Gauteng MEC for Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation Faith Mazibuko opened the nomination process for the prestigious Gauteng Sports Awards 2018.
She also announced what she called ‘a reasonable increment’ of the award monies.
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Speaking at the launch of the awards at the Johannesburg Stadium offices of the Gauteng Sports Council, Mazibuko urged sportsmen and women in the province to enter the 7th edition of the awards.
“The money may still be slightly lower but I can assure, under the prudence of dealing with public funds, that will be considered as a reasonable increment,” she said.
“We have decided to top up that small increment with an expedited payment as opposed to the longer period of payment which characterised the past awards.”
Mazibuko added that she would like to see more sports people at grassroots level coming forward and being nominated for the excellence they have exhibited on the sports fields. “There are many of those sports people in those ranks who always think they do not qualify but we want them to come and get nominated too.”
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She said the awards would be themed around the late former President Nelson Mandela and the late Albertina Sisulu, both of whom would have turned 100 years old this year. “We want to honour the struggle icons for their contribution to the democracy we enjoy today,” Mazibuko said, adding that Mandela was a boxer while Sisulu played tennis.
Nominations for the awards are open and will run until 7 July, with the award ceremony scheduled for 2 September at a venue still to be announced.
