Other Sport
SA sport still too white?
2010-02-25 08:50
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London - Former anti-apartheid campaigner and International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Sam Ramsamy has called for more action from South African sports administrators to fully integrate sport in the republic.
Ramsamy, a member of the IOC's executive board, told Reuters in a telephone interview that the dream of a World Cup and Olympic Games in his native country had helped to sustain him during his years of exile while South Africa was ruled by a white minority government.
South Africa, which has already successfully staged the rugby and cricket World Cups, will host the first Soccer World Cup awarded to an African nation this year.
"My dream wasn't only to see the soccer World Cup in South Africa. We also had the dream of staging the Olympic Games in South Africa," Ramsamy said.
Ramsamy said although South African blacks had striven to reconcile with the minority white population: "I don't know whether all whites have understood and accepted this magnanimity of forgiveness and acceptance.
"We are trying to normalise the situation but I'm not sure all South African whites understand that. That is a concern of mine. Moves are being made to ensure equal opportunities for all but it's coming very, very slowly.
"The white South African population is less than 20% of the whole South African population and we are doing very well. But can you imagine how well we would do if we provided the same opportunities for the other 80% of the population?
"We would have a tremendous super team which very few countries in the world could beat."
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