For a lengthy time South Africa was absent from international sport due to the sanctions of the apartheid era. Nowadays sport is the national religion in South Africa, and has transcended race and language boundaries. Sport has the power to heal old wounds and when a South African team wins the noise is just incredible. All at once you can hear banging of dustbin lids, hooting of automobile horns, fireworks, cheering and trumpeting on cow horns. In 1995 Nelson Mandela wore the No. 6 shirt of the Springboks captain, Francois Pienaar, a White Afrikaner. The two men embraced spontaneously with racial reconciliation which melted several hearts.
In South Africa there are three large sports, which are cricket, rugby and soccer. South Africa is host of world-class sporting facilities which can accommodate tens of thousands of individuals. There is the amazing Wanderers Cricket Ground in Johannesburg which has been nicknamed “the bull ring” because of the intense spectator atmosphere. In Capetown there is the Newlands Cricket Grounds, home of the Cape Cobras, which is regarded as 1 of the most stunning cricket venues in the whole world. It is overlooked by Devil’s Peak and the Table Mountain. In 2007 South Africa hosted the inaugural Twenty20 World Championships which was praised widely for the event’s success.
For rugby South Africa is home to the fantastic Pretoria’s Loftus Versfeld, residence to the Blue Bulls and Durban’s Kings Park which is residence to the Sharks. But for the 2010 Rugby World Cup there will be a lot more new outstanding stadiums. Rugby is a serious issue for several South Africans and fans anticipate their team to win each single game. In 2007 South Africa beat England in the final of the world cup in Paris 15-6.
For cricket fans the next big event which will be staged in South Africa is the England Cricket Tour to South Africa from 7th November until 18th January. This tour will open with two Twenty20 internationals in Johannesburg and Centurion, to be followed by five ODIs in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Centurion, Port Elizabeth and Durban. Hugh Morris, the England Cricket Managing Director, announced that they felt grateful to their cricket colleagues in South Africa for supplying what promises to be such an exciting and well balanced tour. The four test matches are scheduled for the iconic South African cricket grounds where no doubt thousands of lucky England supporters will be delighted to invest their Christmas and New Year.
South Africa is filled with numerous places of remarkable beauty so it is not only for the sports fan. Sports fan or not you can take pleasure in wine tasting, safari parks, adventure experiences or buzzing city experiences. Johannesburg is a vibrant city with the feeling of everyone is actually on the move. It is the major international gateway to South Africa. Cape Town lies between the mountain and the ocean, and combines the wildness of nature with the prospective wildness of a good nightlife.
The England Cricket Tour to South Africa in November kicks off in Johannesburg, moves on to Centurion, going by means of Potchefstroom, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban, East London and back via Centurion, Durban, Cape Town to finish in Johannesburg with the final test at Wanderers.