Jonah Lomu, the gentle giant of rugby, died in Auckland overnight on Tuesday.
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It is still unknown what caused his death, with his doctor only saying that it was unexpected.
Lomu was inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame in 2011, when the sport’s governing body said he had left an indelible mark on the World Cup.
“The family are obviously devastated, as are friends and acquaintances”.
Murdoch’s company later secured a US$555 million 10-year agreement for rights to televise a new southern hemisphere competition involving New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.
When he was 12, machete-wielding gang members hacked to death his uncle in a turf war, prompting his mother to enrol him for a rugby scholarship at a top school to give him an escape route. He channeled anger he felt about his father into the sport.
Nephrotic syndrome, a degenerative kidney illness, curtailed his career at his peak. The effort was this year voted the greatest in World Cup history. This was the last Test lost by the All Blacks at Eden Park.
Lomu, who appeared for the All Blacks between 1994 and 2002, had a kidney condition that was well-publicised. His mother, Hepi, held together the family living on a shoestring and acted as a buffer between father and son.
Olympic runner Nick Willis posted: “A man that brought so much joy to me as a young lad has passed away”. He was quite violent when he was drunk.
Former BBC Radio 1 host and fellow Kiwi Zane Lowe tweeted: “The one and only Jonah Lomu R.I.P”.
“Very sad news about Jonah Lomu, such an inspirational sportsman on and off the field” – English sprinter Andrew Pozzi. Everything that I achieved in rugby I cherished.
Lomu was his devastating best at the 1995 and 1999 World Cups, scoring 15 tries in 11 games but never winning the trophy. The story goes that then All Blacks coach Laurie Mains didn’t quite know how to deal with his 20-year old prodigy.
The youngest-selected All Black, Lomu went on to score 37 tries in 63 Tests.
“I think our Adidas contract probably was initiated by (former Adidas head) Robert Louis-Dreyfus seeing him (Lomu) play in the World Cup”, Tew added. He required dialysis three times a week.
As well as playing for several domestic teams in his homeland, Lomu made 10 appearances for Cardiff Blues in Wales, shortly before his retirement in 2007.
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She said the Māngere community in Auckland where Lomu grew up was in shock, and people were walking from house to house, talking, crying, eating and remembering their local boy the world came to love.
