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PREPARING SOUTH AFRICA FOR THE WORLD |
Erica Terpstra is a retired freestyle swimmer from the Netherlands, who won two medals at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. She was an MP for the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy. She has also served as the chairman of the Dutch Olympic Committee and the Minister of Sport. She has just led a delegation representing 37 Dutch companies on a 2010 World Cup Trade Mission to South Africa which was co-ordinated by the SA Netherlands Chamber of Commerce. Project 2010 asked her….  You have just visited Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town. How successful has the trip been? The interaction within the delegation was great - everyone has co-operated. What binds us all is the growing passion for South Africa. We all came here with prejudices, but we have been pleasantly surprised by the people and the energy. What have been your impressions of South Africa's 2010 preparations? We are flabbergasted by the challenges of the 2010 World Cup. What I am hearing from the delegation is that the organisation is splendid. The only concern is the scale of it and I fear some people are a bit too optimistic. I don't think they realise what is coming - it is a tsunami. Remember the hundreds of thousands of people will not be coming here because of your beauty - they are coming here for soccer. And they have got their own rules…. not the rules of South Africa. The challenge is to find a middle ground. But the real football supporter is spoilt by what they have experienced at previous tournaments. What are your biggest concerns? If there are incidents, if there are problems, it strengthens the negative impressions of Africa and nobody wants that to happen. We hope you can use this to improve the image of your country. But it must be said that what we have seen is more than promising. The stadiums are magnificent and nobody can tell me they won't be ready on time. Can this event solve many of the problems we have in our society? Absolutely. I think sport is a very strong binding factor. In all your (host) cities, they have legacy projects to help the weaker regions. The economic promise will trickle down to the grass roots. I think there will be a national pride throughout South Africa - I've seen it in Australia with the Olympics where there was a melting pot of national pride. more interviews...
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