US president Barack Obama told the world today that we will never see another man like Nelson Mandela - but called on young people around the globe to "make his life's work your own".
In a powerful speech at a huge memorial service for the late South African president in Johannesburg, the American leader paid touching tribute to the man who he said had inspired his own political ambitions, and made him strive to be a better man.
But Obama also called out those who claim to "embrace" Madiba's legacy of racial reconciliation, "but passionately resist even modest reforms".
He said: "There are too many leaders who claim solidarity with Madiba’s struggle for freedom, but do not tolerate dissent from their own people. And there are too many of us who stand on the sidelines, comfortable in complacency or cynicism when our voices must be heard."
Speaking at the FNB Stadium before a crowd of more than 80,000 - including representatives from more than 100 countries - President Obama said he was there to mark a life "unlike any other" and the "last great liberator of the 20th century".
He drew parallels between Mandela's fight against the apartheid regime and the civil rights movement in the United States, saying Madiba's achievements meant it was tempting to remember him as a "serene and smiling icon".
But he said: "It was precisely because he could admit to imperfection - because he could be so full of good humour, even mischief, despite the heavy burdens he carried - that we loved him so."
Obama said Mandela showed the world the power of action and ideas, which he then "chiseled into laws and institutions".
He went on to say that although his death was a time for mourning, Mandela's passing should also prompt the question: "How well have I applied his lessons in my own life?"
He added: "It is a question I ask myself - as a man and as a President."
He said he and wife Michelle had benefited from the struggles of people like Mandela, and reminded the crowd that Mandela's story was part of his own.
He concluded: "We will never see the likes of Nelson Mandela again. But let me say to the young people of Africa, and young people around the world - you can make his life’s work your own.
"Over 30 years ago, while still a student, I learned of Mandela and the struggles in this land. It stirred something in me. It woke me up to my responsibilities, to others, and to myself, and set me on an improbable journey that finds me here today.
"And while I will always fall short of Madiba’s example, he makes me want to be a better man. He speaks to what is best inside us."
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