Spinning could be official sport
SPINNING enthusiasts in the Eastern Cape are looking to take their art to new heights in a bid to have it recognised as an official sport in the province.
Coming off the back of a historic win at the Battle of the Provinces spinning event held in Kimberley at Easter, team Eastern Cape now have their sights set on bigger things for the sport in the province.
The team took first place at the Easter weekend event, beating the best spinners from the Northern and Western Cape. Two unofficial test runs of the battle between the Eastern and Northern Cape were held in Kimberley and Port Elizabeth in the lead-up to the Easter weekend event.
Asked to describe the feeling of being the first winners of the Battle of the Provinces title, Team EC captain Naseem Ahmed was full of praise for the team, saying everybody had pulled together to ensure they brought home the title.
“It’s difficult to put it into words – happiness, excitement, pride. Credit has to go to the entire team. Everyone played their part in this win and we can only go up from here.
“I think this has put us on the map as a province. I predict big things for the sport in the Eastern Cape in a few years,” he said.
With its roots deeply vested in Soweto, where it is said to have started, spinning has mushroomed since its inception in the 1980s.
Spinning involves letting the vehicle veer around in spirals while the driver and a stuntman or two conduct daring tricks, to the amazement of the crowd.
The sport has now been recognised by Motorsport South Africa and falls in the same category as drifting.
Spinning brings together a diverse mix of individuals with one common passion – their love of the sport .
One of the event organisers, Enock Spears, believes big things have yet to happen with the sport in the Eastern Cape.
Spears said the recent events were aimed at showing what can be done with a “little determination and heaps of passion”.
“We are the first champions of the Battle of the Provinces event and all of us pulled together to make the event pos- sible,” said Spears.
He also thanked Team NC captain and fellow organiser Wannie Sixtnine for the role he had played in hosting the event. Sixtnine said in an interview last month that team NC were sponsored by their local municipality, and Spears believes that with backing from local government, the sport can also be revolutionised in this province.
Spears said there were “bucket-loads of talent” all over the Eastern Cape, and called on youngsters to become involved in spinning as an alternative to getting mixed up with society’s bad elements.
Veteran motorsport enthusiast and convenor of spinners’ governing body PE Sliders, Heinrich “Hansie” Williams, said the support of the public at recent local spinning events had motivated spinners to excel.
“I have been watching spinning in Port Elizabeth since the 1980s and the game has changed a lot since those days.
“Back then, spinners never attempted some of the stunts we see today, letting cars spin on their own with drivers and passengers jumping out of moving vehicles,” he said.
At first, many misconceptions existed around the sport, particularly with its perceived links to gang culture.
Over the last 20 years, however, the sport has grown exponentially from abandoned parking lots to sold-out events carrying the names of big sponsors and held countrywide.