Madiba month Phoenix games
DURBAN’S bid to host the Commonwealth Games was seen as a bad idea by many worried about the cost, but that failure had a positive spin-off for Phoenix residents.
The Phoenix Sports Festival, a Phoenix Community Centre initiative, will culminate in a closing ceremony on Sunday at the Rydalvale sports ground.
Centre spokesperson Amith Maharaj said the festival was being held for a third year.
“The idea of hosting such a festival was mooted after Durban got the initial nod to host the Commonwealth Games. We thought it would be an ideal opportunity to develop sport among the youth of Phoenix in the hope that we could have a representative from the area participate in the Commonwealth Games,” said Maharaj.
The sports festival kicked off at the beginning of July with various sporting codes including soccer, cricket, netball, volleyball, chess and karate. Maharaj said they also catered for the elderly and those attending crèches in the area.
“The youth participants come from the various sport associations based in Phoenix and we draw the Golden Games participants from senior citizens groups and the toddlers from crèches in the area.”
Phoenix residents can expect to see thousands of athletes running through the suburb on Sunday morning when the KZN Athletics Federation holds a 10km cross country event for the first time.
“The event has elicited a lot of interest since we came up with the initiative and the residents of Phoenix can look forward to participating in these games.
“We are an NGO which needs funds from the community to host the event. We give the winners floating trophies and medals. It’s not much of an incentive, but the community has embraced this initiative and turn out in their thousands,” added Maharaj.
The intention of hosting the festival is to bring together communities from Phoenix and surrounding areas to compete and build relationships in a month-long event of sport and fun.
The kick-off was in the first week of July with round robin stages being played at various grounds. The monthlong programme ends with the semis and finals being played on the last weekend of the month at the Rydalvale grounds.
The festival is aligned with Madiba’s 67 minutes of community service Initiative in honour of Nelson Mandela and commitment to social upliftment. It’s also meant to commemorate his birthday.