Zolani Tete, Former World Champion Boxer, Found Dead at 38

Zolani Tete, a former two-division world boxing champion, was found dead at the age of 38 after a shooting incident outside his residence in Mdantsane, South Africa. The South African Department of Sport confirmed his death on Friday night.

Tete began his professional boxing career with an impressive record of 13 wins before facing his first championship challenge, where he lost to Moruti Mthalane in an IBF flyweight title match. Following that defeat, he experienced a mixed record of 3 wins and 2 losses before embarking on a remarkable 12-fight winning streak.

During this successful period, Tete won the IBF junior bantamweight championship and defended it once before vacating the title. He later moved up to bantamweight, where he captured the interim WBO championship and was elevated to full champion. Tete made history with the fastest knockout in a title fight, defeating Siboniso Gonya. However, he faced challenges later in his career, including a suspension for performance-enhancing drugs that ended shortly before his death.