AfriForum’s new fund to support medallists who get nothing 

10 August 2021

The civil rights organisation AfriForum launched a medal fund for Olympic and Paralympic medallists. This follows media reports over the weekend that the South African Sport Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) has very little to no funds to reward medallists for their accomplishments. The Paralympic Games will be held from 27 August to  5 September.  

The singer Adam Tas suggested the medal fund on Twitter, and it will be managed by AfriForum. This organisation has already made the first donation of R50 000 to the fund and encourages the public, businesses, organisations, and companies to support the fund.  

“It is shocking that the government and SASCOC are failing our athletes. The fact that Adam Tas and many other AfriForum members requested us to intervene is once again proof of a powerful self-do community that intervenes where government fails,” says Kallie Kriel, CEO of AfriForum. 

Although Barry Hendricks, SASCOC President, said that he would meet with “certain parties” to negotiate rewards, the situation could have been prevented if SASCOC had managed their finances better over the past few years. “Misappropriation is not only a SASCOC problem. Many sportspeople suffer as a result of the irresponsibility of committees and federations that fail to look after their interests,” says Ronald Peters, Manager of AfriForum Sport. 

“Apart from the fact that athletes had to pay for themselves to represent South Africa at the Games, their hard work is not rewarded. Nathi Mthethwa’s statements that our demography was not represented sufficiently fail if one considers how many talented athletes would have been able to participate if only they received financial assistance. Misappropriation must be eradicated if we want talented and less fortunate athletes to take part internationally. A team should not be composed according to a specific demography; it starts with making equal opportunities, facilities and coaching available to young sportspeople.”  

Donations will be accepted until 15 September 2021, after which it will be presented to the athletes. People who want to donate to the fund can deposit their donations into AfriForum’s banking account, with “MEDALJE” as reference. 

Companies and organisations who want to support the fund can email [email protected]. 

Bank name: First National Bank 

Account holder: AfriForum NPC 

Branch Code: 261550 

Account number: 62349898398 

SWIFT code: FIRNZAJJ 

Reference: MEDALJE 

Issued by Chanté Kelder, Media Relations Officer, AfriForum, 10 August 2021