Sport in South Africa
Encyclopedia
Only certain sports have a passionate following in South Africa, although they remain largely divided on ethnic lines; alleged lack of transforbobmation has been increasingly criticised by South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee
(SASCOC), Ministry of Sports and civil society. The South African government and SASCOC have been striving to improve – incrementally – the participation of the previously excluded majority in competitive sports, but so far with limited success, due to resistance on part of numerous federations. Rugby union
is not the most popular sport in South Africa, contrary to popular belief. The most popular sport in South Africa by far is association football. This is particularly popular with the black South Africans who constitute the majority of the population. Cricket
is also a very popular sport (second most popular sport in South Africa) in the country and the national team is nicknamed The Proteas. South Africa's national football team
is nicknamed Bafana Bafana (meaning the boys, the boys). South Africa hosted the 2010 FIFA World Cup
, the first one hosted in Africa. Other popular sports include: rugby union
, boxing
, hockey
, surfing
, and running.
South Africa was absent from international sport for most of the apartheid era due to sanctions, but started competing globally after the country's white electorate voted in a referendum
in favour of a negotiated settlement of the apartheid question.
in Tokyo due to the apartheid policies.
. This ban effectively lasted until 1992. During this time, some sports people (like Zola Budd
and Kepler Wessels
) left for other countries in order to compete internationally. Some athletes continued their sports careers in South Africa in isolation, with some starts like women's 400 metres runner Myrtle Bothma running a world record time at the South African championships.
Some sports teams toured South Africa as "Rebel Tours" and played the Springbok rugby and Proteas cricket teams in South Africa during the isolation period.
In 1977, Commonwealth Presidents and Prime Ministers agreed, as part of their support for the international campaign against apartheid, to discourage contact and competition between their sportsmen and sporting organisations, teams or individuals from South Africa.
is a popular team sport.
Since 1996, the sport has been growing quickly amongst indigenous communities, beginning in the North West province and later spreading to Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape Province through the work of development officers.
South Africa's national team made history in 2007 by competing against Australia's best Under 17 players as well as defeating a touring Australian amateur senior team for the first time. The first national championships were held in 2008, from which the Lions were selected and finished third overall in the 2008 Australian Football International Cup
.
is a popular sport in South Africa, especially among English-speaking whites. It is the only sport in South Africa to feature in the top two sports of all race groups. The national team is known as the Proteas.
South Africa is one of the leading cricket-playing nations in the world and one of ten countries that is sanctioned to play test cricket
. Cricket was traditionally popular among English-speaking whites and the Asian community, though the latter were not able to compete in top-level South African cricket in the apartheid era. Since the end of the apartheid era, a higher proportion of white players have come from Afrikaans-speaking backgrounds, and attempts have been made to increase the number of non-white players, in part through a quota system. The current national team features prominent non-white players, such as Ashwell Prince
, Hashim Amla
(the first Muslim to play for South Africa), Herschelle Gibbs
, Monde Zondeki
, Loots Bosman
, Charl Langeveldt
, and Makhaya Ntini
. Afrikaners in the team include AB de Villiers, Albie Morkel
, Morne Morkel
, Johan Botha and Dale Steyn
.
The team has had success with batsmen like Herschelle Gibbs
, who is one of the sport's most dominating batsmen, all-rounders like Jacques Kallis
and Shaun Pollock
, the former being one of the greatest all rounders of the game, and bowlers such as Makhaya Ntini
, who reached number two in the ICC Player Rankings in 2006. Dale Steyn
is currently ranked as one of the best test bowlers, and captain Graeme Smith
is one of the most dominant left-handed batsmen in world cricket today. Wicketkeeper Mark Boucher
has the world record for the most number of dismissals for a wicketkeeper and continues playing for the team. Kevin Pietersen
, who is white, left the country claiming that he was put at a disadvantage by positive discrimination, and within a few years became one of the world's top batsmen, playing for England. South Africa is one of the strongest teams and in 2006 in Johannesburg
in what was the highest scoring 50 over ODI ever, South Africa led by Gibbs' 175 chased down
Australia's mammoth and then world record score of 434–4. South Africa hosted the 2003 Cricket World Cup
an event that was disappointing to them as they lost against Sri Lanka in what happened to be in a farcical situation and were eliminated on home soil. In the 2007 Cricket World Cup
South Africa reached the semi-finals of the event but lost to Australia.
South Africa has a strong cycle race scene. The most notable cyclist is Robert Hunter
who won a stage in the 2007 Tour de France
. Robert Hunter rode that tour with Team Barloworld who had gained a wildcard entry to the Tour de France that year. Although Barloworld are based in the UK, the team was considered to be a South African team.
Cycling South Africa
or CyclingSA is the national governing body of cycle racing in South Africa.
Golf is easily the best individual sports event that South Africans participate in, with the quantity and quality of South African players being of the top order.
The first South African to win a major championship
was Bobby Locke
who won The British Open
four times in 1949, 1950, 1952 and 1957
The most famous of South African golfers is however Gary Player
who along with Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus dominated world golf for much of the 1960s and 1970s. Player won all four majors, winning the British Open
in 1959, 1968 and 1974, The Masters in 1961, 1974 and 1978, the PGA Championship
in 1962 and 1972 and the U.S Open
just once in 1965. Player always played in his trademark black outfits and became one of the recognisable figures in the sport. He also enjoyed considerable success in senior golf, winning six majors
on the Champions Tour
(then the Senior PGA Tour) from 1986 to 1990. The only other South African to have won a senior major is Simon Hobday
, winner of the U.S. Senior Open
in 1994.
Current players who have won majors are 1994, 1997 U.S. Open and 2002 British Open
Champion Ernie Els
, 2001 and 2004 U.S. Open Champion Retief Goosen
, 2008 Masters
Champion Trevor Immelman
, British Open
Champion Louis Oosthuizen
and 2011 Masters
Champion Charl Schwartzel
.
The country has had less success in women's golf. The only South African woman to have won a major
was Sally Little
, who won the LPGA Championship
in 1980. Little later became a U.S. citizen and won a second major, the 1988 du Maurier Classic
, as an American.
British golfer Justin Rose
is South Africa-born, but was raised from age 5 in England, and chose to play his trade for that country.
Grand Prix, the last being the 1993 race at the Kyalami
circuit. It has produced one Formula One world champion, Jody Schekter, who triumphed for Ferrari in 1979. South Africa was also one the host nations for the A1 Grand Prix
.
in South Africa. None of the earlier attempts were very successful.
The first attempted expansion of the code into South Africa was primarily put together by the English and encouraged by the French for the purpose of expanding the game into new nations that would inevitably bring more tests to the English and French shores, ensuring a lucrative future. At least, that was the plan—however, it was not to be; the South African public did not take to the sport and the expansion plans were stopped prematurely, causing the cancellation of a third scheduled match in London.
The second attempted expansion was a strange double act in the 1960s consisting of two separate factions, known as the National Rugby League and South African Rugby League. Each fought for their own survival until the RLIF laid down the law that saw the NRL effectively shut down and its clubs moved to the SARL. All was looking good for SARL until a South African representative team toured Australia and were embarrassingly beaten, enough to discourage South African fans from supporting their national team and thus it never caught on.
The 1990s brought forth a more committed band of entrepreneurs. The foundation left by the 1990s administration still lives on today, albeit a former shadow of itself.
The rugby league
competition in South Africa is the Tom van Vollenhoven Cup.
Rugby union
is a popular sport in South Africa, especially popular among Afrikaner
s. The national team is known as the Springboks
. South Africa hosted and won the 1995 Rugby World Cup
, in what was their first appearance at the World Cup. The defeat of the All Blacks
in the final is remembered as one of the most famous South African sporting moments. The domestic league – the Currie Cup
is also played annually, as well as the international Super Rugby.
After being tainted by associations with apartheid, the Springboks (or 'Boks') have sought to become part of the 'New South Africa', with President Nelson Mandela
wearing the Springbok jersey, once only worn by whites, at the final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup
.
South Africa won the 2007 Rugby World Cup
(PASA).
and Amanda Coetzer
.
South Africa has only had one grand slam tournament winner, and that was Johan Kriek
who won the Australian Open in 1981. He won again in 1982 but had acquired American citizenship and played as an American that year. Kevin Curren
made the Australian Open final in 1984, and the following year, shortly after becoming an American citizen, was on the receiving end of the then-17-year-old Boris Becker
's famous first win at Wimbledon
. Other South African Grand Slam finalists include Eric Sturgess
, Ian Vermaak
, Cliff Drysdale
, Brian Norton, Sandra Reynoldsa and Irene Peacock,
Given South Africa's sunny climate and the abundant tennis courts in the country, it would be surprising if the current lack of top tennis players continued there for any length of time.
, the double amputee world record holder at 100, 200 and 400 metres; and swimmer Natalie du Toit
, who became the first amputee to compete in swimming at the (able-bodied) Olympics in 2008
. In triathlon
Conrad Stoltz
is a three time Xterra Triathlon
world champion, Raynard Tissink is a multiple Ironman
champion, Hendrick de Villiers is a ITU World Cup winner and Dan Hugo
is an Xterra and multi-sport star.
is a 200 year old folk sport developed and played in South Africa.
South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee
South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee is a non-profit organisation that serves as the National Olympic Committee and National Paralympic Committee for the South Africa and the controlling body of all performance sports of South Africa and coordinates the relationship with...
(SASCOC), Ministry of Sports and civil society. The South African government and SASCOC have been striving to improve – incrementally – the participation of the previously excluded majority in competitive sports, but so far with limited success, due to resistance on part of numerous federations. Rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
is not the most popular sport in South Africa, contrary to popular belief. The most popular sport in South Africa by far is association football. This is particularly popular with the black South Africans who constitute the majority of the population. Cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
is also a very popular sport (second most popular sport in South Africa) in the country and the national team is nicknamed The Proteas. South Africa's national football team
South Africa national football team
The South Africa national football team represents South Africa in association football and is controlled by the South African Football Association, the governing body for football in South Africa. South Africa's home ground is Soccer City, known as FNB Stadium due to a naming rights deal, in...
is nicknamed Bafana Bafana (meaning the boys, the boys). South Africa hosted the 2010 FIFA World Cup
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
, the first one hosted in Africa. Other popular sports include: rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
, boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
, hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
, surfing
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
, and running.
South Africa was absent from international sport for most of the apartheid era due to sanctions, but started competing globally after the country's white electorate voted in a referendum
South African referendum, 1992
The 1992 referendum was held in South Africa on 17 March of that year. In it, white South Africans were asked to vote in the country's last whites-only referendum to determine whether or not they supported the negotiated reforms begun by State President F.W. de Klerk two years earlier, in which he...
in favour of a negotiated settlement of the apartheid question.
History
South Africa was banned from the 1964 Summer Olympics1964 Summer Olympics
The 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. Tokyo had been awarded with the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subsequently passed to Helsinki because of Japan's...
in Tokyo due to the apartheid policies.
. This ban effectively lasted until 1992. During this time, some sports people (like Zola Budd
Zola Budd
Zola Pieterse, better known by her maiden name of Zola Budd , is a former Olympic track and field competitor who, in less than three years, twice broke the world record in the women's 5000 metres and twice was the women's winner at the World Cross Country Championships...
and Kepler Wessels
Kepler Wessels
Kepler Christoffel Wessels is a former South African cricketer who captained South Africa after playing 24 Tests for Australia. He was the first man to have played One Day International cricket for two countries....
) left for other countries in order to compete internationally. Some athletes continued their sports careers in South Africa in isolation, with some starts like women's 400 metres runner Myrtle Bothma running a world record time at the South African championships.
Some sports teams toured South Africa as "Rebel Tours" and played the Springbok rugby and Proteas cricket teams in South Africa during the isolation period.
In 1977, Commonwealth Presidents and Prime Ministers agreed, as part of their support for the international campaign against apartheid, to discourage contact and competition between their sportsmen and sporting organisations, teams or individuals from South Africa.
Women's sport
Sport in South Africa is still largely seen (in the words of a former member of Women and Sport South Africa) as "the domain of men". In 1997, one writer described "massive gender inequalities in the sporting structures of the country, and a strong association between sport and masculinity".Australian Rules Football
Australian rules football in South AfricaAustralian rules football in South Africa
Australian rules football in South Africa is a fast growing team sport, having grown in participation by 160% between 2005–07.Since 1996, the sport has been growing quickly amongst indigenous communities, beginning in the North West province and later spreading to Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Western...
is a popular team sport.
Since 1996, the sport has been growing quickly amongst indigenous communities, beginning in the North West province and later spreading to Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape Province through the work of development officers.
South Africa's national team made history in 2007 by competing against Australia's best Under 17 players as well as defeating a touring Australian amateur senior team for the first time. The first national championships were held in 2008, from which the Lions were selected and finished third overall in the 2008 Australian Football International Cup
2008 Australian Football International Cup
The 2008 Australian Football International Cup was the third time the Australian Football International Cup, an international Australian rules football competition, has been contested....
.
Canoeing
A number of large canoe events occur annually in South Africa- Dusi Canoe MarathonDusi Canoe MarathonThe Unlimited Dusi Canoe Marathon is a canoe race between Pietermaritzburg and Durban, South Africa. It is run along the Msunduzi River, which is more commonly referred to as the Dusi river. The 2006 race attracted roughly 2000 paddlers and two to three thousand seconders, helpers and supporters...
- Fish River Canoe Marathon football
- Berg River Canoe MarathonBerg River Canoe MarathonThe Berg River Canoe Marathon takes place annually in South Africa's Western Cape Province over a distance of some 240km from Paarl to the small harbour of Velddrif on the West Coast. The two other notable South African canoe races are the Dusi Canoe Marathon and the Fish River Canoe Marathon. ...
Cricket
CricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
is a popular sport in South Africa, especially among English-speaking whites. It is the only sport in South Africa to feature in the top two sports of all race groups. The national team is known as the Proteas.
South Africa is one of the leading cricket-playing nations in the world and one of ten countries that is sanctioned to play test cricket
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
. Cricket was traditionally popular among English-speaking whites and the Asian community, though the latter were not able to compete in top-level South African cricket in the apartheid era. Since the end of the apartheid era, a higher proportion of white players have come from Afrikaans-speaking backgrounds, and attempts have been made to increase the number of non-white players, in part through a quota system. The current national team features prominent non-white players, such as Ashwell Prince
Ashwell Prince
Ashwell Gavin Prince is a cricketer who plays Test and One Day International cricket for South Africa. A left-handed middle order batsman, he has a high-batted stance and is strong through the offside. He is noted for his gritty style of batting and also for being an athletic fielder in the covers...
, Hashim Amla
Hashim Amla
Hashim Mahomed Amla is a South African cricketer. A right-handed upper order batsman and occasional medium-pace bowler, Amla bats at number 3 for South Africa in Test matches and has opened in limited overs contests. He is currently ranked as the No...
(the first Muslim to play for South Africa), Herschelle Gibbs
Herschelle Gibbs
Herschelle Herman Gibbs is a South African cricketer, more specifically a batsman.Gibbs was schooled at St Joseph's Marist College and then Diocesan College in Rondebosch...
, Monde Zondeki
Monde Zondeki
Monde Zondeki is a South African cricketer who has played five Tests and 7 One Day International for South Africa, and three One Day Internationals for the African XI...
, Loots Bosman
Loots Bosman
Lungile Edgar Bosman is a South African international cricketer. He is a top order right-handed batsman and occasional right-arm medium pace bowler. He plays domestic cricket for Dolphins, and has appeared for South Africa in both One Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals...
, Charl Langeveldt
Charl Langeveldt
Charl Kenneth Langeveldt is a South African ODI and Test cricketer. He is one of four Cape Coloureds in the South African side, with the others being Herschelle Gibbs, JP Duminy and Ashwell Prince....
, and Makhaya Ntini
Makhaya Ntini
Makhaya Ntini is a former South African cricketer who was the first ethnically black player to play for the South African team. A fast bowler, he tends to bowl from wide of the crease with brisk, although not express, pace...
. Afrikaners in the team include AB de Villiers, Albie Morkel
Albie Morkel
Johannes Albertus Morkel , better known as Albie Morkel, is a South African cricketer. He is an all-rounder who bowls right-arm- medium fast and bats left-handed. He is famous for his six hitting abilities in Twenty20 cricket...
, Morne Morkel
Morne Morkel
Morné Morkel is a cricketer who plays Test and limited overs cricket for South Africa. He is a right-arm fast bowler with "genuine pace" according to former South African fast bowler Allan Donald, and a useful lower order left-handed batsman. Some believe he has the ability to become a genuine...
, Johan Botha and Dale Steyn
Dale Steyn
Dale Willem Steyn is a South African cricketer who plays in Test and One Day International cricket for South Africa. He is currently the number one ranked Test bowler in the world and achieved the 900+ points benchmark on 13th Nov 2011. Steyn plays domestic cricket in South Africa for Cape Cobras...
.
The team has had success with batsmen like Herschelle Gibbs
Herschelle Gibbs
Herschelle Herman Gibbs is a South African cricketer, more specifically a batsman.Gibbs was schooled at St Joseph's Marist College and then Diocesan College in Rondebosch...
, who is one of the sport's most dominating batsmen, all-rounders like Jacques Kallis
Jacques Kallis
Jacques Henry Kallis is a South African cricketer. As an all-rounder he is a formidable right-handed batsman and fast-medium swingbowler. He is one of the greatest all-rounders of all time, being the only cricketer in the history of the game to hold more than 12,000 runs and 250 wickets in both...
and Shaun Pollock
Shaun Pollock
Shaun Maclean Pollock is a retired South African cricketer who is considered a bowling all-rounder. From 2000 to 2003 he was the captain of the South African cricket team, and also played for Africa XI, World XI, Dolphins and Warwickshire. He was also chosen as the Wisden Cricketer of the Year in...
, the former being one of the greatest all rounders of the game, and bowlers such as Makhaya Ntini
Makhaya Ntini
Makhaya Ntini is a former South African cricketer who was the first ethnically black player to play for the South African team. A fast bowler, he tends to bowl from wide of the crease with brisk, although not express, pace...
, who reached number two in the ICC Player Rankings in 2006. Dale Steyn
Dale Steyn
Dale Willem Steyn is a South African cricketer who plays in Test and One Day International cricket for South Africa. He is currently the number one ranked Test bowler in the world and achieved the 900+ points benchmark on 13th Nov 2011. Steyn plays domestic cricket in South Africa for Cape Cobras...
is currently ranked as one of the best test bowlers, and captain Graeme Smith
Graeme Smith
Graeme Craig Smith is a South African cricketer and captain of the South African cricket team Test Match side, having succeeded Shaun Pollock after the 2003 Cricket World Cup...
is one of the most dominant left-handed batsmen in world cricket today. Wicketkeeper Mark Boucher
Mark Boucher
Mark Verdon Boucher is a South African cricketer, who holds the record for the most Test dismissals by a wicket-keeper. He was educated at Selborne College and has represented Border, Africa XI, ICC World XI, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kolkata Knight Riders of the Indian Premier League, and...
has the world record for the most number of dismissals for a wicketkeeper and continues playing for the team. Kevin Pietersen
Kevin Pietersen
Kevin Peter Pietersen, MBE is a South African-born English cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and occasional off spin bowler who plays for England and Surrey...
, who is white, left the country claiming that he was put at a disadvantage by positive discrimination, and within a few years became one of the world's top batsmen, playing for England. South Africa is one of the strongest teams and in 2006 in Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
in what was the highest scoring 50 over ODI ever, South Africa led by Gibbs' 175 chased down
Australia in South Africa, 5th ODI, 2006
The 5th One Day International cricket match between South Africa and Australia was played on 12 March 2006 at New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg. The match broke many cricket records, including both the first and the second team innings score of over 400 runs. Australia won the toss and elected to...
Australia's mammoth and then world record score of 434–4. South Africa hosted the 2003 Cricket World Cup
2003 Cricket World Cup
-Group stage tables and results:The top three teams from each pool qualify for the next stage, carrying forward the points already scored against fellow qualifiers, plus a quarter of the points scored against the teams that failed to qualify.-Pool A:...
an event that was disappointing to them as they lost against Sri Lanka in what happened to be in a farcical situation and were eliminated on home soil. In the 2007 Cricket World Cup
2007 Cricket World Cup
The 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup was the ninth edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup tournament that took place in the West Indies from 13 March to 28 April 2007, using the sport's One Day International format...
South Africa reached the semi-finals of the event but lost to Australia.
Cycling
- Major events: Cape Argus Cycle RaceCape Argus Cycle RaceThe Cape Argus Pick n Pay Cycle Tour is an annual cycle race hosted in Cape Town, South Africa, usually 109 km long. It is the first event outside Europe to be included in the International Cycling Union's Golden Bike Series.The race is one of South Africa's three 'largest sporting events' in...
, 94.7 Cycle Challenge94.7 Cycle ChallengeThe Momentum 94.7 cycle challenge is the world's second-largest timed cycle race, after the Cape Argus Cycle Race. It is held annually on cycle challenge Sunday, the third Sunday of November in the city of Johannesburg. Between 20,000 and 30,000 participants complete the challenging 94.7-km course...
South Africa has a strong cycle race scene. The most notable cyclist is Robert Hunter
Robert Hunter (cyclist)
Robert Hunter is a South African professional road cyclist, for UCI ProTour team . He became in 2001 the first South African to compete in the Tour de France. In 2006 he rode for the Phonak Hearing Systems team on the UCI ProTour, but after their disbandment he signed for UCI Continental Circuits...
who won a stage in the 2007 Tour de France
Tour de France
The Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
. Robert Hunter rode that tour with Team Barloworld who had gained a wildcard entry to the Tour de France that year. Although Barloworld are based in the UK, the team was considered to be a South African team.
Cycling South Africa
Cycling South Africa
Cycling South Africa or CyclingSA is the national governing body of cycle racing in South Africa.CyclingSA is a member of the Confederation Africaine de Cyclisme....
or CyclingSA is the national governing body of cycle racing in South Africa.
Golf
Golf in South Africa has a long and illustrious history and South Africa is one of the great golfing nations.Golf is easily the best individual sports event that South Africans participate in, with the quantity and quality of South African players being of the top order.
The first South African to win a major championship
Men's major golf championships
The men's major golf championships, commonly known as the Major Championships, and often referred to simply as the majors, are the four most prestigious annual tournaments in professional golf...
was Bobby Locke
Bobby Locke
Arthur D'Arcy "Bobby" Locke was the first internationally successful South African professional golfer. He won four Open Championships.-Early years:...
who won The British Open
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...
four times in 1949, 1950, 1952 and 1957
The most famous of South African golfers is however Gary Player
Gary Player
Gary Player DMS; OIG is a South African professional golfer. With his nine major championship victories, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of golf. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974. Player has won 165 tournaments on six continents over six...
who along with Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus dominated world golf for much of the 1960s and 1970s. Player won all four majors, winning the British Open
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...
in 1959, 1968 and 1974, The Masters in 1961, 1974 and 1978, the PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...
in 1962 and 1972 and the U.S Open
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...
just once in 1965. Player always played in his trademark black outfits and became one of the recognisable figures in the sport. He also enjoyed considerable success in senior golf, winning six majors
Senior major golf championships
Men's professional senior golf is for players aged 50 and above. Golf differs from all other sports in having lucrative competitions for this age group. The leading senior tour is the U.S. based Champions Tour, which was established in 1980 . It has established a roster of five major championships...
on the Champions Tour
Champions Tour
The Champions Tour, a golf tour run by the PGA Tour, hosts a series of events annually in the United States and the United Kingdom for golfers 50 years of age and older. Many of the PGA Tour's most successful golfers have gone on to play on the Champions Tour.The Senior PGA Championship, founded in...
(then the Senior PGA Tour) from 1986 to 1990. The only other South African to have won a senior major is Simon Hobday
Simon Hobday
Simon Hobday is a South African professional golfer who has won tournaments on three continents.Hobday was born in Mafikeng. He turned professional in 1969. He spent his regular career mainly on the Southern Africa Tour, where he won six times and the European Tour, where he won the 1976 German...
, winner of the U.S. Senior Open
United States Senior Open
The U.S. Senior Open is one of the major championships in men's senior golf. It was first played in 1980 and is administered by the United States Golf Association and is recognized as a major championship by both the Champions Tour and the European Seniors Tour...
in 1994.
Current players who have won majors are 1994, 1997 U.S. Open and 2002 British Open
2002 Open Championship
The 2002 Open Championship was the 131st Open Championship held from 18-21 July at Muirfield Golf Links in Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland. Ernie Els won his first Open Championship and third major championship in a playoff over Stuart Appleby, Steve Elkington, and ultimately in a sudden-death...
Champion Ernie Els
Ernie Els
Theodore Ernest "Ernie" Els is a South African professional golfer, who has been one of the top professional players in the world since the mid-1990s. A former World No. 1, he is known as "The Big Easy" due to his imposing physical stature along with his fluid, seemingly effortless golf swing...
, 2001 and 2004 U.S. Open Champion Retief Goosen
Retief Goosen
Retief Goosen is a South African professional golfer who has been in the top ten in the Official World Golf Rankings for over 250 weeks between 2001 and 2007. His main achievements have been two U.S...
, 2008 Masters
2008 Masters Tournament
The 2008 Masters Tournament was a golf competition held at Augusta National Golf Club from April 10-13. It was the 72nd Masters Tournament, and the first major of the 2008 season. Trevor Immelman won with a score of -8 . Defending champion Zach Johnson finished tied for 20th at +3...
Champion Trevor Immelman
Trevor Immelman
Trevor John Immelman is a South African professional golfer and winner of the 2008 Masters Tournament.-Early years:Immelman was born in Cape Town, South Africa. Born into a golfing family , he took up golf at the age of five. He attended Hottentots Holland High School...
, British Open
2010 Open Championship
The 2010 Open Championship was the 139th Open Championship, the oldest of golf's four majors, and was played from 15–18 July over the Old Course at St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. It was celebrated as the 150th anniversary of the founding of The Open in 1860...
Champion Louis Oosthuizen
Louis Oosthuizen
Lodewicus Theodorus "Louis" Oosthuizen is a South African professional golfer, who won the 2010 Open Championship.-Early life and career:...
and 2011 Masters
2011 Masters Tournament
The 2011 Masters Tournament was the 75th Masters Tournament and was played from April 7–10 at Augusta National Golf Club. It was the first major championship of the 2011 season. South African Charl Schwartzel won the 2011 event by two strokes over Adam Scott and Jason Day.Eight players held a share...
Champion Charl Schwartzel
Charl Schwartzel
Charl Adriaan Schwartzel is a South African professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour, European Tour, and the Sunshine Tour. He won the 2011 Masters Tournament. Schwartzel's highest world ranking has been number seven, in May 2011....
.
The country has had less success in women's golf. The only South African woman to have won a major
Women's major golf championships
Women's golf has a set of major championships which parallels that in men's golf, but the women's system is younger and has been less stable than the men's. Many professional stroke play events for women are played over three rounds , but the majors are played over four rounds , which is the...
was Sally Little
Sally Little
Sally Little is a professional golfer. She originally had South African nationality, but became a United States citizen in August 1982....
, who won the LPGA Championship
LPGA Championship
The LPGA Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Wegmans LPGA Championship, is the second-longest running tournament in the history of the Ladies Professional Golf Association surpassed only by the U.S. Women's Open. It is one of four majors on the LPGA tour...
in 1980. Little later became a U.S. citizen and won a second major, the 1988 du Maurier Classic
Canadian Women's Open
The CN Canadian Women's Open is a women's professional golf tournament managed by the Royal Canadian Golf Association. It has been Canada's national championship tournament since 1973, and is an official event on the LPGA Tour.-History:...
, as an American.
British golfer Justin Rose
Justin Rose
Justin Peter Rose is a South African-born English professional golfer who plays most of his golf on the PGA Tour while keeping his membership on the European Tour...
is South Africa-born, but was raised from age 5 in England, and chose to play his trade for that country.
Motor sport
South Africa has staged Formula OneFormula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
Grand Prix, the last being the 1993 race at the Kyalami
Kyalami
Kyalami is a motor racing circuit located in Midrand, Gauteng province, South Africa. The circuit has been used for Grand Prix and Formula One races and has hosted the South African Grand Prix many times. In recent years, the area surrounding the circuit has developed into a residential and...
circuit. It has produced one Formula One world champion, Jody Schekter, who triumphed for Ferrari in 1979. South Africa was also one the host nations for the A1 Grand Prix
A1 Grand Prix
A1 Grand Prix was a 'single make' open-wheel auto racing series. It was unique in its field in that competitors solely represented their nation as opposed to themselves or a team, the usual format in most formula racing series. As such, it was often promoted as the "World Cup of Motorsport"...
.
Rugby league
Rugby league is a popular sport in South Africa, with long history, and consisting of no less than three and possibly four different administrative boards, committee or interests over 40 odd years that attempted to establish the game of rugby leagueRugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
in South Africa. None of the earlier attempts were very successful.
The first attempted expansion of the code into South Africa was primarily put together by the English and encouraged by the French for the purpose of expanding the game into new nations that would inevitably bring more tests to the English and French shores, ensuring a lucrative future. At least, that was the plan—however, it was not to be; the South African public did not take to the sport and the expansion plans were stopped prematurely, causing the cancellation of a third scheduled match in London.
The second attempted expansion was a strange double act in the 1960s consisting of two separate factions, known as the National Rugby League and South African Rugby League. Each fought for their own survival until the RLIF laid down the law that saw the NRL effectively shut down and its clubs moved to the SARL. All was looking good for SARL until a South African representative team toured Australia and were embarrassingly beaten, enough to discourage South African fans from supporting their national team and thus it never caught on.
The 1990s brought forth a more committed band of entrepreneurs. The foundation left by the 1990s administration still lives on today, albeit a former shadow of itself.
The rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
competition in South Africa is the Tom van Vollenhoven Cup.
Rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
is a popular sport in South Africa, especially popular among Afrikaner
Afrikaner
Afrikaners are an ethnic group in Southern Africa descended from almost equal numbers of Dutch, French and German settlers whose native tongue is Afrikaans: a Germanic language which derives primarily from 17th century Dutch, and a variety of other languages.-Related ethno-linguistic groups:The...
s. The national team is known as the Springboks
South Africa national rugby union team
The South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental...
. South Africa hosted and won the 1995 Rugby World Cup
1995 Rugby World Cup
The 1995 Rugby World Cup was the third Rugby World Cup. It was hosted and won by South Africa, and was the first Rugby World Cup in which every match was held in one country....
, in what was their first appearance at the World Cup. The defeat of the All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
in the final is remembered as one of the most famous South African sporting moments. The domestic league – the Currie Cup
Currie Cup
The Currie Cup tournament is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring , featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces...
is also played annually, as well as the international Super Rugby.
After being tainted by associations with apartheid, the Springboks (or 'Boks') have sought to become part of the 'New South Africa', with President Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
wearing the Springbok jersey, once only worn by whites, at the final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup
1995 Rugby World Cup
The 1995 Rugby World Cup was the third Rugby World Cup. It was hosted and won by South Africa, and was the first Rugby World Cup in which every match was held in one country....
.
South Africa won the 2007 Rugby World Cup
2007 Rugby World Cup
The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 20 October. France won the hosting rights in 2003,...
SkyDiving and Parachuting
There are 20 registered drop zones / skydiving clubs in South Africa, all are affiliated to the Parachute Association of South AfricaParachute Association of South Africa
The Parachute Association of South Africa manages the sports of parachuting and skydiving in South Africa on behalf of the South African Civil Aviation Authority.-Mission statement:...
(PASA).
Swimming
- Major events: Midmar MileMidmar MileThe Midmar Mile is a swimming race held annually in February at the Midmar Dam north of Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. Each year, it draws thousands of competitors, from serious international athletes and Olympic medallists to purely recreational swimmers....
Tennis
South Africa used to be a country with good tennis players but this has all but died away with the new post-apartheid administration of the sport. The most recent tennis players who made it into the world top ten rankings are Wayne FerreiraWayne Ferreira
Wayne Richard Ferreira is a former tennis player from South Africa. He attended Parktown Boys' High School....
and Amanda Coetzer
Amanda Coetzer
Amanda Coetzer is a former professional tennis player from South Africa.Coetzer turned professional in 1988 and retired in 2004...
.
South Africa has only had one grand slam tournament winner, and that was Johan Kriek
Johan Kriek
Johan Kriek is a South African American professional male tennis player and founder of the Global Water Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to delivering clean water to the world's neediest communities. Kriek has won two Australian Opens and has reached the semi-finals at the French...
who won the Australian Open in 1981. He won again in 1982 but had acquired American citizenship and played as an American that year. Kevin Curren
Kevin Curren
----Kevin Melvyn Curren is a former professional tennis player. He played in two Grand Slam singles finals and won four Grand Slam doubles titles.-Career:...
made the Australian Open final in 1984, and the following year, shortly after becoming an American citizen, was on the receiving end of the then-17-year-old Boris Becker
Boris Becker
Boris Franz Becker is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player from Germany. He is a six-time Grand Slam singles champion, an Olympic gold medalist, and the youngest-ever winner of the men's singles title at Wimbledon at the age of 17...
's famous first win at Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
. Other South African Grand Slam finalists include Eric Sturgess
Eric Sturgess
Eric William Sturgess was a South African male tennis player. Eric Sturgess attended Parktown Boys' High School in Johannesburg...
, Ian Vermaak
Ian Vermaak
Ian Vermaak was a tennis player competing for South Africa. He finished runner-up to Nicola Pietrangeli in the singles final of the Amateur French Championships of Roland-Garros in 1959, after having reached earlier in the season the Hamburg International German Tennis Championships final, losing...
, Cliff Drysdale
Cliff Drysdale
Cliff Drysdale is a former top-ranked professional tennis player of the 1960s and early 1970s who became a well-known tennis announcer. He was one of the Handsome Eight, signed by Lamar Hunt in 1968 for the newly formed World Championship Tennis group...
, Brian Norton, Sandra Reynoldsa and Irene Peacock,
Given South Africa's sunny climate and the abundant tennis courts in the country, it would be surprising if the current lack of top tennis players continued there for any length of time.
Other sports
South Africa has a number of disabled athletes, most notably Oscar PistoriusOscar Pistorius
Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius is a South African sprint runner. Known as the "Blade Runner" and "the fastest man on no legs", Pistorius, who has a double amputation, is the world record holder in the 100, 200 and 400 metres events and runs with the aid of Cheetah Flex-Foot carbon fibre transtibial...
, the double amputee world record holder at 100, 200 and 400 metres; and swimmer Natalie du Toit
Natalie du Toit
Natalie du Toit is a South African swimmer. She is best known for the gold medals she won at the 2004 Paralympic Games as well as the Commonwealth Games. She was one of two Paralympians to compete at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; the other being table tennis player Natalia Partyka...
, who became the first amputee to compete in swimming at the (able-bodied) Olympics in 2008
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
. In triathlon
Triathlon
A triathlon is a multi-sport event involving the completion of three continuous and sequential endurance events. While many variations of the sport exist, triathlon, in its most popular form, involves swimming, cycling, and running in immediate succession over various distances...
Conrad Stoltz
Conrad Stoltz
Conrad Stoltz is a triathlete from South Africa.He competes in triathlons and is four time World Champion of the XTERRA Series and ITU Cross Triathlon World Champion of off-road triathlon races....
is a three time Xterra Triathlon
XTERRA Triathlon
XTERRA is a series of off-road triathlon races, . The XTERRA Global Tour is owned and produced by...
world champion, Raynard Tissink is a multiple Ironman
Ironman Triathlon
An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation consisting of a swim, a bike and a marathon run, raced in that order and without a break...
champion, Hendrick de Villiers is a ITU World Cup winner and Dan Hugo
Dan Hugo
Dan Hugo is a professional XTERRA triathlete based in Stellenbosch, South Africa. He matriculated in 2003 at the well-known Paul Roos Gymnasium, in Stellenbosch.-Results:-External links:...
is an Xterra and multi-sport star.
Traditional sports
JukskeiJukskei
Jukskei is a 200 year old folk sport developed and played in South Africa.-History:Jukskei is believed to have originated around 1743 in the Cape, South Africa, developed by "transport riders" who traveled with ox-drawn wagons...
is a 200 year old folk sport developed and played in South Africa.