Muhammad Ali: Details of the Traditional Muslim Funeral and Interfaith Service in Louisville
— -- Muhammad Ali's body was returned on Sunday to his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, where the legendary boxer and humanitarian will be laid to rest and honored in a traditional Muslim funeral on Thursday and an interfaith service on Friday, a family representative announced today.
World Political and Religious Leaders to Gather to Remember "the Greatest."
Various political and religious leaders will come together to pay their last respects to Ali — a testament, even after his death, to how the "People's Champion" lived his life.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, King Abdullah II of Jordan and former U.S. President Bill Clinton are expected to speak at the Friday service, to be held at at 2 p.m. at the KFC Yum Center, Ali family spokesman Bob Gunnell said during a news conference today.
Representatives from a number of religions, including Islam, Christianity, Catholicism, Judaism, Mormonism and Buddhism will also be present.
"The service will be open to the public, and those who can't attend can view a live stream at AliCenter.org," Gunnell added.
Ali's wife, Lonnie Ali, and his daughter Maryum Ali will also speak at the funeral, in addition to actor Billy Crystal, sportscaster Bryant Gumbel and Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah.
The Yum Center can accommodate 15,500 people, and at a media briefing today at 5:30 p.m. it will be announced how the public can obtain tickets, Gunnell said.
A Traditional Muslim 'Jenazah' to Take Place Thursday
The day before the interfaith service on Friday, a traditional Muslim "jenazah" will be held at Louisville's Freedom Hall, Gunnell announced.
Freedom Hall was the site of Ali's last fight in Louisville, on Nov. 29, 1961.
People of all faiths are welcome to attend the "jenazah" at Freedom Hall, which can seat up to 18,000 people, Gunnell said.
Imam Zaid Shakir, who will preside over Friday's service, explained the significance of Thursday's "jenazah."
"The 'jenazah' prayer, or funeral prayer, is an obligation that the Muslim community in its entirety owes to any deceased individual from the community," Shakir said.
Procession to Take Place Through Ali's Hometown
There will also be a procession through the streets of Louisville on Friday, according to the Ali Center website.
"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. "The procession will travel northbound on Bardstown Road, westbound on the Watterson Expressway and then north on I-65 to westbound I-64 (exiting 9th Street ramp). Then traveling west on Muhammad Ali Blvd. to 34th Street, left on 34th Street to Broadway, making a left on Broadway and then traveling to Cave Hill Cemetery. The route includes locations that were historically important to Muhammad."
Since Ali's death of natural causes on Friday evening, there has been an outpouring of goodwill toward "the Greatest," a man who united many across cultural, religious and political barriers.
President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama released a statement Saturday expressing their mourning at Ali's passing.
"Muhammad Ali was the Greatest. Period. If you just asked him, he’d tell you. He’d tell you he was the double greatest, that he'd 'handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder into jail,'" the statement read. "Like everyone else on the planet, Michelle and I mourn his passing. But we're also grateful to God for how fortunate we are to have known him, if just for a while, for how fortunate we all are that the Greatest chose to grace our time."
