Every generation of sportsmen and women produces its freaks of nature: people who are so uniquely gifted that they do things we thought were impossible. Cheslin Kolbe is such a freak.
It was no surprise that in the build-up to the re- start of the super-glamorous French Top 14 rugby league after lockdown, in September, the face on the billboards and the name on everyone’s lips was that of Toulouse-based Kolbe.
He was a superstar before the Rugby World Cup in Japan last year, a darling of Newlands and Toulouse and an extraordinary versatile and gutsy athlete. When he dodged the English captain to score in the final it cemented his position as arguably the best player on earth.
I say “arguably” because it’s difficult to judge rugby players against their peers who play in different positions requiring fundamentally different body shapes and skills.
Kolbe’s skillset bloomed early. He attended a school with good facilities and a positive sports ethic where his outrageous talent was nurtured. He was rewarded with selection to the various Western Province age group sides, and the year after he left school he was picked to represent the Blitzbokke. He has an aura that says nothing can stop him. Wow! What a player!
Kolbe is fortunate that he didn’t come from Paarl. Boys from Paarl with similar skin tones to his attend schools with C- and D-grade facilities, if they have any facilities at all. The talent of precious few is allowed to shine.
In Paarl, the community recently had to fight off the DA-led municipality’s plan to transfer control of its sports stadium to a previously privileged school. The stadium is used by most previously disadvantaged schools, which don’t have sports fields.
For years, Noorderpaarl High School’s only field has been eyed by the authorities. They considered using it for a housing development, then they wanted to use it as a helicopter landing pad. Now, the council has given permission for a stormwater drain to be dug across ground.
Two years ago, Noorderpaarl’s learners were stopped from using the Boy Louw complex in the area for sports training. Children from relatively poor homes were effectively told to go and play in the street.
Privileged schools in the area have seven or eight sports fields.
To the council, the development of a new upmarket suburb and shopping centre is more important than the development of brown-skinned children.
Even as we celebrate Cheslin Kolbe, our shining star, we mourn the generations of children denied the opportunity to shine by politicians who don’t believe that Black Lives Matter.
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