The death of Ghana’s tallest man, Sulemana Abdul Samed, popularly called Awuche, at the age of 33, has thrown the country into mourning.
His death has sparked an outpouring of mourning, particularly in northern Ghana, where his exceptional height earned him local renown.
According to the BBC on Tuesday evening, Awuche died on Monday at Tamale Teaching Hospital after being treated for infected sores on his legs.
He was being treated in the northern city of Tamale, which is around 160 kilometers (100 miles) from his native hamlet of Gambaga.
Sulemana Abdul Kudus, a relative, remembered the late giant as a generous and beloved figure.
“Everyone knew how generous and kind he was. From when he died until now a lot of people are still coming to the house to find out what exactly happened,” Kudus told the BBC.
Awuche, who was diagnosed with gigantism in his twenties, measured 7ft 4in (223cm) when the BBC measured him in late 2022, though he is thought to have grown considerably taller before dying.
He was known by the Hausa moniker “Awuche,” which means “Let’s Go,” and lived for years with difficulties from Marfan syndrome, a genetic condition affecting the body’s connective tissues that caused his extraordinarily long limbs.
The report said he had “struggled to pay his medical bills until businessman Ibrahim Mahama, brother of Ghanaian President John Mahama,” stepped in to support his treatment at the Tamale Teaching Hospital.
Mahama had also met with Awuche and updated him on his medical care plans earlier this month.
Kudus noted that the “sores on Awuche’s legs were not directly caused by Marfan syndrome but were likely a complication of the condition.”
Despite doctors’ claims that he was doing well in therapy, “Awuche died on Monday morning.”
“Everyone is just sad,” Kudus told the BBC, adding that residents of Gambaga were shocked by his sudden death.
He added that Awuche’s fame had brought the village to the limelight.
“Anywhere he found himself in the country and they asked him, he would say he was from Gambaga, and people knew that was where the tallest man was from.
“It gave the community identity, and he was popular as well,” Kudus said.
According to the BBC, Awuche wasn’t always this tall. His quick development began at the age of 22, while he was working at a butcher shop in Ghana’s capital, Accra.
In describing the onset of his disease, Awuche told the BBC, “I realized my tongue had expanded in my mouth to the extent that I could not breathe [properly].”
He claimed that within days, the remainder of his body continued to grow in size until physicians diagnosed him with Marfan syndrome.
His condition eventually forced him to “abandon his ambition of becoming a driver and return to his hometown of Gambaga nine years ago.”
Speaking on the impact of the disorder on his daily life, Awuche had said, “I used to play football like every other young man; I was athletic, but now I cannot even walk short distances.”
Despite the physical limitations, the BBC claimed that he retained a cheerful attitude about life and welcomed the famous status that his exceptional height had brought him.
His relatives stated that they chose to bury him in Tamale rather than Gambaga for fear of the village being swamped by the number of mourners scheduled to attend the burial.
