Muhammad Ali, the silver-tongued boxer and civil rights champion to be laid to rest on Friday in his home city of Louisville.

Muhammad Ali, the silver-tongued boxer and civil rights champion to be laid to rest on Friday in his home city of Louisville.

Ali, 74, died Friday at a Phoenix-area hospital, where he had spent the past few days being treated for respiratory complications.

A huge procession and funeral will be held for the boxing legend on Friday to "allow anyone that is there from the world to say goodbye", his family said.

The three-time world heavyweight champion, and one of the world's greatest sporting figures, died in Phoenix, Arizona, and his body will be flown to Kentucky in the next two days.

He will be buried at Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville, the city of his birth in 1942.
The fighter had been suffering from a respiratory illness, a condition that was complicated by Parkinson's disease.

After the family service on Thursday, Friday's events will begin with another private prayer service for family members at a Louisville funeral home.

Ali's body will then be taken in procession through the main streets of Louisville, including an avenue that bears his name and Broadway, where a procession was held in 1960 to celebrate his Olympic gold medal.

The main service will be at 14:00 local time (18:00 GMT) at the KFC Yum Center, which seats more than 20,000 people.