South African high jump world champion discovered dead with gunshot wounds near a cemetery.
Jacques Freitag, 42, went gone for a fortnight before being located. He was last seen on June 17 leaving his mother’s house with another man. According to reports, he was found with gunshot wounds.
In 2003, he won the gold medal in the high jump at the IAAF World Championships in Paris, clearing 2.35m, and is one of only a few athletes, alongside sprinter Usain Bolt, to have won the world championships at the youth, junior, and senior levels. However, after retiring from athletics, the 6ft 8in high jumper has been reported to be troubled and struggling with addiction.
According to South African Police spokesman Brigadier Brenda Muridili, Freitag was shot multiple times, and a murder investigation has been launched. Local media stated that the body was located near the Zandfontein Cemetery in Pretoria West.
We weren’t connected for a few years due of the drugs,” she told Rapport. “I am a single mother who has had to look after and safeguard her children. He has been on medications for the majority of the time.”
Freitag resigned from sports in 2013 and was reported to have been sleeping on the streets or sofa surfing in recent years after struggling to maintain a full-time job.
Leave a Reply