Former Springbok Pedrie Wannenburg, who died after a multi-vehicle crash in Texas this weekend, was a “gentle giant”, a family friend told AFP on Saturday when confirming the tragedy.
Wannenburg, capped 20 times by South Africa as a loose forward, reportedly died in Austin after a vehicle fleeing police crashed into the back of one driven by the 41-year-old South African.
An Austin police spokesman said a 16-year-old suspect, who had ignored a call to pull over, fled and struck the back of the vehicle driven by Wannenburg at an intersection. “Hard as nails on the field and soft as jelly off it.
A gentle giant,” said the Pretoria-based friend who requested anonymity. “Words fail me. I am battling to accept that Pedrie is no longer among us. “He was a lekker oke (good guy) who loved his family, his friends and rugby. He did not deserve to die so young and in .such terrible circumstances.—APP
