Mandla’s Message

Last year was a rollercoaster for the University of the Western Cape (UWC) Sport. We started off by celebrating our inaugural 2019 Varsity Cup participation and went on to see the biggest Fast & Flat turnout, the record number of national selections, our women’s football team national league qualification, hosting of University Sports South Africa (USSA) National Table Tennis Tournament as well as the launch of the High-Performance Centre.

But all these great memories were overshadowed by the sudden passing away of our rugby head coach, Chester Williams. His loss took us all by surprise and, at some point, I was not sure how we were going to recover. However, through the support of the UWC Family, we turned this negative memory into a positive one by pledging to honour him and celebrate his life.

We also experienced the loss of Jesse Hess, a young, vibrant student full of love for life and the people around her. Her passing was another strong reminder about how women continue to bear the brunt of abuse, violence and murder at the hands of men. Her loss was a strong indictment to all men to stand up and deal with themselves.

The UWC Sportsmen’s Forum has seen exponential growth in numbers. The Forum aims to provide men with a space to speak frankly to one another about issues they face and receive advice, guidance and mentorship. The intended result of these conversations is to get rid of gender-based violence.

In 2019, our men’s football team unfortunately also failed to qualify for the 2020 Varsity Football tournament. This will be the first time since the inception of Varsity Football that UWC will not be on the fixtures. Upon reflecting, we believe this has happened so we can take time to identify our strengths. And perhaps this is the spark that is needed in order for our team to do things differently.

This year, 2020, is a special year for UWC as the University will be celebrating its 60th anniversary. UWC Sport will use this year to remind ourselves of where we come from and celebrate all the success achieved along the way while also honouring all those that contributed

The UWC women’s football team.

to our growth. As such, we will be hosting a series of events, including a book launch on the history of UWC Sport, to which our alumni will be invited. On the competition front, our rugby will face the tough task of trying to retain its Varsity Cup status – the pressure is even greater because, for the first time in its existence, Varsity Cup will be using combined logs from 2019 and 2020 to determine promotion and relegation. Our women’s football will also continue to shine in the South African Football Association’s (SAFA) National League while all other teams will battle to retain their Varsity Sports’ status. We will also be hosting a number of USSA national tournaments, such as the USSA Rugby Sevens, USSA Football (A Section) and USSA Volleyball.

UWC Sport has also started various upgrades to some of our sports facilities so as to ensure they meet modern standards. The following facilities will get a facelift during 2020: the VIP lounge, VOC, high-performance gym, athletics track and football fields. I take my hat off to the University’s leadership for recognising the value of sport within the university environment.

In conclusion, let me take this opportunity to welcome all the 2020 first years to UWC Sport. During your time at UWC, please ensure you build as many positive memories as possible. To our returning students, welcome back — we are always proud to have student athletes of your calibre in our midst. I am UWC #60NotOut.