2017 REGIONAL ANNUAL SPORTS AWARDS(RASA) – CELEBRATION OF AFRICA’S SPORTING EXCELLENCE
18th May 2017
The Second edition of RASA lived up to the expectations with sports heroes and heroines of the Region being honoured.
1st June 2017
The nominees of the second edition of the Regional Annual Sports Awards; RASA 2017 to be hosted in South Africa on the 27th May 2017 have been announced. The Awards which will be a black tie event, are scheduled for Birchwood Hotel and OR Tambo Conference Centre on Saturday 27 May 2017 at 6pm.
Confirming the final list of the top three nominees per category, the CEO of AUSC Region 5, Mr Stanley Mutoya said; “The voting process for the second edition of RASA has now been completed and the top 3 deserving nominees per category are now finalised after verification by our auditors Grant Thornton Botswana”. Mutoya went on to say, “We are very proud of each and every one of the nominees to have made it this far in the voting process. To me all of them are already winners given how stringent the selection criteriafor the finalists is”. The voting process, which consists of a very thorough process was completed on Tuesday. The process involved comprehensive stakeholder engagement in order to guarantee a credible final product.
The winners of this very prestigious accolade any sportsperson can receive in the Region will be announced on the night of the event which is billed to be a memorable spectacle doubling up as a celebration of Africa Month. The event is expected to attract a record number of dignitaries and sports celebrities from across the region.
The theme of the 2017 RASA is “Celebrating Excellence and Innovation!” The AUSC Region 5 CEO says the theme is in line with Region 5 and African Union strategic priority to continuously promote excellence in sport and recreation at all levels.
The awards are made up of 12 categories to recognise athletes, coaches, member countries, journalists and teams that produced outstanding performances in sport at regional and international level in the year 2016.
THE NOMINEES ARE …
JUNIOR SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR
KaraboSibanda, Athletics, Botswana
Dalamo Muller, Kick Boxing, Namibia
BeavenSibanda,Karate, Zimbabwe
JUNIOR SPORTSWOMAN OF THE YEAR
Mayvonne Swart, Karate, Namibia
Danielle Marie Bekker, Golf, Zimbabwe
MaquabangTsibela, Athletics, Lesotho
SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR
Wayde van Niekerk: Athletics, South Africa
Charles Manyuchi: Boxing, Zimbabwe
Rudolf De Wet Moolman, Karate. Namibia
SPORTSWOMAN OF THE YEAR
Micheen Barbra Thornycroft,Rowing, Zimbabwe
BaetaNaigombo, Athletics, Namibia
Caster Semenya, Athletics, South Africa
SPORTSMAN OF THE YEAR WITH A DISABILITY
Ananias Shikongo, Athletics, Namibia
Charl Du Toit,Athletics, South Africa
Munyaradzi Musariri, Special Olympics, Zimbabwe
SPORTSWOMAN OF THE YEAR WITH A DISABILITY
Johanna Benson: Athletics, Namibia
Ilse Hayes: Athletics, South Africa
Margaret Bangajena Athletics, Zimbabwe
SPORTS TEAM OF THE YEAR
Botswana 4 x 400 meters Men Relay, Athletics, Botswana =
MamelodiSundowns Football Club, South Africa
Zimbabwe National Women Football (Mighty Warriors), Zimbabwe
COACH OF THE YEAR
Michael Humukwanya, Paralympic Committee, Namibia
MogomotsiOtsetswe, Athletics, Botswana
Anna Botha Athletics, South Africa
JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR
KainoIyalooNdeumono, Namibia
ThabisoSithole, South Africa
Henry Mhara, Zimbabwe
CONFEDERATION OF THE YEAR
Swimming
Tennis
Football
REGION 5 AWARD
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Lesotho
SPORTSPERSON OF THE YEAR
Wayde van Niekerk: Athletics, South Africa
Ananias Shikongo, Athletics, Namibia
Charles Manyuchi: Boxing, Zimbabwe
ENDS
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DISTRIBUTED BY AUSC REGION 5, PROJECT AND MARKETING MANAGER AND MINISTRY OF SPORTS AND RECREATION IN SOUTH AFRICAFOR ANY MEDIA QUERIES CONTACT:
Mr. Siyabonga Sangweni
Project and Marketing Manager, AUSC Region 5
Tel: +267 391 4960
Cell +27 82 597 0091
Email: siyabonga@auscregion5.org.bw
Email:siyas52@gmail.co.za
EDITORS NOTE:
The African Union Sport Council Region5 (AUSC Region5) is the sports arm of the African Union, which was once the Organisation of African Unity. It was formed in the 1960s, and its headquarters is based in Yaoundé, Cameroon. The AUSC Region 5 Member countries are Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The main aim of the AUSC is to use sports to achieve peace, integration and unity in Africa i.e. sport as a vehicle of encouraging people to develop and come together, irrespective of colour, economic status, political, class, or gender.
The AUSC divided Africa into seven competition zones due to the vastness of the continent and for financial prudence. The main consideration was the countries’ geographical positions. It is from this that AUSC Region was born.
BACKGROUND OF THE AFRICAN UNION SPORTS COUNCIL (AUSC) REGION 5
The African Union Sports Council (AUSC) Region 5 is one of the five Regions entrusted with the responsibility to develop sport under the African Union. This follows the dissolution of the Supreme Council for Sport in Africa (SCSA), under which the Region 5 was known as SCSA Zone VI.
Members of the Region comprise of: Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The SCSA was established on the 14 December 1966 and served as a specialized agency of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) for the coordination of the Africa Sports Movement and to utilize Sport in the struggle against colonialism and apartheid on the continent. Invariably, the SCSA was essentially a political organization which furthered the aims and objectives of the OAU through Sport.
