The Minister of Sport and Recreation, Ngconde Balfour, has instructed the organisers of the SA Games, which took place in East London last week, to investigate the circumstances around a Gauteng tennis player apparently not receiving her medal.
The incident has received strong reaction from Pine Pienaar and Douglas Gibson of the Democratic Alliance.
”The disgraceful conduct of sports administrators during the recent SA Games in East London has been highlighted by the fact that the organisers erroneously stripped Adele van Niekerk’s gold medal from her,” said Pienaar on Monday.
This incident, which is now being investigated by the South African Sports Commission, is but only one of several incidents that ”caused embarrassment to our province”.
”Not only did the quota and the race issues where Games organisers insisted that 50% of all teams should be non-white taint the credibility of the Games, but organisers also failed to provide transport and accommodation to several competitors.
”The Games were also marred by a stabbing incident and in the latest sign of poor organising, Adele van Niekerk was disqualified because it was thought, by Games organisers, that she had competed internationally — which is against the Games’ rules.
”It has consequently been rendered that Van Niekerk has never represented South Africa and therefore should never have been separated from her gold medal.
”The DA has maintained right from the start that the SA Games was organised amateurishly and caused an embarrassment to the Eastern Cape department of sport.
”If we continue to make a hash of events like this, we will see the same exodus of young sports stars to overseas countries as we have seen with the young professionals that leave university.
”We cannot afford to lose anymore talent. It is also the DA’s policy that sports teams be selected on merit, not quotas.
”Organisers should be selected on their ability to manage successful events.”
Balfour has meanwhile given an instruction to the South African Sports Commission, the Gauteng department of sport and recreation, and tennis authorities to submit a report to him by the end of this week.
This, after the DA’s Gibson was quoted in a daily national newspaper on Monday as saying that he was appalled to learn that Van Niekerk had been stripped of her gold medal because her team did not comply with the 50% quota system.
”The latest quota debacle follows shortly after the disqualification of Erna Wedemeyer and her team from the South African Life-Saving Championships last month because they did not comply with the prescribed team quotas,” Gibson told The Citizen newspaper.
”South African sport, under the leadership of Minister Balfour, has gone in one direction — down. The minister has reintroduced racial categorisation and reduced ability and talent to second-rate concerns.”
Balfour said: ”The circumstances around this matter need to be cleared up immediately so as to ensure that no player is unfairly disadvantaged.”
Balfour also chided the DA for commenting on a matter of which it has absolutely no knowledge. — Sapa