Manute Bol dies at 47

[Bearcat729]

Former NBA player Manute Bol dies at 47 - ESPN

Bol dies after battle with disease
Associated Press

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Manute Bol, a lithe 7-foot-7 shot-blocker from Sudan who spent 10 seasons in the NBA and was dedicated to humanitarian work in Africa, died Saturday. He was 47.

Bol died at the University of Virginia Hospital in Charlottesville, where he was being treated for severe kidney trouble and a painful skin condition, Tom Prichard, executive director of the group Sudan Sunrise, said in an e-mail.

"Sudan and the world have lost a hero and an example for all of us," Prichard said. "Manute, we'll miss you. Our prayers and best wishes go out to all his family, and all who mourn his loss."

Bol played 10 seasons in the NBA with Washington, Golden State, Philadelphia and Miami and later worked closely as an advisory board member of Sudan Sunrise, which promotes reconciliation in Sudan. Bol averaged 2.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.3 blocked shots.

"Manute's impact on this city, our franchise and the game of basketball cannot be put into words," 76ers president and general manager Ed Stefanski said in a statement. "He ... was continually giving of himself through his generosity and humanitarian efforts in order to make the world around him a much better place, for which he will always be remembered."

Bol was hospitalized in mid-May during a stopover in Washington after returning to the United States from Sudan. Prichard said then that Bol was in Sudan to help build a school in conjunction with Sudan Sunrise but stayed longer than anticipated after the president of southern Sudan asked him to make election appearances and use his influence to counter corruption in his home county.

He said Bol had undergone three dialysis treatments and developed Stevens-Johnson Syndrome, a condition that caused him to lose patches of skin.

Prichard said the skin around Bol's mouth was so sore that he went 11 days without eating and could barely talk.

Prichard said it's believed that Bol contracted the skin disease as a reaction to kidney medication he took while in Africa.

Janis Ricker, operations manager of Sudan Sunrise, said Saturday that the organization would continue its work building the school in Bol's home village in southern Sudan. The building still lacks a second floor roof, she said.

She said Bol's goal was to build 41 schools throughout Sudan.

"We are in the process of still helping Manute build a school, and we will continue with that," Ricker said.

[MrBug708]

RIP Big Guy

[korme]

That sounds awful.

[Schmidty]

Damn. He was a good man.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Schmidty

Damn. He was a good man.

Big plus 1. He did so much good work.

[whomario]

sad, sad news ... A few days ago word was he was recovering ... Have been following the situation in sudan myself for years now (one of my best friends comes from there) and naturally also knew about his efforts there. Literally spend almost every dollar he made for his efforts there.

He more than once was broke and publicly said he would quit his work because nothing was changing, but then got back onto it and kept on trying to help...


A good article from a few days back : http://www.montrealgazette.com/sport...659/story.html

[M GO BLUE!!!]

Originally Posted by whomario

A good article from a few days back : http://www.montrealgazette.com/sport...659/story.html

Thank you.

[CrimsonFox]

Wow I remember that cat. Tallest skinniest guy I've ever seen playing ball or anything. Yeah they could have left out the details of his painful disease. WTB some tact.

[stevew]

I remember seeing the Bullets play one time when they had him and Mugsy. Crazy how tall he was.

[SackAttack]

Is it me, or does it seem like the really freakishly tall guys in the NBA end up having kidney trouble later in life? Didn't Mutumbo also have kidney issues?

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

Is it me, or does it seem like the really freakishly tall guys in the NBA end up having kidney trouble later in life? Didn't Mutumbo also have kidney issues?

You may be thinking of Alonzo Mourning, who had to have a transplant.

Manute was a great humanitarian, RIP! Glad to hear they will carry on the work in his honor as well.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

Is it me, or does it seem like the really freakishly tall guys in the NBA end up having kidney trouble later in life? Didn't Mutumbo also have kidney issues?

I'm sure any doctors around here can provide more details, but in my dim recollection, I seem to recall that the very tall in general tend to suffer from unusual medical conditions, or normal medical conditions that are extraordinarily exacerbated by the height of the victims. Basically, evolution didn't design the human body to be that tall, so problems result.

It wouldn't surprise me to find that kidney issues are one such problem.

[korme]

Originally Posted by stevew

I remember seeing the Bullets play one time when they had him and Mugsy. Crazy how tall he was.

[boberot]

My small city brought him in one year for a Cultural Diversity Weekend and I had the honor of eating dinner with him at a local restaurant with a small handful of people.

I told myself over and over not to be in awe when he walked it, but when I saw him duck under the archway to come in, it took my breath away.

He really seemed to be a very humble, very gracious, soft-spoken man with a heart of gold. This is very sad.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by korme

I had this poster in my room as a kid.

[albionmoonlight]

This sucks.

[SackAttack]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

I'm sure any doctors around here can provide more details, but in my dim recollection, I seem to recall that the very tall in general tend to suffer from unusual medical conditions, or normal medical conditions that are extraordinarily exacerbated by the height of the victims. Basically, evolution didn't design the human body to be that tall, so problems result.

It wouldn't surprise me to find that kidney issues are one such problem.

Thought I replied to this already; what I THOUGHT I posted is that my understanding was that the abnormally tall suffer from heart issues by and large.