Former President Bill Clinton addressed a crowd of over 15,000 people on Friday night at a memorial service in Louisville, Ky., to honor the recently deceased heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali. Clinton said of Ali, “In the end, besides being a lot of fun to be around I always think of Muhammad as a truly free man of faith.”
Clinton explained his idea that Ali had decided at a young age to walk his own path.
“He decided he would not ever be disempowered,” Clinton said, adding that neither his race nor the expectations of other people “would strip him the power to write his own story.”
Clinton first met Ali when the late boxer was awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal at the White House, but, as Clinton said, the two had many other memorable experiences.
Clinton described a time when, after his presidency had ended and he was trying to get re-acclimated to everyday life, he and Ali attended a dinner where Clinton was feeling a little uncomfortable.
“He knew somehow I was a little off my feet that night trying to imagine this new life and he told me a really bad joke. And he told this so well and laughed so hard that I totally got over it and had a great time.”
Ali died last Friday at the age of 74 in a Phoenix-area hospital due to septic shock according to the family spokeswoman. However, he and his family had been making plans for his funeral for more than a decade at which time Ali decided that he wanted his funeral to be open to ordinary fans. On Thursday, a traditional Muslim funeral service was held where over 6,000 people came to pay their respects.
Earlier on Friday, Ali was laid to rest during a private graveside ceremony at the National Register of Historic Places in Louisville, Ky. Pallbearers included boxers Mike Tyson, Lennox Lewis and actor Will Smith. The memorial service afterwards included global leaders of many faiths. Lonnie Ali, Muhammad Ali’s widow, explained this decision saying, “When his mother died, he arranged for things to be at her funeral and he wanted the same for himself.”
Clinton closed the service that featured many prominent figures, including comedian Billy Crystal, former NBC sportscaster and “Today Show” co-host Bryant Gumbel, and Senior White House Advisor Valerie Jarrett, who read a letter from President Obama.
