Manute Bol, who was one of the tallest players in NBA history and gained stature off the court for his efforts to save lives in his homeland, Sudan, has died. He was 47. Tom Prichard, executive director of Sudan Sunrise group, said: "Sudan and the world have lost a hero. He was an example for all of us."
Bol, a 7-foot-6 curiosity, made blocking shots his speciality. However, his most lasting legacy may be his efforts to use his celebrity to improve conditions in war-torn Sudan. "God guided me to America and gave me a good job," he told Sports Illustrated in 2004. "But he also gave me a heart so I would look back."
As a rookie in Washington, Bol got a chance to play regularly. He started with 60 games that season, which would be a career high. Bol spent the 1993-94 season with Miami, Washington and Philadelphia and played five games for Golden State in the 1994-95 season. He used his NBA career to support his extended family and relief efforts in Sudan, "I don't like war," he told The New York Times in 2001. "I used to but not any more."
Bol's finances collapsed after he left the NBA, in part from the millions he spent on Sudan and in part from investments that went bad. "He did a lot for his people," Warriors coach Don Nelson told the Montreal Gazette in 2002. "He gave money to support his people who were starving."
"I never thought about the money I lost," Bol told the New York Daily News in 2004. "It wasn't lost. It helped Sudan."
Trying to raise money for Sudan, Bol took part in stunts such as fighting former Chicago Bears lineman William "Refrigerator" Perry in a televised boxing match. Ed Stefanski, president and general manager of 76ers, said in a statement that Bol "was continually giving through his generosity and humanitarian efforts to make the world around him a much better place".
Bol, who was seriously injured in a car accident in 2004, was hospitalised after returning to the US from Sudan. He was helping build a school with Sudan Sunrise, a humanitarian group.
