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Minister Kader Asmal
Minister Membathisi Mdladlana
Media Representatives
Ladies and Gentlemen.

Addressing South Africans in his State of the Nation Address, President Thabo Mbeki made reference to the building of a winning nation. The President referred specifically to sport and identified a set of challenges that sport would have to embrace in order to build that winning culture. He highlighted the need for much improved organisation, management and performance by national sports teams. This brings sharply into focus the achievements of major codes of sport such as soccer, rugby, cricket and athletics.

To be blunt, I have to say that certain sports administrators have failed to cover themselves in glory. Some of them seem to have abandoned performances on the field of play in favour of boardroom squabbles, leaving the perception of structural weaknesses that impact specifically on team sport. In cases where individuals represent our country internationally, we arguably enjoy better results. Why does this anomaly exist, might very well be asked. Have our expectations been misplaced and have our achievements of the mid 1990s been overtaken by our failure to ensure both sustainable growth and change? Many of the challenges that we have faced since 1994 and even during the earlier years of unity, are still with us. These include international participation, development of a core competent and patriotic administrators, provision of adequate and accessible facilities, sustainable development programmes, allocation of resources and increased levels of participation. In the face of this, there was also a need to build a winning culture for South African public who display impatience with and even intolerance of failure.

Of course, we have been experiencing a range of problems in major federations recently. I will also concede that we need to build an environment of stability that is a prerequisite for achieving success. I differ, though, with those who regard sport as being on the brink of collapse. Say that to the women's hockey team who have just won a pre-Olympic four-nation hockey tournament in Athens or to Ernie Els or to the Proteas who are in New Zealand following a successful series against the West Indies. Or say it to those women in sport who have been making great strides or to those sportspersons with disability who always bring us joy with their performances.

In no way am I condoning what is happening currently in some federations. On contrary, I have already put in place a process to address these weaknesses, especially in those codes identified as priority sports.

I will be meeting with the senior leadership of these federations in Johannesburg on Thursday, where we will, amongst others, give consideration to aspects such as the restructuring of sports federations and governance of sport; weaknesses in administration and management of sport and the value of a code of ethics for sports administrators and managers.

Much of the first decade of our democracy was spent laying the basis for equity in sport with the main focus being on accessibility and opportunities for all South Africans. We inherited a situation in which the majority of people had access to nothing while a small minority thrived on resources provided by a discriminatory State. This situation had to be overturned in our new democracy but the R5 billion backlog of facilities determined in 1995, could very well not be achieved. By the end of this financial year, national government would have invested R500 million in basic outdoor and indoor sports facilities throughout the country in disadvantaged communities. A further R140 million will be pumped into such facilities in 2004/2005. In the past three years, we have built more than 250 basic, multi-purpose facilities and have established 250 community sports councils. Of course, a lot more need to be done while one of the spin-offs is that we were able to create more than 10 500 temporary jobs over a three-year period.

EDUCATION AND TRAINING

The South African Sports Commission have developed four skills development programmes and submitted this to the National Tourism, Hospitality and Sport Education and Training Authority (THETA). These training programmes are at National Qualifications Framework (NQF) level 4 and NQF level 5. Career paths for the practitioners have also been put in place. During 2003 approximately 2 500 learners underwent training in a variety of programmes.

SA GAMES

The inaugural South African Games held in Pretoria have created further opportunities for young athletes. Aimed at the under 23-age group, the South African Games serves as a springboard for those aspiring for international participation. South African Games 2004 will be held from 22 to 26 March in Buffalo City in the Eastern Cape and will cater for rugby, netball, hockey, goal ball, golf, gymnastics, football, swimming, tennis and table tennis.

WORLD ANTI-DOPING AGENCY

The African regional office of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has been opened in Cape Town in November 2003. The main objectives for the establishment of this office are to ensure that, in the spirit of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), Africa participates in the activities of WADA in the fight against doping, to ensure that Africa's interests are communicated to the rest of the world and that athletes on the African continent can compete on an equal footing with their global counterparts with regard to the universal anti-doping code that was adopted in March 2003. This code will be implemented prior to the Athens Olympic Games.

Our own intolerance of performance-enhancing substances and methods were clearly demonstrated last week when a leading football player was sanctioned and banned from participation in all forms of the game for two years. The message is quite clear to those who believe that there is a short cut to achieving sporting excellence. In the coming months all national federations will conform to the WADA Code and as government, we are in the process of putting policies in place to ensure this conformity.

NATIONAL ACADEMY

With Cabinet's approval obtained for the establishment of a National Sports Academy, a pilot will be launched in the coming financial year. This institution will bring us on a par with other sporting nations and will create opportunities for talented athletes to exploit their potential to the full under ideal circumstances. I am excited about this programme that is due to start in June. It will give our teams such as the one that participated so successfully at the All-Africa Games the vehicle to aspire to even greater heights.

This will be complemented by a mass participation project aimed at identifying talented athletes. It will primarily be aimed at providing large numbers of young people opportunities to participate in constructive sport and recreation activities.

Enquiries: Graham Abrahams
Cell: 082 453 2244

Issued by Ministry of Sport and Recreation
10 February 2004