SHAH ALAM, Jan 27 — American professional basketball player Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna were among nine others in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, US, foreign media reported today.
Bryant died at the age of 41 and Gianna was 13 years old. He is survived by his wife, Vanessa, and three daughters, Natalia, Bianka and Capri.
According to The New York Times (NY Times), the retired Los Angeles Lakers superstar was among nine passengers travelling onboard the helicopter. He and his daughter were reported to be on their way to the Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, California, where he coached Gianna’s team.
The other victims in the crash included the pilot, a longtime baseball coach at Orange Coast College John Altobelli, Altobelli’s wife, Keri, and daughter Alyssa.
Los Angeles County fire chief Daryl Osby was reported to have said that the crash site was difficult to access and that firefighters had to hike to the area.
“It was not immediately clear how many passengers the helicopter was approved to transport, and fire officials said it was not immediately clear whether the helicopter was overloaded. They declined to specify the helicopter’s destination,” the NY Times reported.
Meanwhile, the Grammy Awards had paid tribute to Bryant at the beginning of their show, today.
The show’s host and singer Alicia Keys along with R&B group Boyz II Men performed the song ‘It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday’ as a tribute to Bryant.
Bryant was a five-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers and was considered as one of the greatest basketball players.
He retired in 2016 after his 20-year career in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
He was an 18-time All-Star, 15-time member of the All-NBA Team, 12-time member of the All-Defensive team, and the 2008 NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP).
