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Africa Enters the Continent Series

August 3rd, 2010 · No Comments · World Cup

Go ahead, name the top three sports venues in Africa. I’m thinking you can’t name three.  At all. A year ago I certainly couldn’t, and if you can do it now it’s because you were paying attention to the names and datelines from the World Cup in South Africa.

Africa pretty clearly seems the most under-served continent, in terms of big and, especially, tradition-steeped venues.

I will give you a hint: The top two are in/near Johannesburg.

So, Part 5 of the series is appearing in Wednesday’s editions of The National.

And the winner is … Soccer City, between Johannesburg and Soweto. Where the World Cup opener and final were held. Some interesting architecture, plenty of size. Might be some issues, going forward, as to how the locals fill it, given that soccer there doesn’t draw enormous crowds, but it did well for the 2010 World Cup.

Plus, as you may note, both Soccer City and the No. 2 Africa venue, Ellis Park, in Johannesburg, both have some political history, as well. Ellis Park is where the events surrounding the movie “Invictus” took place, which is mentioned in the story here.

No. 3 … we went back into the time machine and came up with the Stade 20 Mai (as it was known then) for the infamous “Rumble in the Jungle” between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in 1974. The world debut of “rope-a-dope.”

A note: The fight was held in Kinshasa, the capital of Zaire (as it was then known; Congo, now), and whatever jungle in the area was nowhere nearby. But in Western discourse, the Rumble in the Jungle had a catchy name.

For now,  I don’t see Nos. 4-8 up on the site. So I’ll list them for you here.

4. The mountains of south Morocco, where a series of marathon-length races are held for six consecutive days, making it one of the most punishing footraces anywhere.

5. Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town, South Africa. Considered one of the most picturesque in the world.

6. Dakar, Senegal, where the Paris-to-Dakar Rally ends … when they don’t have concerns about violence and move it to South America, as has been the case the past few years.

7. An obscure stadium in Kenya where all the rising distance stars run, named Kip Keino Stadium.

8. Cairo Stadium, in Egypt. A big place, home to two of the continent’s top club teams and where the Egyptian national side plays many of its home matches. Egypt generally being the strongest international side on the continent, though it tends to choke in World Cup qualifying.

Only Asia still to go. The home continent, where we work.

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