Sport
Peerless
The Chipolopolo of 1993
died 27 April 1993
The national team lost in the Gabon air disaster
Peerless is level 1 of 4 in the Zambia Hall of Fame: changed the field itself. Tell the country's story without them and the story breaks. See how the levels work.
Why they are here
Thirty people — most of the national squad and its management — died when their plane went down off Libreville in 1993. The team Zambia rebuilt from nothing afterwards eventually won the Africa Cup of Nations in the same city.
On 27 April 1993 a Zambian Air Force aircraft carrying the national football team crashed into the Atlantic some 500 metres off Libreville, Gabon. All thirty on board were killed.
The squad, known as Chipolopolo, was travelling to Dakar for a World Cup qualifier against Senegal. Kalusha Bwalya, the captain, was travelling separately and survived; he led the rebuilt team afterwards. Zambia won the Africa Cup of Nations in Libreville in 2012.
The squad, known as Chipolopolo, was travelling to Dakar for a World Cup qualifier against Senegal. Kalusha Bwalya, the captain, was travelling separately and survived; he led the rebuilt team afterwards. Zambia won the Africa Cup of Nations in Libreville in 2012.
- Wikipedia — 1993 Zambia national football team plane crash
- CNN — How Zambian soccer recovered from a plane crash that killed a golden generation
- South African History Online — Zambian plane crashes at Libreville
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