Thousands are bidding a final farewell to legendary boxer Muhammad Ali in 19-mile-long funeral procession and service in the Kentucky town where he once shadowboxed and dreamed of greatness.
Actor Will Smith and ex-boxers Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis are among the pallbearers who placed Ali’s coffin in the black hearse for the procession that began around 10.35am ET, about 65 minutes after the scheduled start time.
The procession started at his boyhood home and then traveled along the boulevard that bears his name and the museum that stands as a lasting tribute to his boxing triumphs and his humanitarian causes outside the ring. Mourners standing alongside the procession route could be heard chanting ‘Ali’ or ‘The champ is here’ while waving and clapping at the vehicle carrying his body.
Some even ran into the street to touch the hearse, while others jogged alongside of it for a short period of time. Fans of the Kentucky native could be seen tossing flowers at the hearse throughout the procession. Louisville is accustomed to being in the limelight each May when the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs captures the world’s attention. But the send-off for the three-time heavyweight champion and global advocate for social justice looms as one of the city’s most historic events.
This is the second day of memorial ceremonies for Ali, who died last Friday age 74 after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease, as yesterday more than 14,000 mourners joined the family for the traditional Muslim prayer service at Kentucky’s Freedom Hall to celebrate the sporting legend’s extraordinary life.
“We’ve all been dreading the passing of The Champ, but at the same time we knew ultimately it would come,’ Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said. “It was selfish for us to think that we could hold on to him forever. Our job now, as a city, is to send him off with the class and dignity and respect that he deserves.” The faithful traveled from all over the world to pay their respects. Thousands more lined the procession route Friday to wave a final goodbye to the city’s favorite son.
The motorcade started at the funeral home and headed north onto the interstate. It then paused briefly to overlook the Muhammad Ali Center in the heart of downtown. The cars headed west onto Muhammad Ali Boulevard, passed the Kentucky Center for African-American Heritage and visited his childhood home on Grand Avenue.
It will then turn toward his final resting place at the Cave Hill Cemetery where his family and closest friends will gather for a private burial. At 3pm, thousands will gather at the KFC Yum Center for a final send-off befitting The Greatest. The service will feature a eulogy by former President Bill Clinton, a longtime friend, and remarks by comedian Billy Crystal, television journalist Bryant Gumbel and the champ’s wife, Lonnie.
Gunnell said Tyson wasn’t sure whether he would attend the service because of an earlier commitment. He said Tyson was highly emotional when he learned of Ali’s death and wasn’t sure whether he could handle the emotions of Ali’s memorial. President Barack Obama was unable to make the trip because his daughter, Malia, is graduating from high school. Valerie Jarrett, a senior White House adviser, will read a letter Obama wrote to Ali’s family at the service.
. Muhammad Ali remains being carried for burial
In a video message, Obama said: ‘This week we lost an icon. A person who for African Americans, I think, liberated their minds in recognizing that they could be proud of who they were.’ The boxer’s youngest son, Asaad Ali, 25, shared his recollections and his final moments with his father. “What I can say about that room (before Ali died), it was just a really emotional, powerful, spiritual moment that we all shared with him”, Asaad said.
“I was able to say my last few words that I really wanted to say to him for a while now’. Asaad, who was born roughly a decade after his father left the boxing ring, is the youngest of Ali’s nine children. He shared how his famed father would often pick up people while driving home on the street and taken them back home to do magic tricks.
“We could be driving down the street and there’d be somebody on the road — in the middle of the road,’ Asaad said. “And he’d pick ’em up and we’d put ’em in the car and he’d take ’em home to do magic tricks. My mom would be furious at him’. Attendees at his Muslim service on Thursday were young and old; black, white and Arabic. Some wore traditional Islamic garb, others blue jeans or business suits.
Organizers say the service on Thursday was meant especially as a chance for Muslims to say goodbye to a man considered a hero of the faith. Former boxer Sugar Ray Leonard attended the Muslim prayer service for his friend whom he called ‘a man of great character and courage.” He said Ali’s most important contributions were as a humanitarian and a fighter for civil rights and social justice and that Ali ‘impacted the world.’
Leonard believes Ali’s most memorable moment as a boxer was when he defeated George Foreman to reclaim the world heavyweight boxing title in 1974. Leonard said he ‘was so afraid that George was going to kill him.’ He said Ali ‘meant the world’ to him: ‘He was my idol, my friend, my mentor. He was someone that I looked up to and someone who I tried to emulate during my boxing career.’
Credit :saharareporters
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