The family of boxing legend Muhammad Ali prepared to accompany his body on the journey back to his hometown louisville, ahead of a public funeral procession and service expected to draw huge crowds in honor of “The Greatest.”
Former president Bill Clinton and comedian Billy Crystal are among those due to speak Friday at a memorial in a huge arena in the Kentucky city where Ali — a three-time world heavyweight champion — grew up and threw his first punches.
The charismatic Ali, a dazzling fighter and outspoken civil rights activist who became one of the 20th century’s most towering figures, died on Friday at age 74 after health problems complicated by a long battle with Parkinson’s disease.
On Sunday, family members were expected to accompany his body from Arizona, where he died, to his home state in the southern United States.
“Our hearts are literally hurting. But we are happy daddy is free now,” one of Ali’s nine children, daughter Hana, wrote on Twitter.
It was not immediately clear when they would travel. A family spokesman did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
louisville Mayor Greg Fischer told AFP that the city — whose residents have left flowers, balloons and tributes at Ali’s childhood home -- was ready for a massive celebration to honor its most famous son.
The mayor said plans for Ali’s last farewell had been in the works for “quite some time,” and that the city — host of horse racing’s elite Kentucky Derby, which draws crowds of nearly 200,000 — was set to “handle big crowds.”
After a small family funeral on Thursday, Ali’s coffin will be transported Friday through the streets of louisville, before a private burial and the public interfaith memorial service at the KFC Yum! Center.
Gunnell said Ali had sought medical attention for a cough, but his condition rapidly deteriorated. He was admitted to a hospital in the Phoenix suburb of Scottsdale, where he had lived for several years with his wife lonnie.
Ali’s family ultimately removed him from life support on Friday, Gunnell said. “We all tried to stay strong and whispered in his ear, ‘You can go now. We will be okay,’” Hana Ali wrote.
Ali’s refusal to serve in the Vietnam War saw him prosecuted for draft evasion, and led to him being effectively banned for boxing for three years of his prime. The US Supreme Court overturned his conviction for draft dodging in 1971.
Ali will be buried at Cave Hill Cemetery in louisville.