President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed his deep condolences at the passing of two outstanding young sportsmen, Bafana Bafana and Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder Jayden Adams and former South African Rugby under-18 prop Luqobo Makwedini.
The latter is said to have collapsed and died shortly after a training session with his French-based club AS Béziers, with reports stating that he suffered from a cardiac arrest.
Adams, on the other hand, was found dead at his home in Stellenbosch and is believed to have taken his own life, despite his family not yet confirming the nature of his passing.
Ramaphosa has since offered his condolences to the families of Adams and Makwedini, who have passed away at the ages of 25 and 20, respectively.
The president’s thoughts are with Adams’ teammates in Bafana and Mamelodi Sundowns, as well as Makwedini’s former SA Under-18 teammates and his club colleagues in France.
‘Double loss’
Ramaphosa said: “It is particularly tragic that we are suffering the loss of two outstanding young athletes at a time when our nation continues to immerse itself in the Fifa World Cup tournament, as well as the Springboks’ and Springbok Women’s matches against Scotland and the USA Eagles in Pretoria today.
“We are grateful for the joy and victories Jayden and Luqobo have given us and their teams as they lived their dreams and held South Africa’s name high on the scoreboards of global sport.
“May their souls rest in peace,” Ramaphosa concluded.
- President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed condolences for the passing of young athletes Jayden Adams (Bafana Bafana, Mamelodi Sundowns) and Luqobo Makwedini (former SA Rugby U-18, AS Béziers).
- Luqobo Makwedini reportedly died from cardiac arrest after a training session in France.
- Jayden Adams was found dead at home in Stellenbosch, with suicide suspected but not confirmed by family.
- Ramaphosa acknowledged the tragedy amid ongoing national sports events like the FIFA World Cup and Springbok matches.
- The president praised their contributions to South African sports and extended sympathies to their families, teammates, and clubs.
