Shock at death of PE boxing doyen Mackay

Port Elizabeth’s sporting community has paid tribute to another fallen hero following the passing of boxing doyen Tennyson Mackay, 94, on Wednesday.

Mackay was a well known, respected sportsman and administrator as well as a family man, his daughter Naomi Mackay said.

“He was kind, loving, generous but also quite strict. He was someone who always made sure he spent time teaching us about the things he loved. But at the same time, he also dedicated a lot of his time to doing community work,” she said.

“He really did believe in the power of sport to unite people and as a tool for development. He felt it was a way of keeping youngsters occupied and away from the social ills that existed at the time,” she said.

Born in Ngqele in the Eastern Cape, Mackay completed high school in Cape Town before attending Zonnebloem College.

He played rugby for Zonnebloem College and earned his provincial colours for Western Province in rugby and athletics.

He also had a stint playing rugby for Border, alongside his brothers before moving to Kokstad in 1948 where he married his wife of 62 years, Ethel “Milly” Reuters, with whom he had four children.

After her passing in 2010, Mackay married his second wife, Yvonne.

He played soccer as a striker for Kokstad Pirates and between 1974 and 1978 was also the manager of Federation Professional League side PE United.

Mackay was an educator and filled a number of posts prior to moving to the Bay. He was appointed principal of Alpha Primary School in 1961.

Mackay will be remembered for his role in the establishment of Toynbee Boxing Club in Gelvandale. Additionally, he also became involved with other clubs in New Brighton, Kwazakhele and Uitenhage.

He held various positions within the sport including administrator, trainer and referee.

Armed with a love for politics, Mackay was also a member of the Teachers League of SA and Unity Movement, in addition to being an active member of the SA Council on Sport movement in the apartheid era.

“He promoted sports across the colour lines. Even in the days of apartheid, he worked with teachers and other sports people.

“He was very integrated in that way, because boxers were just boxers in those days, regardless of the colour of their skin,” Naomi said.

A former president of the SA Schools Sports Association, Mackay played a massive role in the establishment and development of athletics within primary schools.

Mackay is also a former president of the Eastern Province Amateur Athletic Association. He was honoured by the PE Sports Legends Trust in 2015 and was again honoured in 2019, this time by the Nelson Mandela Bay Former Footballers Association.

Mackay is survived by wife Yvonne and four children Ilona, Ilva, Naomi and Bruce.

With Covid-19 changing the way people are allowed to pay their final respects, Naomi said arrangements had not yet been confirmed.