Awuche

Sulemana Abdul-Samed, known to everyone as Awuche, was widely called Ghana's tallest man. A BBC report in 2022 measured him at 7ft 4in (about 2.24m), and his relatives believed he kept growing after that. He lived with a growth disorder that slowly took his health, and he died at Tamale Teaching Hospital on 27 July 2026, aged 33.

Gambaga

Awuche came from Gambaga in the East Mamprusi Municipality of the North East Region. His nickname is Hausa for "let's go". His family said he was not born unusually tall. His rapid growth began in his early twenties while he worked at a butcher's shop in Accra, and it ended his hopes of becoming a professional driver. He also used to play football.

Living with gigantism

Doctors in Ghana linked his condition to gigantism, excessive growth caused by too much growth hormone, while some reports said he had been diagnosed with Marfan syndrome, a connective tissue disorder. Over the years he found walking harder and developed sores and infections on his legs. The BBC's 2022 story brought him wide attention at home and abroad.

Final months

In 2026 he was treated at the Baptist Medical Centre in Nalerigu, which referred him to Tamale Teaching Hospital. Businessman Ibrahim Mahama, brother of President John Dramani Mahama, met him and took over the cost of his treatment, offering to fund care abroad if needed. In July doctors at Tamale reassessed an earlier recommendation to amputate his left leg. He was reported to be responding to treatment before his condition suddenly worsened.

Death

He died in the early hours of Monday, 27 July 2026. Reports gave complications of gigantism and a severe infection from the sores on his legs as the cause. His family chose to bury him in Tamale, in line with Islamic tradition, rather than in Gambaga, fearing the town would be overwhelmed by mourners.