Muhammad Ali visits ancestral home in Ireland

(CNN) -- Legendary American boxer Muhammad Ali has visited the birth place of his ancestors in Ireland, prompting thousands of well-wishers to line the streets of the town.

The scenes were reminiscent of a presidential visit as the 67-year-old former three-times world heavyweight champion traveled to Ennis, County Clare to see the hometown of his forebear.

The visit was commemorated by the town council with the unveiling of a plaque at the home of his great grandfather and by making Ali the first honorary "freeman" of the town.

Abe Grady -- the grandfather of Ali's mother Odessa Lee Grady -- lived in the town of Ennis, before emigrating to the United States in 1860 where he married an African-American emancipated slave.

Ali -- who was crowned Sportsman of the Century by Sports Illustrated in 1999 -- had his Irish heritage uncovered by genealogists in 2002. "Now that we know Muhammad is an Ennis man, we will be back," Ali's wife Lonnie told Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper.