[http://www.irishcentral.com/ent/New-documentary-focuses-on-When-Ali-Came-to-Ireland---VIDEO-183927081.html New documentary focuses on "When Ali Came to Ireland"] Irish Central, 2012-12-18.[http://www.rte.ie/presspack/2013/01/01/when-ali-came-to-ireland/ When Ali Came to Ireland] RTÉ Press Centre, 2012-12-20.[http://www.independent.ie/lifestyle/glove-story-the-day-the-lord-of-the-ring-bewitched-ireland-28954937.html Glove story: the day the lord of the ring bewitched Ireland] Irish Independent, 2013-01-05.

Ali returned to Ireland twice in later years. He took part in the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics in Dublin in 2003,[https://www.espn.com/sports/boxing/news/story?id=3484739 Legend of Ali-Lewis fight in Dublin grows with each year] ESPN, 2008-07-18."Muhammad Ali to attend Olympics", Sunday Mirror, 2003-06-15. and visited the birthplace of his great-grandfather, Abe Grady, in Ennis in 2009 (Grady left Ireland for America during the 1860s). Ali was greeted in Ennis by 10,000 people and was made an honorary freeman of the town.[http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0901/121240-alim/ Ennis honours Muhammad Ali] RTÉ News, 2009-09-02.