SOUTH AFRICA: FOOTBALL/SOCCER - WORLD CUP 2010 - International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge meets South African President Jacob Zuma

Record ID: 455564

  • Title: SOUTH AFRICA: FOOTBALL/SOCCER - WORLD CUP 2010 - International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge meets South African President Jacob Zuma
  • Date: 11th July 2010
  • Summary: PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA (JULY 10, 2010) (REUTERS) OUTSIDE OF PRESIDENTIAL RESIDENCE IOC (INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE) PRESIDENT JACQUES ROGGE AND SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT JACOB ZUMA COME OUTSIDE OF THE BUILDING PRESS (SOUNDBITE) (English) JACOB ZUMA, SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT, SAYING: "As you can see, the president of a very important committee, the IOC, has paid a courtesy call this morning since he is in the country. Just a courtesy call to be able to say hello, how are you, and of course as you know we are so excited about the tournament, talked a lot about the tournament, how wonderful it has been, how high we've been blowing the vuvuzelas, just wonderful." PRESS (SOUNDBITE) (English) JACOB ZUMA, SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT, SAYING: "But of course also I thanked the IOC, particularly the role it played during the struggle as it supported when we used the sport as an instrument to fight apartheid." PRESS (SOUNDBITE) (English) JACQUES ROGGE, IOC PRESIDENT, SAYING: "I had the great honour to pay a courtesy call to the president and I was able to congratulate the president for the outstanding success of this World Cup. After a very successful rugby World Cup, cricket world championship, you now have achieved a great effort and a great result in something that will be remembered for a very long time, and something that can make all Africa proud, and the entire sports movement of course is very happy about that." PRESS ROGGE AND ZUMA SHAKE HANDS
  • Embargoed: 26th July 2010 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: South Africa
  • Country: South Africa
  • Topics: Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVACC0BS02RDKVMXHIRRRE44J541
  • Story Text: International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge met South African President Jacob Zuma in Pretoria on Saturday (July 10) and praised his country for successfully staging the World Cup which concludes on Sunday (July 11).
    The two men met at the Zuma's presidential residence in Pretoria where they talked about the World Cup but made no mention to the media of whether they had had any discussions about South Africa making a bid to host an Olympic Games.
    "As you can see, the president of a very important committee, the IOC, has paid a courtesy call this morning since he is in the country. Just a courtesy call to be able to say hello, how are you, and of course as you know we are so excited about the tournament, talked a lot about the tournament, how wonderful it has been, how high we've been blowing the vuvuzelas, just wonderful," said Zuma.
    Zuma went on to praise the IOC for its help in using sport in South Africa's battle against apartheid. South African athletes were readmitted to the Olympics in 1992 after a gap of 32 years as the last vestiges of apartheid were being removed from the country.
    "But of course also I thanked the IOC, particularly the role it played during the struggle as it supported when we used the sport as an instrument to fight apartheid," he said.
    Rogge told Zuma that he was delighted that South Africa had staged a successful World Cup, following on from the rugby union World Cup held in the country in 1995 and the cricket World Cup eight years later.
    "I had the great honour to pay a courtesy call to the president and I was able to congratulate the president for the outstanding success of this World Cup," said Rogge. "After a very successful rugby World Cup, cricket world championship, you now have achieved a great effort and a great result in something that will be remembered for a very long time, and something that can make all Africa proud, and the entire sports movement of course is very happy about that."
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