The Louisville Lip is being laid to rest today in his hometown. Though his body has been quiet for a while, his magnificent voice echoes.
So much has been expressed about Muhammad Ali since he passed last Friday, there isn't much to add. George Foreman, who understood the truth of The Greatest as well as anybody, said he'd rather not live in a world without Muhammad Ali.
I'm just happy to have gotten to live in a world with Ali. He was brilliant, he was infuriating. He was cocky, he was devout. He was pretty, he was a warrior. He was not only the greatest boxer, he was the greatest athlete of the 20th century. No individual in sports history has had near the worldwide impact as Muhammad Ali.
Mr. Ali was pure Kentucky. I know it makes some of you crazy to even admit Louisville is in the commonwealth, but get over it. Muhammad was born and raised in this state and if you ever had a doubt listen to a recording, hear him talk about "whupping" somebody's behind. The man had a Kentucky drawl until Parkinson's took it away.
In my mind, he exhibited the best traits of Kentuckians. He was tough, he was smart, he was funny, he was principled, he was hard working, he was creative, and he was for justice. He lived by his own terms, not yours. When things went against him, he kept fighting.
There are folks out there who will never forgive Ali for the Vietnam draft. That is understandable. But he gave up everything for his beliefs. His occupation and income, his world heavyweight championship, and nearly his freedom.
Did he make mistakes? All sorts of them. Was he used by people with different agendas? Probably. But Muhammad Ali was living in the bullseye of American history, in the crosshairs of a decade for assassins. The struggles of today pale in comparison to the things that were going on in the 1960s. Ali was truly the right man for his time. The greatest was, in many ways, everyman.
I was thirteen when Ali fought Joe Frazier in the Fight of the Century. Frazier had secured the championship during Ali's exile and I was firmly in the challenger's camp. Back in 1971, there weren't too many 24 hour sports channels so we had to wait until the morning paper to find out who won. The picture of Ali on his backside in every newspaper said everything I didn't want to hear.
But, of course, Ali returned and in 1974 won back the championship belt he first won 10 years before. The movie "When We Were Kings" brilliantly tells the story of the event that secured Ali's place as The Greatest and tied him to George Foreman forever.
It's hard to look around today and see anyone in the public eye, from athlete to politician, who lived with more dignity and principle than Muhammad Ali. As Kentuckians, we should be proud that he was one of us. As humans, we should be grateful for more like him.