Tributes paid to rugby legend Jonah Lomu as thousands gather for memorial service

Tributes have been paid to the late All Blacks rugby star Jonah Lomu at a public memorial in New Zealand.

Thousands attended the public service on Monday, held in Auckland's Eden Park stadium, where the celebrated winger once thundered down the touchlines.

Lomu's casket - carried by former team mates, including Michael Jones, Frank Bunce and Jerome Kaino - was placed on a specially built stage.

Lomu, rugby's first global superstar, died unexpectedly at the age of 40 on 18 November.

He had been suffering from a kidney disease for 20 years and was awaiting a second transplant.

World Rugby chairman Bernard Lapasset led the tributes, calling Lomu "a giant" of the game.

Former All Blacks coach John Hart said the world never saw Lomu at his best due to his illness.

"It is frightening to consider what he could have achieved on the field if he had not played his entire career with a massive medical handbrake," said Hart.

Many of the speakers at the service referred not only to Lomu's talent on the field but also the many kindnesses he showed off it.

Several remarked on his impact as a role model for children in South Auckland, which has a high proportion of Pacific Island families who related to Lomu, himself of Tongan heritage.

The service, which was broadcast on both main free-to-air television channels in New Zealand, also included musical interludes from South Auckland artists.

Former and present All Black's performed a Haka, a traditional Maori war dance, as Lomu's casket was carried out of the stadium.

Lomu will be buried after a private funeral service later this week.