SSR Vol5 FIFA- WC-SA

“FABRIC OF A REAL MAN” I t seems like for most of his life Nelson Mandela has had to pay a price for his accomplishments. However, the reward of Friday June 11, 2010 was priceless. South Africa was on its way to hosting a successful FIFA World Cup. After working tirelessly to bring the FIFA World Cup to South Africa, Mandela had to miss the opening day proceedings. The 91-year-old activist cancelled his appearance due to the unfortunate death of his 13 year old great- granddaughter Zenani Mandela the night before. Zenani, (God rest her soul), was involved in an automobile accident while travelling home from the pre-World Cup concert in Soweto. She was one of nine great-grandchildren of Nelson Mandela.

A file photo of, (from left),Thembela Mandela, Zenani Mandela, Mbuso Mandela and Nelson Mandela. Zenani was killed in a car accident on Friday June 10, 2010. (Debbie Yazbek)

Alternately, Mandela’s image was shown on the jumbo screen at Soccer City Stadium. There was a statement issued by the Nelson Mandela Foundation which gave the reason for the anti- apartheid activist absence as "inappropriate" for the former South African president, to attend the opening ceremony. There was a heavenly madness at Soccer City, as the Mandela Foundation continued to deliver the message on behalf of the absent and grief stricken Nelson “Madiba” Mandela. There were loud cheers when his image appeared on the screens to the message of hope from him in song. There were also chants of “Madiba Madiba” (the name which Nelson Mandela is fondly called) from all areas of the stadium, and in the ecstasy of the moment I could not help but think that Mandela may have gotten his last big wish as the message was conveyed.

"We are sure that South Africans and people all over the world will stand in solidarity with Mr. Mandela and his family in the aftermath of this tragedy," added the statement.

"We continue to believe that the World Cup is a momentous and historic occasion for South Africa and the continent and we are certain it will be a huge success." it concluded

That evening set the right tone for the rest of the tournament and in spite of the unfortunate setback the continent of Africa was transformed into a cultural revelation and South Africa’s Bafana Bafana team did not disappoint by scoring the first goal of the tournament in a 1-1 draw with Mexico, and winning its last group match 2-1 against France. Ghana proved that the continent of Africa teams are not far away from a FIFA World Cup and the seeds that Mandela sewed are beginning to bear fruits. There is a noticeable increase in African players in Europe and other league overseas. Mandela was able to attend the closing ceremony at Soccer City and though there was no African team participating in the final that day, his curtain call at the biggest sporting event in the world meant that Mandela has successfully fought another good fight. For us at SSR Magazine Nelson ‘Madiba’ Mandela will remain “ the fabric of a real man”.

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