words by Elizabeth Ganley-Roper
Named after his family’s idol, Mohamed Ali Ndiaye, 32, was born in Dakar in Senegal. His father, an amateur boxer, had long idealised the great Mohammad Ali and had hoped for a son he could name after his hero. Mohamed began boxing at just five years old.
He left Senegal when he was 20 years old, at the time he was already a champion in his country. He did not leave his country to pursue his boxing career, but to look for work and improve his financial position.
Firstly, he landed in France, but had not luck finding a job, so he came to Italy without documents and made a living as a hawker selling goods in Florence and living in Pontedera. It was on the train to Florence that he first met Federica, who he would later marry.
Along with marriage came citizenship and Mohamed could finally begin competing again. He quickly became a champion in the Super-middleweight class and three months ago became champion of the European Community. After this victory, Mohamed returned to Senegal in order to meet the president, Abdulaye Wade. He has three wishes for the future: to become the world champion, see Ali again and build a hospital in Senegal.
When he was made an honorary citizen of Pontedera, he said, “I love Pontedera because it adopted me when I wasn’t anyone”. When asked where he is from, he responds, “I’m Senegalese because my father is, my mother is, and I grew up eating the fruits of that earth. But I’m also Italian because my love is from here, my children are from here and I live eating the fruits of this earth”.
