Thousands of mourners from around the province attended the funeral of well-known Phalaphala FM sports commentator Micheal Mutshinya at Ha-Masia Havhangani on Saturday.

Mutshinya (40) passed away in the Steve Biko Hospital after a long illness two weeks ago.

Everyone at the funeral described Mutshinya as loyal and dedicated man. During the event, people also burst into laughter as speaker after speaker reminded the mourners how Mutshinya had lived.

The station manager of Phalaphala FM, Mr Freddy Sadiki, said the radio sport industry would not be the same without Mutshinya. “He was such a remarkable commentator, who could capture ordinary things in an unusual manner. He did his work diligently and not for the love of monetary rewards. It is rare to find people with work passion of Mutshinya’s calibre,” he added.

Mr Adam Mutshinya, a brother of the deceased, said the family had suffered a great loss with the death of their younger brother. "It is painful to lose an intelligent brother, but we thank God because He does everything for a reason,” he said.

Thovhele Vho-Nthumeni Masia said that the radio, family and community members around Limpopo, family and friends were still shocked about the untimely death of the dedicated, disciplined and charismatic Mutshinya. “We are greatly saddened about the untimely death of Mutshinya and our province  has been robbed of a committed, hard worker and we will miss him,” Masia said.