Vanessa Bryant is honoring her late daughter, Gianna "Gigi" Bryant, on what would have been the teen's 18th birthday. Gigi died four years ago along with her dad, Kobe Bryant, in a helicopter crash. Vanessa shared an emotional video on Instagram that shows Gigi over the years, including candid family moments with her mom and sisters, as well as videos of her and her dad playing basketball.
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The day before Gigi's birthday, Vanessa took to Instagram to share that Nike had created a new sneaker design in honor of her daughter.
"❤️Gianna❤️Gigi❤️MAMBACITA ❤️ 5/1/06 ❤️," she captioned the post.
The post was full of pictures of Nike's new Kobe 8 design, "Mambacita," which was Gigi's nickname.
The "Mambacita" design features a black, white, and gold colorway and is covered in butterflies. Vanessa also shared Nike's Instagram reel featuring the shoe surrounded by butterflies.
"Gigi changed the game. Forever. On 5.1 we celebrate Gianna 'Gigi' Bryant’s 18th birthday and the transformational impact she had on highlighting women’s sports with the release of the Kobe 8 Protro ‘Mambacita’ ," Vanessa wrote, adding that profits from the shoe will benefit the Mambacita Sports Foundation, a nonprofit supporting underserved child athletes.
