BY TIM PARSONS
A special Muslim funeral for Mohammed Ali in Louisville has already drawn thousands of admirers to the boxers hometown of Louisville, Kentucky.
Roughly 15,000 people from many faiths, races, and creeds are expected to attend the funeral to remember the greatest of all times.
Ali was known as a showman and political activist who captured the imagination of the world. His funeral was planned for ten years by his family, who were intent on giving him a funeral that will honor his Muslim faith
INFLUENTIAL
Influential and charismatic, Ali was an exciting boxer and personality in the sporting world. U.S president, Barack Obama, praised Ali from the White house, showcasing in the process a copy of the book, GOAT: A tribute to Mohammed Ali, and a signed pair of gloves gifted to him by Ali.
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It’s very rare where a figure captures the imagination of the entire world, Obama said. He was one of a kind, and in my books, he will always be the greatest.
PROCESSION
A procession will take Alis body past key sites in his life ahead of an interfaith memorial service. Actor, will Smith and former world heavyweight boxer, Lennox Lewis, will be among the pallbearers, whilst former President, Bill Clinton, will deliver one of the eulogies.
Free tickets for the 18,000 strong memorial service have already gone, and his coffin will be taking past his childhood home, the Ali center, the center for African American heritage, and down Mohammed Ali Boulevard.
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Sports journalist Bryant Gumbel, the daughter of civil rights activist Malcolm X, Attallah Shabazz, and Alis wife, Lounge, and daughters, Marcus and Rushed, are all scheduled to speak too.
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and King Abdullah of Jordan are also expected to speak.
Boxing promoter, Dom King, and civil rights leader, Jessy Jackson were amongst those at the event.
TEACHING
Ali apparently requested for the service to be a teaching event, and American Muslims and Muslim speakers present will surely hope his funeral and the teachings there is able to give a positive image of Islam in an age where the negative portrayals or image of the faith outweigh the positives, especially in this day of modern terrorism.
However, it is worth noting that Ali only converted to Islam as a psychological mechanism of escaping Christianity which he saw as the religion of the slave master. Though it did him good as he was never associated with womanizing, drugs, or wastage of money, unlike many boxers after him.
Ali lost just 5 fights out of 61 contests in an era full of real talent and one true champion. May his soul rest in perfect peace.
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