A year after Kobe Bryant’s tragic death, the sports world still mourns

Debris is scattered across a mountainside in Calabasas, and a helicopter has crashed. It quickly becomes clear that it is Kobe Bryant’s Sikorsky and that the basketball star died in it. A tragedy that hit the sports world to its core is approaching – and the terrible memories of January 26, 2020 are coming back.

“It is said that time heals all wounds,” said LeBron James of NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers, referring to the upcoming anniversary of his death a year after the accident. “Only time” can do that, says the current leader of the franchise where Bryant spent his entire career, as “devastating and tragic” as the loss is to this day.

James honors Bryant’s legacy as best he can, he led the Lakers to their first championship in a decade this fall, and he, of course, dedicated the triumph to Bryant. The fact that his role model died at just 41 still hurts a lot: “It takes time, everyone grieves differently.”

At 9:45 a.m. the helicopter crashed 50 kilometers northwest of downtown LA. Bryant’s daughter Gianna (13) was on board; she was supposed to play a tournament at the Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks. The training center, named after Bryant’s nickname. Today it is just called Sports Academy – out of respect for the deceased.

Sports world touched by misfortune

“We are approaching the anniversary, it makes our hearts sad when we realize that he is no longer there,” said Lakers professional Anthony Davis: “I still have problems with it, you just can’t believe it.”

Tyronn Lue, coach of the LA Clippers and former teammate of Bryant, feels the same way. “I generally don’t deal well with death,” said Lue, adding that he had to get rid of the pictures in his house that showed him with the five-time champion. “I’m trying to come to terms with it. He was such a great guy.”

The death particularly affected the world of sports. “Mamba, this hits me really hard,” wrote Germany’s basketball idol Dirk Nowitzki at the time. Even Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan, the greats among the greats, were pulled from under their feet.

The northern Italian city of Reggio Emilia dedicated a space to Kobe and Gianna Bryant. The American spent several years of his childhood and youth in Reggio Emilia because his father played there as a professional basketball player.

Kobe Bryant

Fotocredit: Getty Images

2024-01-25 22:10:00
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