Controversial sports administrator Banele Sindani, murdered in front of his young daughter at home early yesterday morning, has drawn praise from various quarters, even from a former foe. Sindani, a former CE of Athletics SA and the SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee, was gunned down at his Ruimsig house on the West Rand by three robbers who took a TV and a cellphone, his nephew Phelelani Sindani said.His 12-year-old daughter, who was watching TV, woke her father up when she noticed three robbers trying to gain access to the house.The unarmed Sindani, 60, was shot when he confronted them."He didn't even own a firearm," said Phelelani.International Olympic Committee member Sam Ramsamy paid tribute to Sindani, calling him an athletics statistician who knew records "off the top of his head"."He knew athletics inside out," said Ramsamy, who as president of the National Olympic Committee of SA before it became Sascoc had butted heads with Sindani.But former athletes remembered him fondly, saying he was always prepared to listen to them."Banele always helped with what we needed," said sprinter Mathew Quinn. "He always explained ASA's position."Arnaud Malherbe, a 400m runner, had an argument with Sindani before the 1996 Atlanta Olympics."We had a screaming match. He told me I didn't respect him and I told him he had to earn my respect. He later changed his philosophy. He actually listened."As ASA CEO he was fingered by an auditor for giving himself a R175000 loan without the board's consent in 2002.He left ASA to become the newly formed Sascoc's first CEO in 2005, for a reported R1.9-million a year, but was fired the following year.Sindani returned to ASA as a consultant, earning an "excessive" R1.76-million, according to a Deloitte investigation.The funeral will be on Saturday...