A bold plan to thwart a possible outbreak of swine flu in South Africa is under way, with health, security and environmental experts on full alert.
The prompt steps taken by authorities are considered so sound that the country’s 2010 organising team has no plans to move or postpone next month’s Fifa Confederations Cup football tournament, which serves as a dress rehearsal for the Fifa 2010 Soccer World Cup.
Thermal scanners to detect raised body temperatures will be operational at all three major airports from this week, isolation wards are being set up at hospitals near OR Tambo International Airport, and enough stock of antiviral medication to treat 100000 infections has been secured.
Other plans in place to stop the country joining the list of nations battling outbreaks include:
Compulsory medical questionnaires for passengers on incoming overseas flights;
Manual temperature checks at airport arrivals of those suspected of being ill (until scanners are in place);
A R22-million fund to buy more antivirals, if needed;
More chemicals and equipment for testing laboratories; and
A hotline for clinicians.
The highly contagious virus has killed 16 people in Mexico, the site of the first outbreak, and is suspected to be behind the deaths of at least 100 more.
It has spread to 16 countries including Germany, Canada, the UK and Israel.
Four countries scheduled to participate in the Confederations Cup, Spain, New Zealand, Brazil and the US, have reported cases of the flu.
The US has reported 141 confirmed cases in 19 states, with one death — a 23-month-old child from Mexico.
On Friday night, the police sealed a hotel in Hong Kong after a 25-year-old Mexican visitor tested positive for the virus. About 200 guests and 100 staff members have been quarantined in the hotel for the next week.
South African Susan Kok, from Hersham, near Mossel Bay, returned from Mexico with her husband last week with flu symptoms. The couple are on antivirals. One test has come back negative and the results of a second test will be known tomorrow.
A Gauteng woman, who also returned from Mexico with flu symptoms, is awaiting test results.
Yesterday the head of communicable diseases at South Africa’s Department of Health, Dr Frew Benson, said: “South Africa is on alert and ready.”
Response teams are operating at national, provincial and district levels, comprising epidemiologists, communicable disease specialists, veterinary surgeons, defence force members and environmental experts.
The virus is easily spread through coughing — cough droplets can spread up to two metres — and even through shaking hands.
“That is why it is so important that proper hygiene is practised... Even touching the same door handle can spread the virus,” said Benson.
Danny Jordaan, the chief executive of the 2010 Local Organising Committee, said yesterday that preparations for the Confederations Cup were proceeding.
“We are working closely with the government and Fifa in monitoring the situation... But at this stage our position is quite clear... the Confederations Cup will go (ahead) as planned,” he said.
2010 ball will be truly South African
Written by admin
Thursday, 26 February 2009
Soccer greats will play the beautiful game with a specially designed South African soccer ball during next year's Fifa World Cup.
The ball, manufactured by Adidas, will be used exclusively in World Cup matches and is expected to be unveiled at Fifa's final draw in Cape Town in December, Gavin Cowley, managing director of Adidas SA, has revealed.
Speaking during the bi-weekly 2010 lecture series in Green Point last night, Cowley said the ball, like the Confederations Cup soccer ball, had a name, but that it would be kept a secret for now.
"Like the Kopanya soccer ball, which we manufactured for the Confederations Cup this year, the World Cup official soccer ball will also have a name and will be truly South African in colour and design," said Cowley.
"We are very excited and I wish I could tell all South Africans what design and colours we have selected for the World Cup soccer ball.
"Many might think it's ridiculous, but the ball is a very important component of the beautiful game - without it there is no soccer."
Adidas, an official Fifa sponsor, will also be supplying World Cup referees with kits and flag bearers and any other Fifa staff with clothing and branding ahead of and during the event.
Cowley said although many saw the 2010 World Cup as an "expensive event" for the country to host, the tournament was about bringing South Africans and Africans together.
"This World Cup will play a pivotal role in uniting the people of our country," he said.
"In December, when the official World Cup soccer ball is unveiled, over 700 000 million people will be watching.
"They will see Cape Town, and get images of what to expect when they come here for the World Cup.
"The World Cup and the events leading up to it are not just about football, infrastructure and commercialisation, they are about uniting a country and leaving a lasting legacy for generations to come."
Cowley added that if South Africans thought the 1995 Rugby World Cup was big, they should brace themselves as the Fifa World Cup would be "20 times the size of the Rugby World Cup".
The 2010 Lecture Series is a bi-monthly series of lectures by speakers who are integrally involved in the planning and implementation of national projects leading up to 2010.
Keep your tickets for yourself, says Jordaan
Written by admin
Thursday, 26 February 2009
As interest in South Africa's 2010 Soccer World Cup reaches global fever pitch, warnings went out in Durban on Monday about black-market deals.
"It is very important from a security standpoint that you know who has what ticket and who is sitting in what seat," said Danny Jordaan, the chief executive of the 2010 Fifa World Cup Organisation Committee South Africa (OC).
Anyone reselling tickets will be dealt with "harshly, irrespective of who that person is", he stressed at a media briefing after an inspection of the city's R3-billion Moses Mabhida Stadium.
The OC was still in discussions with the government about the possibility of legislation to ensure that the person who bought a ticket was the one who occupied the seat.
The resale of tickets was a "huge problem", he said.
The reason for this was that the demand for World Cup tickets had always been greater than the supply.
People planning to buy tickets - a "massive" 300 000 on-line applications alone were received in the first 48 hours of the launch - are being asked to supply personal details, he said.
Then, if someone else turns up, "we will ask him when he changed his surname".
Category four tickets were exclusively for South Africans and if someone is sitting in one of these seats with an England, German or Brazilian jersey on, questions will be asked.
"We have to ensure that football hooligans or other individuals who may constitute a threat to the stadium are stopped from entering," he said.
If someone sitting in a seat is different to the person who bought the original ticket and "something happens", the organisers would be looking for the wrong person, he said.
Fifa had also "significantly strengthened" its code of ethics after the 2006 Fifa World Cup in Germany. (A South Africa Football Association official was caught selling 12 complimentary tickets on the black market then.)
The event - now fewer than 470 days away - will leave the country with an improved security legacy of about 60 000 extra police officers, extra vehicles and helicopters.
About R3-billion had also been ploughed into IT infrastructure for the police.
"You have to have modern technology to fight crime," Jordaan said.
Although the exact comparisons have yet to be worked out, he felt the initial interest in the South African World Cup had been higher than in the early days of the German World Cup.
The 300 000 ticket applications received to date did not include the thousands of applications being processed via the 700 First National Bank branches around the country.
A random draw is to be held on April 15 to work out which applicants receive tickets for over-subscribed matches.
"It is the end of doubt and the beginning of optimism and hope - it is a wonderful time of celebration," said Jordaan.
The biggest ticket orders have come from South Africa, followed by Great Britain, the USA, Germany, Brazil, Australia, Japan, Mexico, Canada, Switzerland, Ireland, Netherlands, Spain and Argentina.
Fifa had wondered why there had been such great interest from Australia and Canada, and Jordaan said this had to be the "expat factor" involving South Africans living in those countries who wanted to be part of the World Cup at home.
He recalled how London's The Sun national newspaper had carried a report saying that the Durban stadium was "very unlikely" to be finished in time for the big event. Others would "never" be finished.
The reality was that the 2010 World Cup would probably have the best stadiums of any World Cup.
He said someone should tell The Sun that its report was "quite wrong as all the stadiums will be complete".
The Durban stadium was world class and one of the best in the world.
And in terms of hosting such major events such as the Rugby World Cup, it had a "significant edge" and could also be used as the main stadium for the Olympics.
Credit had to be given to the people responsible for their determination and tenacity to build the stadium, he said.
There had been a debate about removing the arch to save costs, but city manager Dr Michael Sutcliffe "never envisaged a stadium without the arch".
Nowhere else in the world would you be able to go to the top of the arch and have a view of the coastline, he said.
Countdown to Soccer World Cup Reaches 500 Days
Written by admin
Tuesday, 27 January 2009
In South Africa, sports officials are holding a series of events as the countdown reaches 500 days until the first soccer World Cup to be held in Africa.
With 500 days left until the 2010 soccer World Cup, the nine South African cities hosting matches for the football tournament Monday unveiled their official World Cup posters in Bloemfontein, the capital of central Free State province.
The head of South Africa's Organizing Committee, Danny Jordaan, said officials are holding activities in different parts of the country to build anticipation for the world's most watched sporting event.
"The cities decided that we should move our activities to give each city an opportunity so we are there starting with a schools program," said Danny Jordaan. "The province of the Free State adopted Italy so the Italian embassy will have various programs and they will focus their attention on the youth."
Sepp Blatter, the head of football's world governing body-FIFA - says he expects South Africa to be ready for the cup but that what is needed is greater public enthusiasm for the event.
The South African government is building or refurbishing the ten stadiums to be used for World Cup matches. Officials say, despite construction delays and escalating costs, all ten stadiums will be completed by the end of this year.
Cape Town's World Cup spokesman, Pieter Cronje, said although his city's stadium was the last to begin construction it, too, will be completed on time.
"It's on program," said Pieter Cronje. "So we will finish by the 14th of December and at the end of October we'll be able to hand over the stadium to FIFA so that they can install whatever is needed for the tournament."
The South African government is upgrading roads, airports and mass transit systems in preparation for the event which is expected to draw some 400,000 foreign visitors.
Officials say two-thirds of the 55,000 rooms required by FIFA have been contracted and some tickets have already been sold through tour companies.
In an effort to boost security, the government is hiring an additional 55,000 police officers, boosting the force by 15 percent.
And some 40,000 people have volunteered to help out at the event, ten times the number needed.
The tournament is to open on June 11 next year with a match in Johannesburg between current title holder, Italy, and South Africa.
Last Updated ( Tuesday, 27 January 2009 )
'2010 will be a success'
Written by admin
Sunday, 14 December 2008
Former Holland skipper and Orlando Pirates coach Rudolf 'Ruud' Krol believes the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa will be a wonderful spectacle.
According to FIFA.com, Krol, one of the Dutch 'total football' maestros of 1974, has a special place in his heart for the FIFA World Cup, and has revealed what South Africans can look forward to.
"A World Cup is unique," said Krol, who gained 83 caps for the Netherlands and captained the side 45 times.
"So imagine participating at a World Cup in your own country," he added. "That's the opportunity South African players will get in 2010. It should be every player's ambition to be there. To represent your country at a World Cup at home; that's the dream of every player!"
The well-travelled coach has been impressed with the football culture in South Africa.
"I love the atmosphere the South African supporters create in the stadium," he said.
"The music, the singing and especially the long horn, the vuvuzela, create a very unique sound. And some good performances by the South African national team in the run-up to the 2010 World Cup could help the atmosphere to become truly electric."
Krol is convinced that the tournament in 2010 will be a success from a fan point of view.
"South Africa offers football fans the possibility of watching a World Cup and enjoying a holiday at the same time. A soccer fan can bring his whole family to this country — what more do you want? It's like catching two flies at once! I am 100 per cent convinced that it will be an enormous success."
The Pirates coach's first contact with South Africa came when he led Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations 1996, where host nation South Africa were crowned champions.
Krol said he clearly remembers players like Lucas Radebe, Mark Fish, Phil Masinga, Doctor Khumalo and Mark Williams, all of whom were instrumental in the SA triumph.
SA on red alert to fight swine flu Chandré Prince, Kim Hawkey and Kgomotso Mokoena Published:May 03, 2009 A bold plan to thwart a possible outbreak of swin...
Soccer greats will play the beautiful game with a specially designed South African soccer ball during next year's Fifa World Cup. The ball, manufactured by Adidas, will be used exclusively in Wor...
As interest in South Africa's 2010 Soccer World Cup reaches global fever pitch, warnings went out in Durban on Monday about black-market deals. "It is very important from a security standpoi...
Verse of The Day
“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.” (Jeremiah 17:9-10) (Read by Max McLean. Provided by The Listener's Audio Bible.)
(Read by Max McLean. Provided by The Listener's Audio Bible.)
