By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Photo Credit: Nick Lourens
The boxing fraternity was plunged into mourning this morning after the news broke of the death of boxing icon Mzimasi Mnguni in East London hospital.
He was 73 years old.
In the last two months, he has permanently been in hospital where he died at 6.20am on Saturday morning.
Mnguni passed away after a long illness after suffering a stroke in 2014 which left him paralysed from the waist down following a car accident in East London in 2012.
Mnguni produced a plethora of boxing champions such as Welcome “The Hawk” Ncita, Vuyani “The Beast” Bungu‚ Masibulele “Hawk” Makepula and Zolani “Tiger” Petelo.
Ncita became the first boxer from the Eastern Cape to win a world title in 1990 when he beat France’s Fabrice Benichou to take the IBF Super Bantamweight title.
Bungu defended his IBF junior featherweight belt on more than 10 occasions before he succumbed to “Prince” Naseem Hamed.
Mnguni also had a good working relationship with Rodney Berman of Golden Gloves Promotions, and they put together many tournaments and world title fights.
Being an outspoken personality and his passion for the game got Mzi into trouble with the boxing authorities at times.
In 1990 he received the prestigious King Korn/SA Boxing World award for Promoter of the Year.
He was a man of principle and in 2011 he refused to accept a Lifetime Achievement award from Boxing SA as he felt that he had never been recognised as a promoter when other lesser promoters than him were nominated for the promoters’ award.
At the 2016 Boxing SA awards held in Durban in January 2017 he received the Steve Tshwete Lifetime Achievement Award.
Funeral arrangements are yet to be announced.