LIMPOPO – YOU have probably never heard of a family in which all the siblings play the same sport and all did well in that sport.
The Mailula family from Matseke village in Botlokwa is one such family and has made history in volleyball.
The family’s volleyball legacy currently rests on the shoulders of Masipa, who is the tournament director of the Limpopo Volleyball Association (LVA).
Today, he stands head and shoulders above the rest as one of the few internationally-acclaimed coaches to be conferred a coaching license by Federation of International Volleyball.
In his glorious coaching career, Masipa has achieved bronze medals at the provincial u/18 and senior sides during the inter-provincial tournament last year. His phenomenal right hand has also entrenched him in the history books of school sport while studying accounting at Tidima High School.
Having grown up in a family steeped in volleyball traditions, Masipa played a thousand games of backyard volleyball while dreaming of playing for his country, especially in an international series.
After he cut his volleyball teeth in 1993, two years down the line, he was already a vital cog in the Limpopo provincial volleyball machine.
While Masipa’s name is often mentioned with unmatched respect among his peers in the game, it will be disingenuous to overlook the brother who built this sporting legacy.
It was his elder brother, Klass, who instilled a sense of love for volleyball in many youngsters, and to this day, whenever volleyball matters are raised anywhere in the country, his name just pops up.
Klass now observes from the sidelines and Masipa is devotedly carrying the baton.
The sixth-born of the nine siblings, Masipa (37) was introduced to the game by Klass who insisted that everyone in the family worship at the altar of the volleyball court.
Klass established Botlokwa Evergreen Volleyball Club in the early 1990s, and to this day, the club remains an iconic brand that continues to nurture talent for school sport, provincial and national teams.
“Brother Klass’s first love has always been volleyball and that’s why everyone in the family followed in his footsteps. It is because of him that the game became part of the family heritage. When we sat around the table, instead of indulging in the delicacies on the menu, volleyball would supersede every topic,” Masipa explains.
