The Paratus Namibian Cycle Classic, a community service and fundraising event of Rotary Club Windhoek, will again attract participants of all ages, genders and demographic groups.
Since its launch in 1999, the Cycle Classic has been staged annually. Over the past two years, while adhering to health and safety measures, entry numbers have been restricted.
Rotary is a humanitarian service organisation which brings together business and professional leaders. There are seven Rotary clubs in Namibia, and members are known as Rotarians.
A non-sectarian and non-political organisation, Rotary clubs are committed to providing community service, promoting integrity, and advancing goodwill, peace and understanding in the world
The Cycle Classic’s organisers, comprising Rotarians and other volunteers, have been hard at work preparing for an anticipated record number of participants this year.
Like over the past years, funds raised from the event will be used to finance community service projects and other causes across the country.
Cycling is one of the world’s fastest-growing sports, and has been a core Olympic sport and one of only five sporting disciplines contested at every Summer Olympics since 1896.
Namibia’s wide, open spaces make cycling an attractive recreational option and mode of transport.
But in terms of equipment costs, cycling is beyond the means of most Namibian families.
There are sporting options other than cycling, and one must not lose sight of the big picture, which is that sport is an important tool for social development.
Participating in sport for recreation is a great way for children to learn life skills from an early age, where most cognitive and social development takes place.
Taking part in sport fosters essential social skills and behavioural norms, such as teamwork, cooperation, fairness, tolerance, and respect for others – all character traits needed along life’s journey.
Sporting disciplines have set rules, and clearly defined penalties and punishment for overstepping the mark.
So, from a tender age, the consequences of foul play, aggression and bad behaviour are taught.
Clubs and schools in the affluent suburbs of Windhoek and at other towns have good sporting facilities.
But the fact is: The same cannot be said of townships and informal settlements in the capital city or elsewhere.
Other than an open space with self-made goalposts, to be blunt, there is zilch – a dearth of much-needed recreational facilities.
Not dwelling on the absence of facilities, let’s deploy energy, creativity, and resources, as scarce as they may be, to finding the ways and means to turn this around.
Sport is a unifier and helps nation building, for it has the potential to fast-track the development of a shared sense of identity.
Sport development and recreational facilities must be at the top of the development agenda.
A smart starting point may be public-private partnership programmes linked to tax breaks for funders.
Where there are facilities that have deteriorated due to a lack of care and maintenance, it is important to convince communities that it is their responsibility to take ownership of a facility.
Nations around the globe, as well as the International Olympic Committee, have for years used sport as a tool for social change.
So should we.
* Danny Meyer is reachable at danny@smecompete.com
