Zolani Tete Laid to Rest With Special Provincial Funeral at Sisa Dukashe Stadium

• Boxing icon Zolani 'Last Born' Tete received a Special Provincial Official Funeral Category 2, approved by President Cyril Ramaphosa
• Footage on X showed a solemn procession moving through Mdantsane streets as mourners lined the roads on 29 August 2026
• Tete's coffin, draped with his championship belts, passed through NU12 — the neighbourhood where he grew up — before the stadium service

EASTERN CAPE — Two-weight world boxing champion Zolani "Last Born" Tete was laid to rest on 29 August 2026 in Mdantsane, receiving a Special Provincial Official Funeral Category 2 in recognition of his extraordinary contribution to South African sport.

The state honour was granted by President Cyril Ramaphosa at the request of Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane. Tete, who was shot dead in an ambush outside his Mdantsane home on 21 August 2026 at the age of 38, was buried at the Cambridge Cemetery following a service at the Sisa Dukashe Stadium.

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Mdantsane comes to a standstill

Before the stadium service, a hearse carrying Tete's coffin moved slowly through the streets of his childhood neighbourhood, NU12, while hundreds of mourners lined the pavements. His championship belts were placed on top of the casket. Footage on X showed the procession, capturing the moment Tete's father stepped out of a vehicle at the family homestead for a brief, private gathering before the public ceremony began.

South African boxing fraternity members attended the service in official boxing regalia and formed a guard of honour before ringing a ceremonial bell to mark the end of Tete's journey.

Tete had held world titles across two weight classes — the IBF junior-bantamweight belt, won in Kobe, Japan in 2014 against Teiru Kinoshita, and the WBO bantamweight title. He is best remembered for the fastest knockout in world title fight history: an 11-second stoppage of Siboniso Gonya on 18 November 2017 in Belfast, a feat recognised by Guinness World Records.

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Comeback cut short by murder

Tete had only recently resumed training after serving a four-year doping suspension that lapsed in July 2026. A comeback fight was scheduled for 29 November 2026 at the Orient Theatre in East London. Four suspects have since been arrested, with a 22-year-old facing direct charges of murder and attempted murder.

South Africans expressed grief online after footage of the funeral circulated widely.

@Mphumzi55020696 wrote:

"I still can't believe that a boxer was killed in Mdantsane...of all places one can think of, Mdantsane is the last place you think they would hurt one of their own boxing icons."

@SiyamthandaQha said:

"Yhuuuu that broke me yhini umzali..."

@BabesNoxolo added:

"Yhooo, it was just too much for me to watch."

See the X post below:

More on Zolani Tete's death and funeral

• Briefly News previously reported that Zolani Tete's funeral date was confirmed after the former world boxing champion was shot dead outside his Mdantsane home.
• MacG and Sol Phenduka discussed social media rumours about the alleged motive behind Zolani Tete's murder, sparking a warning from police.
• Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie announced a special honour for the late South African boxing star that will see his family receive something meaningful.

Source: Briefly News