SA celebrates with Khotso
2008-08-19 14:06
Clare Byrne
Johannesburg - Eleven days into the Beijing Games South Africans were celebrating the end of their Olympics Shame on Tuesday after long jumper Khotso Mokoena ended the country's ten-day medal drought with a silver.
"Thank you Khotso," the front-page headline on the Sowetan newspaper, South Africa's biggest newspaper read, encapsulating the huge relief in the sports-mad nation that Team SA had finally made the podium.
"I was hoping I could get any medal," 23-year-old "King Khotso" told The Star newspaper after jumping 8.24m to place second behind Panama's Irvin Saladino. "Because Team South Africa hasn't done that well we had to do something."
South Africa's poor showing at the Games has caused a flurry of finger-pointing in the Rainbow Nation.
This year's squad was the biggest South Africa had sent to the Games since it was brought back into the Olympics fold in 1992, at the end of apartheid.
A total of 130 athletes paraded behind famous amputee swimmer Natalie du Toit at the opening ceremony in the Bird's Nest, 25 more than were fielded in the Athens Games.
10 medals
By casting wider South Africa had hoped to improve on its tally of six medals, or 43rd in the medals ranking.
This time, the (Sascoc) said it was aiming for 10 medals: six in swimming, three in track and field and one in rowing.
The 4 x 100m freestyle swim "dream team" that took record-breaking gold in Athens had been seen as the strongest contenders.
But despite besting their 2004 performance Lyndon Ferns, Roland Schoeman, Darian Townsend and Ryk Neethling finished only 7th in a race won in record time by the United States.
Schoeman, South Africa's most successful Olympian who took three medals in Athens, also failed to place in the 50m freestyle on Saturday, despite setting a new African record in the discipline.
Newspapers in the nation of sports enthusiasts were lamenting the country's "belly flop" at the "Olympics Shames", noting that countries with far fewer resources, like Armenia, have managed to pull in a few medals.
Schoeman has blamed a lack of funding for athletes in South Africa.
National Lottery
"We are not funded the way the US or Australian teams are funded, or even the Europeans" Schoeman complained. "The funding we get is meagre in comparison."
The figures bear him out. Australia, a country of 20 million people against South Africa's 48, spent close to $500m on their Olympic team over the past four years. Sascoc gets only R50m a year from the government and the National Lottery. Australia is currently ranked fourth in medal terms; South Africa is 57th.
Sascoc also failed to clinch any major sponsorship deals for the Olympics. Mercedes-Benz, Adidas, South Africa Airways, Telkom, Vodacom and energy giant Sasol, have all deserted Team SA since Athens.
Citing "return on investment" and other issues many have switched their support to the star-studded Paralympics team, which includes double-amputee "blade runner" sprinter Oscar Pistorius and du Toit, who make history as the first amputee to compete in the able-bodied Games on Wednesday.
Many countries' best able-bodied athletes, by contrast, have moved to the United States to access better training and funding.
Economic collapse
But money alone does not explain South Africa's failure to keep abreast of the Olympics heavyweights.
Zimbabwean swimmer Kirsty Coventry has bagged one gold and three silver medals, despite her country being in the throes of economic collapse.
Moss Mashishi, president of Sascoc, pointed to the relative inexperience of many of South Africa's competitors.
"Most are here on their first Olympic experience. Usually athletes only win medals on their second or third Olympics," he said by phone from Beijing.
Others say South Africans have too-high expectation of their athletes, because they are used to glory in rugby, cricket and golf.
What remains of the country's medal hopes are now firmly pinned on du Toit's coat-hanger shoulders. The 24-year-old competes in the 10km open-water swim early on Wednesday.
- SAPA