However, Muhammad Ali was hardly a typical person.
It cost $80 million to build the Muhammad Ali Center, located near the Ohio River in downtown Louisville. It does an excellent job of taking a look at the life of this influential and complicated athlete.
After watching a short orientation film that reviews Ali's life, visitors wind through a variety of exhibits throughout the building. There's an area dedicated to Ali's core principles - confidence, conviction, dedication, giving, respect and spirituality. A large display is devoted to Ali's boxing career, fight by fight. And there's an interactive exhibit in which people can pound a speed bag (it's tough!) or bounce around a ring while receiving a boxing lesson from Ali's daughter.
Before going down a floor, the museum has a nice touch. A video on Ali, that can be watched from above, is projected on to a boxing ring (shown in photo). The ring is the one used in the movie "Ali," starring Will Smith. That leads into a video area in which you can see some of Ali's famous fights in their entirety. The museum also has plenty of photos, paintings and memorabilia along the way. Yes, the torch Ali used to light the Olympic flame in Atlanta in 1996 is there.
The messaging here can be a little heavy-handed, but that's probably to be expected. Ali taught us a number of lessons over the years - everything from "I don't have to be who you want me to be" to "Use the name for me that I use."
It takes a few hours to go through everything, but it's worth it. This is a wonderful tribute to one of the most influential athletes and personalities of our time.
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