South Africa sport minister on Olympics bid, Formula 1, Springboks and LIV Golf
When you think of sport in South Africa images from the 1995 Rugby World Cup come to mind alongside the sound of vuvuzelas en masse in 2010 and Chad le Clos (and his father, Bert) at the London 2012 Olympic Games.
But there remains a feeling that the Rainbow Nation, and the wider African continent is being ignored by global sport. Fifa’s Gianni Infantino reportedly offering Morocco the 2030 World Cup final to secure his presidency could be seen by some as the Swiss using the co-host as a pawn in a wider geopolitical game.
Egypt has built an entire Olympic Park in its new capital city, yet few discuss this ongoing marvel of sporting construction. Rwanda’s increasing desire to play a role in global sport often falls on deaf ears.
South Africa ready
South Africa has hosted, the nation’s sport minister Gayton McKenzie tells Morning Wire, the “biggest golf tournament on the African continent with 104,000 people” when it staged the creaking LIV Golf League this year – he says it must overcome its challenges to return golf to South Africa – while the official does not deny reports that the country could soon host a major athletics sporting event such as the Diamond League.
But the crown in the jewel would be a first ever Olympics in Africa, and McKenzie wants it, alongside a return of Formula 1 to Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit – stating that a sport cannot be completely global if it ignores Africa.
“The Olympics will come for the first time to the African continent,” the 52-year-old Patriotic Alliance party member adds. “We have some stuff that is coming to South Africa. People don’t want to talk about it, but it’s an uncomfortable truth that there’s always been [something against] South Africa: no F1, no Olympics, no major soccer tournament [until 2010].
“If you look at the African continent, and then you look at Europe – between Monza, Imola, and Monaco, it’s a close [distance] – you have got three Formula 1 races and in the whole African continent there is none.
“We are now bidding for the Olympics for the first time. A 100-year-old organisation, is now for the first time strongly considering coming to South Africa, and we’re going to bid [for 2036].”
Greatest Rivalry
What one South African institution, the Springboks, has done is dominate global rugby. Over 30 years on from the 1995 World Cup final, where iconic images of Nelson Mandela and Francois Pienaar still used today to illustrate the important story of sport’s role in ending Apartheid were taken, they have developed a tour tournament with New Zealand akin to the British and Irish Lions.
The Greatest Rivalry tour will see the first of its three South Africa-based Tests this weekend before a fourth in Baltimore.
“During Apartheid we rooted for the All Blacks,” McKenzie says. “Most of us didn’t want the Springboks.
“And when democracy arrived, one of the first things we said we’re going to remove was the Springboks emblem and Nelson Mandela said it’s going nowhere, and you fast forward 30 years to a team that unifies our country more than any other team. It’s a team that represents South Africa more than any other team.”