Sports, Bringing Africans Together, To The World
Sporting events and other related activities bring people together. Sporting events market and elevate a country’s statute in the global society.
Football is one of the most loved games in the world. Indeed, the FIFA World Cup is one of the most prestigious and renowned tournaments in the world, pitting teams from different parts of the world against each other. Africa has had its fair share of successes in the tournament, with teams such as Senegal, Cameroon, and Ghana reaching the quarterfinals. Back at home, in Africa, the situation is no different.
Africa Cup of Nations
A month ago, the curtains fell on one of Africa’s greatest sporting events, the Africa Cup of Nations. The African Cup of Nations was held in Egypt. The event was well organized and demonstrated to the world that Africa had come of age, demonstrating the ability to organize and execute an event to international standards.
Over and above the level of professionalism and excellence demonstrated in the execution of the event, brought to the fore the fact that Africans, have the potential to leverage home-bred solutions to achieve success in continental and global events.
Aliou Cissé, the Senegalese National football team coach, over and above his prowess in guiding the country in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, he went on to guide the team to the finals of the recently concluded African Cup of Nations. The same level of ability to use local resources and achieve success has been shown in the level of success achieved by different other countries in other sporting events.
Eliud Kipchoge wins 2019 London Marathon
Kenya is well known for its long-distance runners, who have effectively put the country on the global map. Kenyan athletes are household names, at home and abroad. They have contributed in marketing the country globally during major internationals athletics’ events in different parts of the world. In addition, in the recent past, Kenya has grown to prominence through the sterling performance of the rugby seven’s team in the international arena. In the recent London Marathon, Sir Mohammed Farah could not up with Eliud Kipchoge. Ethiopia has a near similar reputation, producing some of the World’s best athletes, such as Haile Gebrselassie and Tirunesh Dibaba.
Springboks 2019 Championship winners
Like Kenya, South Africa’s Seven a side ruby team has also scoped some accolades in different tournaments and championships across the world. It would not be a stretch of the imagination to say that more has been expected of the Springboks, the South Africa’s rugby team. They just delivered. The Springboks beat Argentina 13-46 to clinch the tops port in the just concluded Rugby Championship, finishing four points ahead of the Australians. The win marked the first time that the country has won the championship. This also being a World Cup year, in their current form, and considering the recent victory, it can be adduced that the team has the potential to upset the global powerhouses, including New Zealand and Argentina, to come out of the World Cup successful. It is possible. All the best Boks, as they are fondly referred to by their fans! Go get them!
An article of Dana Ochia
Important Links: Bleacherreport & Thesouthafrican
