A ‘heart of gold’: Mutombo’s humanitarian legacy

Former U.S. presidents, soccer managers and Olympic athletes were among those who paid tribute to Dikembe Mutombo after his death, saluting a man who leaves a legacy beyond the confines of a basketball court for those who follow in his gargantuan footsteps.

Shortly after announcing the 58-year-old’s death from brain cancer on Monday, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, Vincent Kompany and Allyson Felix all praised his kindness and humanitarian work on social media.

Clinton, who served as US president from 1993 to 2001, praised Mutombo’s “unwavering commitment to helping people around the world,” while Bayern Munich coach Kompany described him as a “legend of the Democratic Republic of Congo” who “has achieved a lot has inspired and given hope to a whole generation of young Congolese around the world.”

The tribute captured the way National Basketball Association (NBA) legend Mutombo seized the wealth and opportunity of his new home in the US during an 18-year playing career, while staying true to his African roots and dedicating his time to helping from others.

“Each of us has a calling,” Mutombo said in 2019.

“My compassion has always been to improve the living conditions of people around the world.

“I can use my voice, my height and a little bit of my money to make the world a better place.”

Standing 7 feet tall and 22 feet tall, Mutombo certainly stood out and his distinct, gravelly voice meant he was a man who demanded attention when he spoke.

Born in June 1966 in Kinshasa, Mutombo moved to the United States in 1987 to study medicine at Georgetown University, but eventually changed his studies to focus on his young basketball career.

Described as a “humanitarian to his core” by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, Mutombo’s charity work began during his playing days with the creation of the foundation that bears his name in Atlanta in 1997.

His move to the city last year, when he joined the Atlanta Hawks, proved to be a pivotal moment according to former Hawks general manager Pete Babcock.

“We signed him that first summer. He bought school buses and shipped them to Congo, and talked about how unstable the country was because of civil wars, especially the medical facilities,” Babcock told the New York Times.

Mutombo paid for the uniforms and expenses for his country’s women’s basketball team during the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, but the most important project he helped finance was a hospital in his home country.

He invested about $15 million (£11.3 million) of his own money in the $29 million (£21.9 million) construction and equipment of the Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital, named after his late mother, which opened in his hometown in 2007 while also investing in an educational institute named after his father, Samuel, in the town of Mbuji-Mayi.

A hero in all of Africa

The Hawks were the second of six NBA teams Mutombo represented during a career that began with the Denver Nuggets. He also played for the Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets, New York Knicks and Houston Rockets.

After retiring in 2009, he became the NBA’s first global ambassador. Former US President Barack Obama said his work in that role “changed the way athletes think about their impact off the field”.

In addition to projects in DR Congo, Mutombo helped finance a dormitory for an orphanage in Johannesburg, South Africa.

‘There is no one, no one who has not touched Mutombo. Nobody,” said a visibly upset Masai Ujiri, the president of the Toronto Raptors, as he paid tribute Monday.

“As big as he is, his heart was bigger.

“You can’t imagine going with him to the village of Dikembe Mutombo – the hero he is in Kinshasa, the hero he is in Africa.”

Mutombo has also held positions at the United Nations Development Program, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the international aid organization Care and the Special Olympics, among others.

“We will never truly be able to measure the impact Dikembe has had through his physical effort,” NBA Africa’s Michael Finley told BBC Sport Africa.

“He never talked about a lot of that.

“He was one of those literal giants who had a heart of gold and gave without expecting anything in return.”

Describing Mutombo as a giant is especially fitting when you think of his work promoting Giants of Africa, Ujiri’s basketball program designed to enrich the lives of young people on the continent – ​​just one example of the many philanthropic organizations he supports. supported.

Such work inspired other NBA stars with African roots to give back to their home country and the continent.

Luol Deng, who has invested in sports facilities in South Sudan and was instrumental in the country’s male basketball players reaching the Olympics this year, called Mutombo a “pioneer”.

“You gave your time, mind and soul to those who needed it most, making you an angel on earth, sent by God,” the former Chicago Bulls center added in a tribute on Instagram.

“You wanted me and others to understand that going home is more important than just talking about it.

“You had the vision to show us how to live our lives.”

Investing in the future of basketball

Mutombo was involved in several schemes to boost the sport that made him famous, paying particular attention to talent scouting in Africa.

“He loved what the game could do to have a positive impact on communities,” Silver said.

In a 2021 interview, Mutombo told BBC Sport Africa that there are “too many talents” on the continent, but building more courts would produce more players capable of reaching the top.

“I used to take the bus for an hour and a half to get to a practice facility,” Mutombo explained.

“Now we are talking about investments coming in. People place exercise facilities in different neighborhoods.

“Africa is a continent full of secrets, full of treasures and I believe all these treasures will be found.”

The current crop of NBA players in Africa consider Mutombo their “godfather,” Finley said.

Despite all the Congolese’s successful achievements on and off the field, he agrees with the many tributes that have highlighted Mutombo’s compassion above all else.

“He was one of the nicest people you’ll ever meet,” Finley said. “He had a big heart.”