Print

Mail

wiki links

Leading S African sports languish in scandal, mediocrity

The soccer squad is in a sorry state. Rugby is still rocked by racism rows. The cricketers are simply being bowled out.

Ten years after democratic elections propelled South Africa from isolation to international sporting glory, the nation's big three games now seem mired in mediocrity and mismanagement.

The Springbok's historic World Cup rugby victory before ecstatic home crowds in 1995, Bafana Bafana's African Cup of Nations soccer trophy in 1996, and a golden era in cricket under captain Hansie Cronje are now the stuff of nostalgia.

Big progress has been made in smashing color barriers in sports at school level through the integration of education, along with grants and technical assistance aimed at impoverished black communities, says Tim Noakes, a sports science professor at the University of Cape Town.

But poor coaching and insufficient funding are still preventing black players from breaking into traditionally white-dominated sports like cricket and rugby at a professional level.

Racial quotas aimed at diversifying the games have proven unpopular, with powerful figures like the new head of South African rugby, Brian van Rooyen, calling them an insult to blacks and impediment to sporting merit.

"The reality is that financial factors determine who does best in sport," Noakes says. "If the poor happen to be mainly black and the rich white, then sport will reflect that."

Mandela would probably think twice today before donning a Springbok's jersey, as he did so memorably at the 1995 World Cup final, uniting the entire nation behind a former bastion of Afrikaner chauvinism.

South Africans were deeply shocked by a video leaked to the media showing naked players at a humiliating military-style boot camp ahead of last year's World Cup.

The scandal -- coupled with South Africa's ignominious quarterfinal ouster by New Zealand -- led to a complete management shakeup.

But when rugby officials concluded that racism was not to blame for a white player's refusal to share a room with a mixed-race teammate, it was greeted with cries of whitewash.

"Rugby has always been for white men," shrugged Beauty Somlayi, a domestic worker. "Why does everyone expect it to change?"

Cricket has done more to shake off its lily white image, but was shaken by a match-fixing scandal involving Cronje, who led South Africa to some major triumphs in the 1990s. He was banned for life in 2000 and died in a mysterious plane crash two years later.

On the pitch, the national team has not met expectations. It was eliminated in the first round of the World Cup a year ago after miscalculating the victory target.

Captain Graeme Smith has since revitalized the squad, but New Zealand recently romped to its first home test win over South Africa in 72 years. Soccer -- the one sport dominated by blacks -- is also struggling.

"There used to be real soul in the game," says Clive Barker, who coached Bafana Bafana to their 1996 African Cup title. "It's different now."

The best South African talent is creamed off for foreign leagues, leading to clashes with home-based players and administrators, he says.

Coach Ephraim "Shakes" Mashaba was kicked out on the eve of this year's African Cup after failing to secure the services of international stars like FC Porto striker Benni McCarthy and Charlton defender Mark Fish.
This story has been viewed 2679 times.