GEORGE NEWS - Daniel Sithole (52), known as Thembalethu's strongest man, is pleading for help after his gym was destroyed in a fire late last year.
Sithole, whose gym was equipped with training material worth R100 000, offers free martial arts classes to local children and the disaster has left him down and out.
Sithole, a former kickboxing champion who also holds a black belt in karate, received training in Umkhonto We Sizwe in Tanzania and Zambia. Sithole publicly displayed his strength by lifting 110kg-weights with his teeth and pulling a vehicle with his dreadlocks. The Thembalethu community was also stunned by his ability to lie down on a bed of nails.
Upon arriving in Thembalethu from Kwazulu Natal in the early 2000s, Sithole opened a gym in a double-storey shack in Zone 9. This is were he trained many people across the Southern Cape and hosted a number of programmes for the youth.
The fire has left Sithole and his students hopeless, without a space to train. On the night of the incident he woke up to shouts that his house was on fire. He said the fire had spread from his neighbour's house.
Sithole used to teach young kids karate and other self-defence techniques.
"This has left me heartbroken. I do not know how I will rebuild my gym. I have invested so much money and time in it. I was using my place to train and help young people stay away from drugs and crime. I also gave self-defence classes."
Sithole is pleading for assistance to rebuild his gym. He would like to build a brick structure as it is much safer.
The remainders of Sithole's gym.
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