Dubai: “I wish I could just touch him,” gushed a Filipina as she jostled for space at the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) at the Jumeirah Lake Towers.
“Touch who?” I asked.
“Kobe Bryant. I just want to touch him and maybe take a picture with him. I’ll put it on Facebook,” she said.
After a while there was shouting and someone said “Kobe is here” as the public relations people did their best to usher the media inside the hall where the American basketball superstar was supposed to speak.
I preferred to hang back and see what would happen for myself. What unfolded in the next few seconds took my breath away as Kobe fans reached out to him, trying to get him to stop and take a picture. Bryant just waved, smiled and exchanged a few words in passing with his fans who had stood for over an hour waiting for him to appear.
Once inside the hall, the NBA star was coolness personified, answering all questions thrown at him.
There was no pretentiousness; just straight-to-the-point answers to all the queries from the media and, in one instance, Bryant even complimented the journalist for asking him a good question.
Here was a man at the top of his sport, earning well in excess of a few million dollars a year.
His endorsement deals way back in 2007 were estimated to be worth $16 million (Dh58 million) a year. By 2010 this had grown to $48 million, ranking him third behind Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan on the Forbes’ list of the world’s highest paid athletes.
Titles have fallen his way with ease ever since he entered the NBA directly from high school. Bryant is a 15-time member of the All-NBA Team and a 12-time member of the All-Defensive team and, as of March this year, he ranked third and fourth on the NBA’s all-time postseason scoring and all-time regular season scoring lists respectively.
Bryant joins boxing legend Muhammad Ali and arguably the world’s best ever footballer Pele on the list of the biggest names in sport to have visited Dubai.
What made these great sportsmen stand out?
And as Bryant’s answers rolled out, I realised that it was just plain simplicity.
Bryant did not mince his words. He was natural. He was all grace. He was all for the people he was talking to. He was a true gentleman and a true ambassador of his sport. A complete athlete.
And, as he left the building, the Filipina girl managed to touch Bryant, and he even obliged her with a picture. Sadly I forgot to ask the girl her name, so that I could check out the photo on Facebook.
