Paralympic Champion Elliot Mujaji Hits Hard Times, Begs for Help After Years of Struggle

Paralympic Champion Elliot Mujaji Hits Hard Times, Begs for Help After Years of Struggle

Once celebrated as a national hero, Zimbabwe’s first Paralympic gold medallist Elliot Mujaji has hit hard times and made a heartfelt appeal for help.

In a video shared on social media by user @royalmabika44 on Wednesday, 9 July 2025, the former sprinter opened up about his difficult reality. Mujaji, who won gold in the 100m sprint at the 2000 Sydney Paralympics, says he’s been struggling to survive ever since Shabanie Mine shut down in 2007, leaving him unemployed.

He also revealed he’s been unable to support the young athletes under his academy, a project close to his heart.

“My name is Elliot Mujaji. I’m a two-time Paralympic champion. Since I retired, life has not been well for me. I’ve some athletes to support in my academy. Personally, my life is not going well. I’ve not been working ever since Shabanie closed down,” he said.

See the video below:

Mujaji’s downfall isn’t new. Back in 2021, he told ZimMorningPost that he lost most of his savings when he invested in the now-collapsed CFX Bank.

After winning a second gold medal at the 2004 Athens Paralympics, Mujaji was rewarded by then-President Robert Mugabe with a cash prize. He used part of it to buy a double-storey house and placed the rest in an investment fund at CFX. But when the bank folded, so did his financial security.

Narrating his ordeal, Mujaji said:

“In 2004, after winning in Athens, Greece, the former President (Robert Mugabe) gave me some money and l bought a double-storey house, deposited some money in an investment fund at CFX bank, but the bank went under.”

He also said his efforts to reach out to Mugabe for help were ignored. Left to fend for himself, Mujaji had to sell his house to keep his children in school, but even that didn’t bring relief. He said:

“That is when everything went bad, l had to pay for school fees for my children and they were at boarding schools and couldn’t afford. I ended up disposing my house in a botched swap deal, things did not get better as l was also getting to my retirement age.”

In his previous plea to the government, Mujaji said he wasn’t asking for handouts, just a job. Elliot Mujaji said:

“Right now, everything is not rosy, I have two wives and four children, and my plea to the Government of Zimbabwe is to give me a job so that I can at least cater for my family.”

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The post Paralympic Champion Elliot Mujaji Hits Hard Times, Begs for Help After Years of Struggle appeared first on iHarare News.

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