Former President Barack Obama selected MLB legend Jackie Robinson, who broke baseball's color barrier in 1947, as one of his American heroes, while music superstar Bruce Springsteen named boxer and civil rights activist Muhammad Ali among his choices.
Obama and Springsteen discussed their heroes on the season finale of their Spotify podcast Renegades: Born in the USA, which will be released Monday.
"Muhammad Ali," Springsteen said. "He's way, way at the top."
Ali refused to serve in the U.S. military for the Vietnam War after being drafted, a decision that led to a five-year prison term that was overturned by the Supreme Court, but his status as a conscientious objector made him an icon beyond the world of sports from the 1960s until his death in 2016.