IT WAS billed as an “evening with the greatest”, but Muhammad Ali was not the only great sportsman to turn up for a dinner in his honour last night.
Some of Ireland’s sporting icons were among those who wished to be in the presence of the world’s most charismatic sportsman at the Ballsbridge Court Hotel in Dublin.
Past legends including soccer international Paul McGrath, athlete Eamonn Coghlan, Wicklow manager Mick O’Dwyer, former Kerry footballer Páidí Ó Sé and former Irish rugby player Mick Galwey turned into fans and remembered the charismatic Ali in his heyday before he was afflicted by Parkinson’s disease.
“He was my greatest hero” said Ó Sé. “I remember as a child getting up all hours of the night to watch him with my father.”
All remembered Ali from the halcyon days of heavyweight boxing when the main protagonists were household names.
“I remember vividly biking round to friends in the days of the great boxers,” said rugby pundit Brent Pope.
Among the 300 guests were former taoiseach Bertie Ahern and the new US ambassador Dan Rooney.
There to greet them was property developer Seán Dunne, the owner of the hotel who took one of the tables costing €6,500 for the event.
Ali arrived after the guests were seated through a side entrance of the hotel and was given a tumultuous welcome.
Unable to speak because of his illness, an address was given by his wife Yolanda “Lonnie” Ali.
The event was held to raise funds for the Alltech-Muhammad Ali Centre Global Education and Charitable Fund.
Two Irish charities, the Jack and Jill Foundation and the Irish Rugby Charitable Trust, were also beneficiaries .
For those with deep pockets there was a chance to have their photograph taken with Ali at a reported €1,000 a snap. A pair of boxing gloves signed by Ali and a rugby jersey signed by the 2009 Grand Slam winners were among the many items up for sale.
Ennis visit: civic reception
Muhammad Ali is due in Ennis this afternoon to visit the site of his Irish ancestral home and to be named as the town’s first Honorary Freeman.
Locals in Turnpike Road, from where Ali's great-grandfather emigrated to the US in the 1860s, have decorated their homes with Irish and American flags, as well as bunting, posters and photographs.
Ali will stop briefly near the spot in the Turnpike, where it is believed his great-grandfather's cottage once stood.
He will also attend a fundraiser at Dromoland Castle before he flies back to Kentucky from Shannon.
Three members of three families who claim to be directly related to Ali have been invited to attend the civic reception.
An open-air concert featuring Mundy, Sharon Shannon and the Kilfenora Céilí Band has been organised to coincide with the visit.
The civic reception, which will be closed to the media and public, will be broadcast on a big screen in the town.
