He's probably the best known and best loved sportsman. Three times heavyweight champion with a killer personality. His agile body that thrilled so manned and floored so many others succumbed to a 30 year battle with Parkinson's disease but agile mind remained with us to the end.

Today Loughrea mourns the death of a legend. Muhammad Ali, born Cassius Marcellus Clay born in Louisiana on the 17,Jan'42, descendent of Ennisman Abe Grady his great grandfather, passes away aged 74 at a hospital in Phoenix while being treated for a respiratory illness.

Ali will be remembered not only as a champion boxer with 56 wins and only 5 losses, his ring shuffle, "the fight" with Frazier in Maddison Square Gardens in '71, "the rumble in the jungle" with George Foreman in '74, his fight with Alvis Lewis here in Croker in ,72, the "thrills in Manila" in 75, his heavyweight titles, his rhyme, his refusal to fight in the Vietnam war, opening the 2003 Dublin Special Olympics, but also for his bright humorous entertaining personality that we will miss.

Ali's funeral will take place in Louisiana in the next few days.