Muhammad Ali hospitalised with respiratory issues, may be more serious than previous illness

Phoenix (Arizona): Boxing great Muhammad Ali has been hospitalised in Phoenix, and people familiar with his condition say it might be more serious than his previous hospital stays. Two sources told AP on Thursday that Ali is fighting respiratory issues, further complicated by the Parkinson’s that he was diagnosed with in the 1980s. The two spoke separately and both requested anonymity because they were not speaking on behalf of the family. Bob Gunnell, a spokesman for Ali, sent out a release earlier on Thursday saying the former heavyweight champion is being treated at an  unidentified hospital for a respiratory issue. The 74-year-old was in fair condition and the hospital stay was expected to be brief, Gunnell had said. [caption id=“attachment_2814578” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File photo of Muhammad Ali. AP[/caption] Ali has been hospitalised several times in recent years, most recently in early 2015 when he was treated for a severe urinary tract infection initially diagnosed as pneumonia. Ali has looked increasingly frail in public appearances in recent years, including on 9 April, when he wore sunglasses and was hunched over at the annual Celebrity Fight Night dinner in Phoenix, which raises funds for treatment of Parkinson’s. His last formal public appearance before that was in October, when he appeared at the Sports Illustrated Tribute to Muhammad Ali at The Muhammad Ali Center in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, along with former opponents George Foreman and Larry Holmes. Ali has suffered from Parkinson’s for three decades, most famously trembling badly while lighting the Olympic torch in 1996 in Atlanta. Despite the disease, however, he had kept up a busy appearance schedule until recently, though he has not communicated verbally in public for years. Doctors say the Parkinson’s was likely caused by the thousands of punches Ali took during his career. An iconic figure who was at one point arguably the most recognised person in the world, Ali has lived quietly in the Phoenix area with his fourth wife, Lonnie, who he married in 1986. News of his hospitalisation brought well wishes from boxers and others on Twitter, including Sugar Ray Leonard, who modeled his career after Ali. “Prayers & blessings to my idol, my friend, & without question, the Greatest of All Time @MuhammadAli ! #GOAT,” Leonard wrote.