2010 Sports Challenge Foundation; 059-832 NPO;                             This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Bank details;  ABSA, Melville, Branch 634 005;   Account; 4071805403

Directors:   C de la Harpe (Man);   J de la Harpe;  D Mabona;   E Mafokate;   R Madua;  P Mokoena-Harvey;   M Nguni;  D Nkosi; (Chair)

Board member, Patricia Mokoena-Harvey, often discusses the need to provide our Township children with multi-skills development.   I have only just been able to get my white brain to understand the restricted thought perception that still exists in our Township communities. Restricted thought perceptions imposed on our black communities by the treatment of the whites.

Even those qualified black people who were subject to the system, had a restricted direction in terms of their future in life. If you were very good, you still only saw yourself restricted to being a Teacher, Nursing Sister, maybe a Policeman. Not to talk about the blue-collar / domestic servant restriction.

What we as a society do not realize, is the situation where a large portion of our children, still live within these restricted skills environment. Not even to talk about the negative international perceptions that whites are superior, and blacks are more than likely involved in shady activities. These attitudes contributed towards the ‘isolation’ that exists and the need to address the resultant problems.

Sport and culture in the Townships and Rural schools started to disintegrate in the mid 1980’s. The reason for this disintegration was the level of violence that plagued the Township during this period. I often discussed the atrocities that took place during this period, and I am embarrassed that I did not apply my mind to what I was hearing.

The ‘Lost Generation’ was being developed during this period, but it is only later that I understood the impact that this 1976 to 1994 period has had on our society.

This deterioration resulted in the schools no longer being the centre of community life, and today, the parents and communities, are very separate from the schools, contributing to the distancing between the parents and children on all levels.

2010 SWC on the horizon:

One night, over a beer in a local Soweto shebeen with Vusi and Khaia, a discussions wakes me up to the fact that sport, culture and recreation, was alive a strong in Soweto, till 1984. At the end of the discussion, they are unanimous with;

“We do not care if the Protea Cricket Team, or the Springbok Rugby Team, are all white; just let our children play soccer.”

I turned into a frustrated critic of everyone that would, or should I rather say would not, listen. The South African national sporting bodies that were ploughing millions of ZAR into development of sport; yet nothing, visibly getting to 60% of our population. The media, editors, sports commentators, not interested in I what I considered the biggest inequality in our country. I received only one comment on my emails from a local radio talk show host, “So Cedric what is new, they have no facilities, this is not newsworthy, contact me when you have something that is newsworthy.”

Then on the 12^th April 2007, Mr. Tim Modise, of the 2010 Soccer World Cup Local Organizing Committee, granted me an audience; and the forum, where I had the opportunity to express my many frustrations and sentiments. I was responding to the LOC’s request for ideas to develop as 2010 SWC vibe in our Township schools. Questions were also being asked about the lack of spectator support for local soccer.

For nearly three years I had been trying to get an ear regarding the lack of soccer at school, and my observations with regard to the spectators was that we had lost a generation of spectators due to the lack of school and club soccer. I had an opportunity to give Mr. Tim Modise and Mr. Jermaine Craig and continued for nearly an hour.

Mr. Tim Modise and Mr. Jermaine Craig listened to me intently, not disputing anything I was saying and I believe hearing just how bad it was for the first time. Then Mr. Tim Modise launched the ‘2010 Sports Challenge’, by asking me what I felt could be done to contribute towards a solution to the problem.

“Cedric, we hear you and understand, but are you going to do, and what can we do? How soon can you give us your proposals in writing?”

“Give me two weeks,” I answered.

And so Mr. Tim Modise converted a frustrated sports enthusiast, criticising all those who were failing our children, into a motivated, passionate member of the community, with a direction, motivation, and a will, to contribute. I thank you Mr. Tim Modise.

Touch Rugby?

Touch Rugby is a sport that develops the body and the mind. For the entire forty minutes of playing time, every participant needs to think, anticipate, react, defend, attack, while they develop their ball skills and team spirit.

It is fast and very ‘in your face’, bringing the participants continually into a challenge situation. Challenge with your team mates, your opponents and unfortunately with the referees decisions.

Touch Rugby is an ideal sport for the participation of mixed gender, and age and size is of little importance. Although we structured ratios that would not disadvantage the team due to a possible imbalance of gender mixture, as a referee or spectator, the female gender is not necessarily identified during play.

On Valentines Day, the start was delayed as interested parties highlighted the anticipated problems related to the fact that the Foundation fixture draw had teamed age group and gender participation that could not work. The one team, consisting of a very young group, Zifuneleni Junior Secondary, were runners up to the Anchor Secondary School 1^st Team in the overall competition.

Yes, this sport is open to successful mixed gender participation; and, age and size is not a major factor.

Yes, they all want to play rugby, and the introduction is easy, you can play on any surface and we cam almost use a make-shift ball.

           The Magic of the day:

           Very few of the participants, educators and role-players, spectators, coaches, supporters, did not feel the magic that radiated, not only on the field, but off the field during the tournament and for an hour after..

           The passion, the desire to achieve, the desire to win, the fun, the enjoyment, overshadowed the fact that these children had only just been introduced to the sport. The first practice session taking place at the Nghunghunyani Secondary school on Tuesday the 29^th January 2008.

What was really motivating to all of us was the children’s desire to participate, with most of the schools practicing virtually everyday of the week.  

The Reality of the day:

 From the first whistle at 12:30 in the afternoon, till after prize giving at 17:30, it was like a war-zone.  The lovely children that arrived at practice were no longer there in the time of challenge.  

Yes, Valentines Day 2008 opened my eyes to just how great our problem is, and I believe I have just started to understand the problems that plague the model C schools in the suburbs. I am starting to understand the most important area of being able to easily identify children that require life-skills assistance, and, by using the competitive sports arena, we will be able to measure the extent of the problem, and, as we develop the project, we will be in the position to measure the progress towards reducing the social problems, as we improve the children’s life-skills.

We have coaches and parents who have missed out on the holistic development during the past twenty years, and today they are the only contributors towards the life-skills development of our children.     

Two of our coaches were effectively dismissed yesterday, due to their dissident behaviour, today, my public holiday is cancelled, and I need to spend hours counselling all our coaches, particularly the dismissed coaches and start talking to the children.

The one aspect of this day that is really of concern to me, if not frightening, is that my wife Nettie and I, plus the VIP guests from the ‘South African Touch Association’, appear to have been the only participants that felt the severity of the aggressive dissident problem.

In general, it is almost a Township norm, and those who believed that I had become part of Township life, were surprised that I had not accepted it for ‘just being part of our Township Life’.

I have personally failed an aspect that is one of the most important areas of our ‘Grey Paper’, “It is not the sports skills that the coach gives the child on the field, but it is what the child hears from the coach on the way to the game, in the change-room before the game, after the game, when you win and when you loose that is important.”

While coaching I assumed that these children all had developed these life-skills, I have wasted three weeks of these children’s development.

My wife and I needed a break, but after meeting with the executive on the 18th, I was back on the 19th.

I visited two schools on Tuesday the 19^th February 2008. At both schools the children were ready to start training.

At both the schools, large groups of children listened intently, and many openly discussed the conflict situation that existed on the field. It was a difficult balance. A number of children did not find this behaviour unusual in the Township.

Discussions with the educators and the children reflect the huge problems that our communities are faced with, not only the lack of life-skills, but the influence that the vast different backgrounds have on each other.

In South Africa we have a large percentage of dysfunctional families, single parents, child headed house-holds, children living with family and grand-parents. Many of these children find it hard to adapt, to fit in, many preferring to stay away from participation. They withdraw from group participation. How do we include the child most a risk in all our projects?

 We also see, both from the educator behaviour towards some children, and, from confirmation from learners, both from stable backgrounds and dysfunctional families that many of the ‘problem children’ are conveniently sidelined. Not selected. They are conveniently left to withdraw from the group participation.

Why, we asked our -selves, do our children move directly from their 'comfort zone' to the 'fight zone'?

Today, two years later we have a better understanding for their behaviour.

The behaviour of the school children who are protesting outside the court following the tragic death of four fellow students in the incident involving two mini-coopers, is reminiscent of the behaviour seen on the streets of the Township in the 1980's. 

The incident has moved them out of their 'comfort zone' and directly into the 'fight zone'.

Why?

Would my grand-children do this? No. How would my grand-children behave, how would your children and your grand-children behave?

‘Life-skills’ or lack thereof?

 For weeks I browsed the Internet trying to find answers to what I was experiencing in Soweto.

I found the Tackling the Tough Skills ^Tm curriculum and believed that it reflected a need in our Township community.

            The course is based on an earlier course that was designed to take a participant from ‘Welfare to the Workplace’.

            I relate to the course material, because it is aimed at young adults and teenagers.

The program was developed by Rosilee Trotta, LCSW, currently the Urban Youth and Family Specialist for the University of Missouri Extension, where she has directed WorkWays ^Tm a program designed to assist individuals involved in the transition from welfare to work.  

            “Life changed for Rosilee when she became a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ecuador at age 18. Hooked on the euphoria of learning from people unspoiled by education, Rosilee continued her schooling in inner-city hospitals, day care centres, housing projects and social service agencies, was well as in an Eskimo village above the Arctic Circle. Along the way she formalized some learning experiences and picked up a few degrees.”

             Our first course that we conducted opened our eyes to the problems that our Township community are faced with.

            Attitude, Self-Esteem, Responsibility, Communication, Problem Solving and Decision Making, all part of the selected curriculum are critical, in general missing from most of our Township youth.

             The majority of the youth operate in a ‘comfort zone’, and when you challenge them to move out of the ‘comfort zone’, they move directly into the ‘fight zone’.

             Over the past six months I have started to understand where the difference lies. The children whose parents did not stay in the Township during the 1980’s had all developed the required life-skills. The children whose parents were in the Township had shackled life-skills.

             I have a friend in Soweto, a teacher, Lungi, and recently I needed to test this theory. Lungi is an Afrikaans teacher in Soweto, a magic young man with tremendous life-skills. One afternoon over a beer I asked him where he and his family were during the 1980’s. “Why?” has asked. I duly expounded my theory. He gives me a big smile and says, “Cedric, I am a Soweto boy, I was here through the 80s” I then told him that I could not believe it and that he was unusual. A few minutes later he came back to me and said, “Hey Cedric, you know, in 1982 when the school boycott started, my parents sent me to my Grandfather in the Easter Cape, and he put me in an Anglican school for 5 years.”

I am presently giving the ‘Un-shackle your Skills & Fly High’ curriculum to the sixth group of youth, and as we progress we learn more and I receive further confirmation of my findings.