COLCHESTER, Conn. -- Former NBA center Manute Bol was
seriously injured in a highway accident Wednesday night, police
said.
Bol, 43, was riding in a cab when it hit a guardrail
and swerved across both lanes before hitting a rock ledge and
rolling over, killing the driver and throwing the 7-foot-7-inch Bol
from the car. Bol sustained a head injury and was taken by
helicopter to Hartford Hospital, state police spokesman J. Paul
Vance said.
"The doctor said, for his age, he's in extremely good shape and
would probably be dead if he wasn't an athlete," longtime friend
Andrew Kearns said.
Bol's condition was not released Thursday, but Kearns said Bol has a broken neck and is sedated.
"It's going to be a long recovery, unfortunately," Kearns said.
The accident occurred about 30 miles southeast of Bol's home in West Hartford.
Bol was a second-round draft pick of the Washington Bullets in 1985 after spending one year at the University of Bridgeport, a Division II school. He played 10 seasons in the NBA with the Bullets, Golden State and Philadelphia, retiring in 1995 after averaging 4.2 rebounds and 2.6 points per game during his career. He blocked more shots per minute than anyone in league history.
Bol was born in Turalie, a remote village in the southern part
of Sudan. The region is the home of the Dinkas, the tallest people
in the world. For a time, he was the tallest man ever to play in the NBA.
Many of his relatives were leaders in the Sudanese People's
Liberation Army, the rebel movement. Since 1991, he has made
several visits to refugee camps, where people greeted him as a
king.
An important backer of the rebel movement, Bol contributed an
estimated $3.5 million to Sudanese causes during his 10 years in the NBA. He begged for American intervention in
Sudan and picketed the country's embassy.
In 2002, Bol signed with the Indianapolis Ice of the Central
Hockey League to raise money for the people of his war-torn
homeland. He never stepped on the ice.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.