sporting - Leisure Opportunities

were disabused. The media focused on
the sense of place, the conviviality, and
the passion of South Africans. Plaudits
and praise flowed. The press reported
on the seamless cooperation and genuine
hospitality of the host nation.
Sports development and community
specialists referred to the success
‘beyond the stadia’ especially seen
in strategies using the World Cup to
invest in rural and township sports
facilities. These included the creation
of new soccer pitches through the
Dreamfields programme, the development
of grassroots soccer, the
establishment of 20 Football for Hope
Centres in highly disadvantaged areas
and the innovative ‘whisper balls’ created
especially for deaf footballers.
Health specialists referenced the
improved health facilities and skills
of medical teams.Safety and security
services were also improved and
effective policing and traffic management
systems introduced.
Others celebrated the creation of
more than 2,000 new jobs in road construction
alone, the improvements
made to the Cape Town International
Airport by Airports Company South
Africa, enhanced city design and public
art and stimulation of new business
start-ups and entrepreneurial activity.
Stories and successes abound (for
more details read Capeability by the
Western Cape provincial government
– an excellent account of the Western
Cape’s experience of the 2010 FIFA
World Cup). Equally, there will always
be dissenting voices. Entering this
competitive environment, successfully
delivering on promises made and managing
the legacies are always going to
be challenging for any host nation.
South Africa did deliver. The world
changed its perspective on the country.
International tourist arrivals continue
to grow. New global events will be
attracted to this tip of Africa – Cape
Town has already secured the right to
be the World Capital of Design in 2014.
Lets leave the last word to Dr
Laurine Platzky, editor of Capeability
and the Western Cape deputy director
general of Provincial Strategic
Management. “Arguments that the billions
spent on the World Cup could
and should have been better spent on
schools, houses and clinics are valid,"
says Platzky. "But without the focus of
a mega event, would the money have
been used to educate our children,
feed the hungry or restructure our
city Perhaps it would be more profitable
to reflect on how much can be
achieved when skilled and dedicated
teams of people, driven by intense
political will, are prepared to overcome
all obstacles to achieve a goal.” ●
ISSUE 2 2012 © cybertrek 2012 Read Leisure Management online leisuremanagement.co.uk/digital 51