Zolani Tete, a former two-division world boxing champion, was shot and killed outside his home in Mdantsane, Eastern Cape, on Friday night. He was 38.
South Africa’s sports, arts and culture minister, Gayton McKenzie, confirmed the death, saying Tete was killed inside his car and that a 27-year-old woman riding with him was shot multiple times and remains hospitalized. Police said Tete was waiting for his gate to open when two armed suspects wearing balaclavas opened fire on the vehicle.
Eastern Cape police spokesperson Brigadier Nobuntu Gantana said Tete attempted to escape the gunfire by driving into his yard before he succumbed to his injuries at the scene. No suspects have been identified. Authorities have opened a murder investigation.
Death Comes Weeks Into Comeback Push
Tete’s killing lands just weeks after his four-year doping ban expired on July 29. He tested positive for the steroid stanozolol following a 2022 win over Jason Cunningham in London, a result later overturned to a no contest, and he was stripped of his Commonwealth junior featherweight title. Tete maintained his innocence throughout the suspension.
His manager, Mlandeli Tengimfene, said Tete had been training for a comeback fight reportedly scheduled for November 28. Tete told The Ring magazine in January that the ban would not push him into retirement and that he considered himself a clean athlete.
Fastest Knockout In Title Fight History
Tete held the WBO bantamweight title from 2017 to 2019 and the IBF junior bantamweight title from 2014 to 2015. He is best known for stopping fellow South African Siboniso Gonya in 11 seconds in a 2017 WBO bantamweight title defense, a Guinness World Record for the fastest knockout in a world title fight.
McKenzie called Tete one of the finest fighters South Africa has produced and said he had been robbed of the chance to add to that legacy. Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane also issued a statement mourning the killing, calling it senseless.
