"The kindest soul" - Olympic champion Allyson Felix pays tribute to NBA legend Dikembe Mutombo who passed away due to brain cancer

By Animesh Pandey

Modified Oct 02, 2024 13:22 GMT

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Olympic champion and former sprinting legend Allyson Felix paid tribute to NBA legend Dikembe Mutombo, who died on Monday. The Congolese American succumbed to brain cancer at the age of 58.

Following news of Mutombo's death, Felix took to social media to share a photo of her with Mutombo on her Instagram story with a caption that read:

"the kindest soul

Rest well Dikembe"

Screenshot of Allyson Felix's Instagram story on Dikembe Mutombo [Image: Allyson Felix's Instagram]

Mutombo, known to many fans as 'Mount Mutombo,' is regarded as one of the best shot-blockers and defensive players of all time in the NBA. Born in Kinshasa, Congo, Mutombo relocated to the United States to play college basketball for the Georgetown Hoyas. He was soon playing in the NBA, signing up in 1991 for his first season with the Denver Nuggets.

During his NBA career, Mutombo played for six NBA teams over 18 seasons. He was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year four times and he is tied with Ben Wallace and Rudy Gobert for the most number of Defensive Player of the Year awards.

Mutombo led the NBA in blocked shots three times, led the league in rebounds twice, and was named to the NBA All-Star teams eight times. The NBA legend also featured as a cameo in the 2002 movie ‘Like Mike’! On January 10, 2007, Mutombo reached second place on the list of NBA career leaders in blocked shots. He last played for the Houston Rockets when he retired from the game in 2009.

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Allyson Felix on learning valuable lessons from playing basketball

Olympic champion Allyson Felix has earned a name for herself in the field of athletics, becoming one of the most decorated female track and field athletes in the history of the USA. Apart from her legendary journey in track and field, very few people know about Felix's love for basketball.

In her interview with Olympics.com, the former sprinting sensation mentioned how she bought a Kobe Bryant jersey when she was 12 years old and how she was his fan ‘from the very beginning.’

Allyson Felix recounted her Instagram post from early 2020, as she said,

"Playing a sport like basketball, 'gave me confidence, taught me work ethic, leadership, how to deal with failure, the value of teamwork and countless other invaluable lessons I still rely on today.” [via Olympics.com]

At a charity basketball event, Allyson Felix revealed what kind of basketball player she would want to be. In her words,

"“I can jump pretty good. So, I think my strength would be in rebounding.”

In early 2024, when WNBA legend Candace Parker announced her retirement, Allyson Felix wrote in her Instagram post,

"Legendary. Game Changer. Inspiration. I’ve loved watching you since the beginning and can’t wait to watch you continue to thrive off the court💙"

Allyson Felix marked her presence on the world stage with a silver medal in the women's 200m at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Since then, she never looked back, participating in five Olympics and winning 10 Olympic medals, including 7 Olympic gold medals. She last won a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics in the women's 400m before retiring from the sport in 2022.