Jessica Moore added: “Muhammad Ali was such an unbelievable person, not only as an athlete but really a humanitarian”.
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Ali’s funeral will be held Friday in his hometown Louisville, Kentucky.
On Tuesday, organizers started distributing tickets for the event, with residents waking up at dawn to be sure to get a seat. Four tickets maximum per request will be available from the Freedom Hall box office.
Family spokesman Bob Gunnell said Ali’s widow Lonnie spoke to Obama over the phone and appreciated his “kind words and condolences”. We’re here to do the job the way I want it.
The following day, Ali’s coffin which arrived in the city on Sunday aboard a private plane accompanied by his wife and other relatives, will be paraded through the streets for fans from around the world to say goodbye.
The inner circle that helped the Alis with funeral preparations included his lawyer and a business associate, Mr Gunnell said.
The actor has been announced as one of eight funeral pallbearers, alongside Ali’s family members, friends, former heavyweight champion of the world Lennox Lewis, and Jerry Ellis, the brother of Ali’s former sparring partner and fellow former heavyweight champion of the world, Jimmy Ellis.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and King Abdullah II of Jordan will also speak, Gunnell said.
The public memorial service for Ali, who died on Saturday at the age of 74, will be held at the KFC YUM!
After the funeral, Ali will be interred at Cave Hill Cemetery. Revisions continued until just days before Ali died Friday in an Arizona hospital with his family by his side.
The cause of death was septic shock due to unspecified natural causes, his family said.
While she missed her father dearly, Laila also shared that she has taken in comfort in the fact that his suffering has come to an end. “And I’m OK with that”.
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Britain’s Prince Harry, visiting a London boxing club on Monday, replied “Ali” to a young boxer’s question asking who was “the greatest” – the description Ali frequently gave himself. “Following his wishes, his funeral will reflect those principles, and be a celebration open to everyone”. “My father’s been struggling with Parkinson’s disease for many years“, she said.
