Final tribute to 'The Greatest' unfolds in Muhammad Ali's hometown

Fans watch a tribute to late boxer Muhammad Ali, showing memorabilias of Ali's 1970 bout with Joe Frazier, dubbed as "Thrilla in Manila" in Cubao Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines June 10, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

Hundreds of people gathered outside Muhammad Ali's boyhood home in Kentucky and elsewhere along a funeral procession route on Friday to celebrate the boxing champion who jolted America with his showmanship and won worldwide admiration as a man of principle.

Ali, a once-controversial convert to Islam who lost three years of his boxing career for refusing U.S. military service during the Vietnam War, died a week ago at age 74 as one of the most respected men in the United States.

A hearse embarked on a route through Louisville, Kentucky, that would take Ali's body past landmarks such as his boyhood home on the West End, traditionally an African-American section of town, and the Muhammad Ali Center, a museum in the center of the Louisville. It was to end at Cave Hill National Cemetery with a private burial.

Thousands of people were later expected to fill the KFC Yum Center for a memorial featuring eulogies by former U.S. President Bill Clinton and comedian Billy Crystal, beginning at 2 p.m. (1800 GMT).

Jordan's King Abdullah had been announced as one of the dignitaries due to attend the sports arena for the service.

Pallbearers will include actor Will Smith, who earned an Oscar nomination for playing the title role in the 2001 film "Ali," and former heavyweight champ Lennox Lewis.

Fans such as Cathy Oost, 61, a retired public school teacher who lives in Louisville, was one of several hundred people to gather under blue skies at the cemetery gates to pay their respects. She held a sign that read "Our Champ, Our Hero."

Oost said she was struck by Ali's speaking out for racial equality and his stance against the Vietnam War, plus his defense of Islam. Ali, a three-time world heavyweight champion, also paved the way for black athletes to express themselves with flair and confidence, and gave U.S. Muslims a hero they could share with mainstream America.

"He stood up for his beliefs when it was unpopular and difficult to do so. We all need to do that more," Oost said.

Bridget McKay, 45, also at the cemetery gates, said she felt drawn to witness history.

"I remember when I was a little girl, all the hype around him," she said. "He was so boastful and confident about who he was. He made me feel that it was OK to be myself, that I didn't have to be anyone else."