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ICSSD DIRECTOR SCALES NEW OLYMPIC HEIGHTS
BY LYNDON JULIUS
THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WESTERN CAPE (UWC) has been actively involved in sports development throughout the democratic era, building on its proud history in the anti-apartheid struggle and the development of non-racial sport.
Professor Marion Keim
MUCH OF THE RESEARCH generated at UWC in the interrelated fields of sport, development, peace, leadership and social inclusion has been conducted at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Sports Science and Development (ICSSD), which is headed by Professor Marion Keim. Prof Keim is a C-rated researcher and advocate of the High Court of South Africa who has authored numerous books, articles and conference papers, and amassed considerable expertise in multiple fields, including sports development, mediation, conflict transformation, peacebuilding and human rights.
IN PURSUIT of the ICSSD’s vision – ‘To be Africa’s leading interdisciplinary centre of excellence promoting sport as a powerful tool for development, health, well-being and social change through high-quality research and combining the areas of sports and health sciences and community development and wellness’ – Prof Keim actively investigates the impact of sport and its potential to develop communities. In the course of her work, she has forged many links and collaborations with numerous community organisations, African institutions and international sports bodies, including the International Pierre de Coubertin Committee (CIPC) based in Lausanne, Switzerland.1
1 Pierre de Coubertin (1863—1937) was the founder of the International Olympic Committee and is regarded as the father of the modern Olympic sports movement.
IN A MAJOR NEW DEVELOPMENT, the CIPC sanctioned the launch of an international non-profit organisation, the Association of National Pierre de Coubertin Committees of Africa (ANPCCA), which took place in June 2022. The ANPCCA inaugural video conference elected Prof Keim its first Secretary-General.
Prof Keim says: “The Committee aims to promote the role of sport in development and well-being on the African continent. The Committee must draw the attention of the sports community, the media and other partners of the African sports movement to the action of the CNPC (the French version of the Association of National Pierre de Coubertin Committees or Committees Nationales Pierre de Coubertin) and the CNPC’s role in the promotion and dissemination of the Olympic values.”
ACCORDING TO ITS STATUTES, the ANPCCA will be headquartered in the country of its President and will therefore be based in Cameroon, the home country of President Dr Malik Atour Evele.
Prof Keim’s ICSSD colleague, Prof Christo de Coning, was elected to serve on the four-person ANPCCA Board, with Marthe Chantal Oloko (Cameroon), Faustin Boimbo (DRC) and Amita Boolauky (Mauritius).
The other office-bearers elected were Vice-Presidents Pierre Albert Ntumba Wa Ntumba (DRC), Nisha Ramdin (Mauritius), Paul Joof (The Gambia), and General Treasurer Gentil Dominique Nkounkou (Congo Brazzaville).
PROF DE CONING, who has been an Extraordinary Professor at the School of Public Leadership at the University of Stellenbosch since 2012, and a technical advisor to the IOC (International Olympic Committee) on the development of a monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) system for the Olympic Solidarity World Programmes since 2020, highlighted the importance of the new body:
“Its mission is to work for the promotion and development of sport and Olympic education through the organisation of technical, sporting, scientifi c, educational and cultural activities intended for its members and the benefi t of African society.”
THEIR NEW ROLES will put Professors Keim and De Coning, and UWC, at the forefront of sports development with the focus on the Olympics in South Africa and Africa and promote “Olympic values and education through youth development activities, as well as pan-African youth sport and cultural events and activities,” Prof Keim says.
PROFESSOR MARION KEIM
