The husband of Christina Mauser, one of nine victims of the Sunday helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, has broken his silence on the tragedy. During Monday morning’s episode of the Today show, Matt Mauser opened up about his loss, remembering his wife as a “beautiful, smart, funny,” person.
“It’s horrible. I’ve got three small kids, and I’m trying to figure out how to navigate life with three kids and no mom.” -Matt Mauser, husband of Christina Mauser, who is one of the victims in LA-area helicopter crash pic.twitter.com/TxESfk5VvU
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) January 27, 2020
“It’s horrible,” he said. “It’s horrible. I’ve got three small kids, and I’m trying to figure out how to navigate life with three kids and no mom.”
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Going on to speak of his loss, Matt admitted that he’s “scared, I think, more than anything, I’m a little scared about the future.”
“Christina, well he didn’t choose Christina for just any ordinary reason,” he continued. “She was extraordinary. She was witty, incredibly witty. Funny — funny like nobody you’ve ever met…She was warm. She was incredibly bright. She was technologically incredibly savvy, she could figure out anything.”
“My wife could break you down in two seconds, she knew how to figure you out,” he added. “She was incredibly deep.”
Matt went on to recall how he and Bryant met, revealing that they crossed paths while he was working as a Spanish teacher at a private school where Bryant’s daughter attended. After the basketball legend requested to volunteer for a field trip, he met and connected with Christina Mauser, with Matt saying that Bryant “had an amazing mind for basketball.” He added that his wife helped coach Bryant’s Mamba Sports Academy team.
“Kobe took these kids from private school and just made them gritty and tough,” he said. “He was dedicated and so was my wife. They were dedicated to these girls.”
Mauser was aboard Bryant’s Sikorsky S-76B helicopter when it went down in Calabasas, California, just before 10 a.m. PT. All nine people aboard the flight were killed. According to Mauser, as news of the crash overtook social media and news outlets, he and his children avoided watching television, though they did briefly look at ESPN’s SportsCenter.
“We watched SportsCenter for two seconds and everything was about how much everybody was mourning and hurting and (my daughter) said it was nice to know that everybody was hurting along with us,” he said. “I know that sounds odd, but that kind of helped.”
A cause for the crash has not been determined. It is currently under investigation.
