A commemorative USPS stamp of Muhammad Ali is dropping this week

Muhammad Ali once joked that the only way he’d ever get licked was if he became a postage stamp. This week, the punchline becomes reality.

On Thursday, January 15, the U.S. Postal Service will release the Muhammad Ali Forever Stamp, officially adding “The Greatest” to the small but mighty pantheon of American icons honored in miniature. It’s the first time Ali has appeared on a U.S. stamp.

Collectors are already circling their calendars for the release of the classic black-and-white design, featuring an Associated Press photo from 1974 of the three-time heavyweight champion in his prime, gloves up, gaze locked in. Each sheet of 20 stamps also includes a second image of Ali in a pinstripe suit on the design materials, nodding to the man who later became just as famous for his activism, humanitarian work and fearless voice as he was for his footwork.

The stamps will officially go on sale the same day as a first-day-of-issue ceremony in Louisville, Kentucky, Ali’s hometown and the home of the Muhammad Ali Center, where USPS leaders and members of the boxer's family will gather to mark the moment. For fans who can’t make the trip, you don’t need a front-row seat in Louisville to get your hands on one: the stamps will be available nationwide at post offices and online through the USPS store starting Thursday

These stamps aren’t just for die-hard philatelists, either. As Forever Stamps, they’ll always be valid for First-Class Mail, no matter how postage rates change, meaning your birthday cards, thank-you notes and rent checks can now carry a little slice of sports and civil rights history.

Ali’s wife, Lonnie Ali, has called the stamp an “ultimate” tribute, not just because of its permanence, but because of what it represents. “Because people, every time they look at that stamp, they will remember him,” she told the Associated Press. “And he will be in the forefront of their consciousness. And, for me, that’s a thrill.”

While it may just be a small square of paper, it’s also Muhammad Ali, now officially floating through the mail, reminding everyone who licks it exactly who The Greatest was.