Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan will join former US President Bill Clinton and comedian Billy Crystal among the politicians, religious leaders and entertainers speaking at two public memorial services for boxing legend Muhammad Ali this week, a family spokesman says.
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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.
Muhammad Ali’s funeral will be held on Friday in Louisville, Kentucky, and if you want a quick snapshot of the impact he had, consider who is scheduled to speak.
“Everything that we’re doing here was blessed by Muhammad Ali and requested”, Gunnell said.
The service will include a public memorial in a multi-purpose sports arena that seats 22,000 people.
California imam and scholar Zaid Shakir will preside over the service at the KFC Yum!
“It’s been a really bittersweet time for our city”, mayor Greg Fischer said.
“People might not like it, but if you stand up for what you believe in, then you won’t be a pushover”, Richardson said.
Ali and his family had planned his funeral for a decade.
“In addition to the funeral, there will be a procession throughout Louisville to allow the general public to pay their last respect to the ‘Greatest of All Time, ‘” the Ali Center website states.
A total of 15,500 tickets will be available for the service at the KFC Yum! The Dalai Lama was invited but sent regrets that he would be unable to attend.
Others speakers will include representatives of multiple faiths, including Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism and Mormonism.
Most downtown hotel rooms were already booked by Monday afternoon, and those in the rest of the city were selling out fast, said Stacey Yates of the city’s tourism bureau.
Dr. Holly Shill, director of the Ali center, said research shows that those with a history of head injury are at only a slightly greater risk of contracting Parkinson’s.
They chose the venue both because it seats 18,000 and because it holds historical significance for the hometown hero. On Thursday, there will be a family funeral as well as a Muslim prayer service.
The route will pass by sites that were important to Ali: his childhood home, the Ali Center, the Center for African American Heritage – which focuses on the lives of blacks in Kentucky – and, of course, along Muhammad Ali Boulevard.
Canadian-born British boxer Lewis, 50, who like Ali won an Olympic gold medal before claiming the heavyweight title, is the last “undisputed” world heavyweight champion. The group presented “The Book” – about 2 inches thick with funeral details – to Ali in 2010, the family spokesman said.
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The boxer will be buried in a private service at the city’s Cave Hill Cemetery.
