Sam warns of Olympic risk to SA

● SA risks being booted out of the Olympics and Paralympics in Tokyo next year if the SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) adopts all the resolutions demanded by sport minister Tokozile Xasa.

Sascoc president Gideon Sam issued this warning yesterday afternoon after a special general meeting to discuss recommendations made by the ministerial committee that probed the umbrella body last year.

Xasa addressed Sascoc’s council, the organisation’s highest decision-making body, in the morning, telling them the resolutions were “non-negotiable”.

But Sam said he had letters from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) saying there were certain recommendations they would not accept.

These are:

● Sascoc president being elected by an independent committee instead of the council;

● Board members being forced to relinquish membership of the national sports federations they belong to; and,

● Terms for board members being reduced from three four-year terms to two.

“If you’re going to be on a confrontational road it means that Sascoc will be expelled from the IOC and IPC,” said Sam.

“We need to go sit down with the minister and look at the areas and clarify exactly what it is we’re going to do going forward.”

Sam, in his morning address to the council, warned Xasa of people around her wanting to destroy the sports movement.