People with the African name Dalibhunga have a deep inner desire
for travel and adventure. They want to set their own pace in life without being
governed by tradition. In hindsight, it is evident to see how this name was
given to Nelson Mandela, the man South Africans called ‘tata’; the Xhosa
word for father.
Mandela’s inner desire for travel led him to become one of the key
figures in the development of sport in South Africa, a journey that was most
certainly governed by himself and a journey proving that fear can be triumphed
when courage stands firm.
The notion of dividing men, women and children by the colour of
their skin is, was and always will be as preposterous as it is obscene. The
vision of Nelson Mandela - the vision of a unitary human race where people are
not bound by their skin colour - was of course not a concept seen by one man
only. Despite sacrificing nearly three decades of his life, his sporting spirit
was unimpaired. When released, his aim was not revenge, but opening the world's
eyes to a better way of life.
“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.”
Until 1995, he had never been a great fan of rugby but Mandela was
no stranger to sport. It comes as no surprise that this was to be his tenet to
help bring a country divided, together. From his days as an amateur boxer in
the 1950’s, where he would run two hours before dawn from Soweto to
Johannesburg, to the days spent in a six by six foot prison cell where he would
do stomach crunches and push ups with such zeal. He played football with fellow
prisoners to pass the time on Robben Island. Having achieved much of his
valiant crusade past the age of 60, and living until 95, suggests he owes much
of his success to keeping himself in superb shape.
While imprisoned, South Africa's first football league began and
the game become a symbol of a free outside world, a world were those fighting
for their's and their races freedom and dignity were not downgraded to radical
terrorists. Mandela would watch the games from his cell until the authorities
blocked his view. But Mandela had already seen a slice of sport could do.
He may not have understood rugby very well, but he understood the
political impact sport could have. The South African national rugby union side
was a symbol of racial division within South Africa. However, following
the first open elections in 1994, the ruling African National
Congress instituted a policy of transformation in South African
sport. Contextually, the transformation was defined as 'a complete alternation
of the appearance or character of South African rugby', and aimed
to transform the Springboks into a team more representative of South Africa's
race and class.
Mandela okayed the 1995 World Cup in an act of selfless
munificence; convincing his fellow black population accept the Springbok
team their own, despite the presence of just one non-white player on the 15-man
roster: Chester Williams. Mandela enlisted the white stars of the team to his
cause: they were persuaded to learn the new national anthem - formerly a song
of black protest. The previously hated South African national team finally
reached out to what was, primitively, a sceptical black community.
Almost three years after his release, the Springboks held aloft
the rugby World Cup at Ellis Park on June 24th 1995, a year after Nelson
Mandela was elected president. It is the pinnacle of sport’s victory over
apartheid in South Africa. But the real victory of that night was won before
the final had even kicked off.
Clad in a green Springbok jersey – the old symbol of oppression,
and in front of 65,000 people, of whom 95% were white, Nelson Mandela strode
onto the field. “Nelson! Nelson! Nelson!” Slowly, the chant grew louder and
more expressive with every syllable. After the game, Mandela returned to the
pitch where just moments before, the Springboks had just won an epic final
against New Zealand. He handed the trophy over to South Africa captain,
Francois Pienaar, an Afrikaner, again sporting the national shirt with
Pienaar’s own number six on the back. The trill of “Nelson! Nelson!” warbled
around the ground, as tears of great joy began to flow. Pienaar is still moved
by such friendship, for his life defining encounter with this
freedom-fighter turned government leader was to change the to path of South
Africa's future. The final's hero, Pienaar, left the field with the perfect
words, "We didn't have the
support of 63,000 South Africans today. We had the support of 42
million."
"Thank you very much
for what you have done for our country," Mandela replied before Pienaar
had the final say: "It is nothing compared to what you have done for our
country".
It was a major step in the reconciliation of white and black
South Africans and, as former South Africa President F.W. de Klerk said:
“Mandela won the hearts of millions of white rugby fans." United, South
Africans danced into the night, the weight of injustice lifted from enervated
shoulders.
But the surges of patriotism were not to end there. On February
3rd 1996 in Johannesburg, South Africa won their first ever Africa Cup of
Nations again attended by Nelson Mandela. Tunisia were defeated 2-0 by a truly
mixed race side and at the full-time whistle, surrounded by euphoric noise and
dance, Mandela, sporting the national football side, handed white captain Neil
Tovey the trophy.
The 2003 Cricket World Cup. Cape Town was rejected for the 2004
Olympics, however, in favour of the simpler option of Athens. South Africa and
Nelson Mandela preserved despite being rebuffed for the 2006 World Cup, which
was eventually held in Germany. But then four years on, the big one, the 2010
FIFA World Cup arrived on the shores of South Africa. The once fragmented
country survived the test of millions of tourists and rowdy football fans. The
hotels were adequate, transport suitable and atmosphere excellent. As for the
legacy, Mandela felt like a 15 year old handed a dream, and that was years
before the tournament began.
It seems sport's role in civilisation has always been
underestimated. Perhaps without Mandela, South Africa would not have
overcome apartheid, and you would suspect that minus Mandela’s herculean feats,
we would never have seen the world’s biggest sporting events competed in
Africa. Sometimes it takes gallant characters such as Mandela, to see sport is
so simple and, despite its competition, the biggest symbol of unification
humankind has seen. He may not have scored the winning runs in
the 2003 Cricket World Cup, nor struck the winning goal in Johannesburg in
2010, but he is one of the greatest sportsmen the world has ever witnessed.
Rest in peace to the man who struggled so the world could shine.
Mandela’s legacy will transcend death, because he gave a nation a new life.
Enjoy your freedom.
