South African race driver Gugu Zulu has died on Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.
Zulu and his wife were two of 46 South Africans who taking part in the Trek4Mandela expedition, led by experienced mountaineer, Sibusiso Vilane. The were expected to summit today, on Mandela Day.
In a statement released on Monday, the Nelson Mandela Foundation announced that Zulu lost his life early this morning while trying to summit the mountain.
“Details are sketchy. What we do know is that Gugu experienced problems breathing. The medical team supporting the trek put him on a drip and they descended the mountain with him. We are informed that the medical teams tried everything possible to save his life,” the foundation said.
Sello Hatang, CEO of the Nelson Mandela Foundation said, “I am devastated. I knew him well. I recruited him to climb Kilimanjaro. The last thing he said to me at the airport before he left last week was that he wanted to speak about doing other Mandela Day projects. I feel a huge sense of loss.”
Zulu won the SA National Rally Class Championships in 2007, 2009 and 2010. He also won the Vodacom Isondo Sports 2000 national championship.
He has also won the Wesbank Award and Goodyear Star of Tomorrow Award and has a Guinness Achievement Award under his belt.
Zulu posted images of himself and his wife on their trip two days before he died.
Source: ENCA
