Since
its readmission to world sport, South Africa has successfully staged a number
of high profile international sporting events, including the World Cups of
rugby, cricket and football.
In
celebration of those and other achievements, and to display to the public just
how notable they were, the exhibition “From Freedom to Fanfare, celebrating
South Africa’s legacy as a sporting host”, sponsored by the Lotto, has been
launched, and it will be on display for people to celebrate South Africa as a
successful sporting host since 1994 for the next five months.
The
exhibition, which is informative and interactive, and therefore great fun for
the whole family, is on display at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg and
incorporates 13 sports and 29 events.
The
exhibition has been years in the planning. The original concept was the
brainchild of the late Leepile Taunyane. He had a dream that was to establish a
South African Football Museum highlighting the history of SA football.
Sadly,
he died in 2013 and he did not live to fulfill his dream, so the project was put
on hold.
That
was until his son, also Leepile Taunyane, took it up on behalf of his father
and joined forces with project custodian Pippa Freer, the ex Orlando Pirates
marketing manager. She has put together many sports projects and has worked
with a number of government departments.
Leepile
is an engineer by profession, but growing up in the massive presence of his
beloved father, he could not but get to love football. Although he never played
the sport at a high level, the game was an ever present factor in the
household.
The
project evolved under Leepile’s direction from a football museum to a multicode
concept, as other sporting codes asked to be involved. It is now a celebration
of South Africa as a sporting host in general.
It is,
of course, impossible to include all the highly successful events that have
been hosted, so it was decided to include those events and sporting codes that
made a big impact within all communities in SA. The success of the event in the
eyes of the fans is what determined what would be included.
The
exhibition will be open on request for group bookings and the cost of the
entrance will be determined by the nature of the group request. For example,
the group might want to also have a tour of the FNB Stadium, or it may require
refreshments.
More/.....
The
exhibition is available for hospitality at big match or event days. It is
also a fun venue for launches.
There
will also be special offers for large groups and for scholars.
As President Nelson
Mandela said: ‘ Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to
inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It
speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where once
there was only despair. It is more powerful than government in breaking down
racial barriers.’
Leepile Taunyane
(1928 - 2013).
·
Leepile
Taunyane was born on 14 December 1928 in Alexandra.
·
He
served the game of football in many capacities, within SAFA, where he was
eventually a vice-president, and he was an honorary presedent of the Premier
Soccer League.
·
Taunyane
began his career as a soccer administrator in Alexandra in the 1960s, when he
mentored a young Irvin Khoza, the current chairman of the PSL.
·
The
former school teacher had served in various leadership roles since the 1970s,
including the presidency of the Transvaal Football Association (1974 to 1985),
the Alexandra Football Association (1959 to 1980) and vice-president of SAFA
(1978 to 1985).
 |
| Brian Mitchell |
 |
| Danie Smith |
 |
| Max McLean |
 |
| Mosibodi Whitehead |
 |
| Neil Tovey |
 |
| Rakgetsi Molete |
 |
| Professor Paul Singh |
No comments:
Post a Comment