In her post on Instagram, Vanessa said: “We are completely devastated by the sudden loss of my adoring husband, Kobe – the amazing father of our children; and my beautiful, sweet Gianna – a loving, thoughtful, and wonderful daughter, and amazing sister to Natalia, Bianka, and Capri.”
She added: “I wish they were here with us forever. They were our beautiful blessings taken from us too soon. I’m not sure what our lives hold beyond today, and it’s impossible to imagine life without them.”
Bryant was a five-time NBA champion who played his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers, as well as a double Olympic gold medallist. He retired in April 2016.
His achievements include being the 2008 NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) and two-time NBA Finals MVP, and was also NBA scoring champion twice.
He famously scored 81 points against the Toronto Raptors in 2006, the second-highest single-game total in NBA history.
He also won an Oscar for best short animated film in 2018 for Dear Basketball, a five-minute film based on a love letter to the sport he had written in 2015.
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