Muhammad Ali’s hometown in Kentucky honors his legacy with a new holiday

By DYLAN LOVAN

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Muhammad Ali’s hometown honored his legacy on the 10-year anniversary of his death by recalling the unity that brought people around the world together to mourn his passing.

The Muhammad Ali Center, founded by Ali and his wife, Lonnie, held a remembrance ceremony Wednesday morning and launched a new annual event called the “Day of Compassion,” to encourage volunteer work and small acts of caring.

After his death in 2016, tens of thousands of people flocked to the streets to see Ali’s funeral procession. World leaders, athletes and celebrities came to Louisville to pay their respects to the boxing legend known as “The Greatest.”

“For one remarkable week, the eyes of the world turned on our city,” former Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said. “More than 100,000 people lined the streets during the procession, holding hands and chanting ‘Ali! Ali!’ You could hear it all over the city.”

Ali, who grew up in a modest, two-bedroom west Louisville home, became one of the world’s most famous athletes, winning the heavyweight title three times, along with an Olympic gold medal.

“The world knew Muhammad as ‘The Greatest,’ but those of us who knew Muhammad understood something much deeper,” Lonnie Ali said Wednesday during the hourlong event. “His greatness did not come from what he achieved for himself. His greatness came from the way he treated those around him and how he uplifted them.”

Former President Bill Clinton and actor Billy Crystal spoke at Ali’s funeral, and Will Smith, who portrayed Ali in a 2001 movie, was a pallbearer.

The outpouring of love for Ali at his hometown funeral service was livestreamed to millions around the world. Earlier this year, Ali’s face graced a U.S. Postal Service stamp for the first time, showing his enduring influence.