3 minute read
UWC SPORT TO GET SOME WIIINGS!
BY FATIMA AHMED
IT’S TRUE, UWC Sport is about to get some wiiings! Student fees are a huge challenge for many families. Now, thanks to UWC’s partnership with energy drink maker Red Bull, selected student athletes from disadvantaged backgrounds will receive sports bursaries to enable them to attend university.
ANNOUNCING THE EXCITING NEW PARTNERSHIP with Red Bull, Mandla Gagayi, Director of Sport at UWC, said the collaboration was due to Red Bull’s commitment to nurturing and investing in young people for the future. The Red Bull brand has been a familiar sight at UWC for years, with the company having been a frequent sponsor or donor at campus sports and cultural events.
RED BULL IS RENOWNED for its mentorship programmes and other initiatives and shares an interest with UWC in nurturing students to ensure that they flourish educationally, and beyond. Rather than taking a short-term approach, Red Bull’s mentorship programmes are long-term partnerships through which the organisation encourages students to give back by making themselves available for participation in the programmes or other initiatives.
STUDENT ATHLETE CANDIDATES will be selected by UWC Sports Administration based on criteria that include basic need, academic performance and high-performance sporting participation. The list of proposed candidates will then be submitted to Red Bull for verification and bursary approval. There will be regular check-ins with bursary recipients throughout the year and their mid and final-year results will be submitted to Red Bull for monitoring.
THE COLLABORATION between UWC Sport and Red Bull is mutually beneficial. UWC Sport can now attract more top student athletes and maintain the high standard of the various sports teams and codes, while Red Bull can contribute meaningfully to national transformation through education, encourage students to strive for success in sport and academia and provide opportunities for career fulfilment.
GAGAYI SAYS: “Many big industry players are beginning to see value in investing in edu-sport. I admire and respect Red Bull for its vision and responsibility towards South Africa’s young people. Hopefully, many other corporations will follow Red Bull's example and also invest in the future leaders of this country.”
UWC SPORT IS PROUD TO PARTNER with Red Bull to enable more young people to learn, partake in sports and excel while at university – all without the worry of unpaid fees. True to their slogan, Red Bull is providing these students with the wings to soar into the future!
