NELSON Mandela Bay mayor Nqaba Bhanga will use the inaugural Sunshine Seniors Tour golf tournament in the Bay to continue the drive to make the metro a sporting destination of choice for both event organisers and sportsmen and women.
The Nelson Mandela Bay Classic, featuring a raft of top-flight senior golfers, teed off for the first time at the Humewood links course on Tuesday and runs until today (Thursday).
On Monday, the mayor welcomed the organisers and players, who included such outstanding golfers as Mark McNulty, Chris Davison and Chris Williams, to the city and said it was another chance to brand Nelson Mandela Bay as the preferred option for sporting events.
Gqeberha is already home to the Ironman SA championship and Seniors Tour chief operations officer Neville Clarke said they were thrilled to have secured this agreement with the NMB metro.
“We have invested a lot of money into sport in Nelson Mandela Bay and we want to continue to brand it as a top sporting destination,” said Clarke.
“We want a vision which is not just that of the mayor, but which belongs to the whole city and if we carry that vision together, people on the golf course will talk about it and that’s how our city will grow. It must be a vision of the people.”
Bhanga added it was important to provide inspiration for the youth of today.
“People want to have hope and through golf we can inspire many of our children to understand that they must not give up on this beautiful country and this beautiful city. Our concept is that sport is for everyone, not just for Whites or Blacks or Coloureds or Indians – we want sport for all South Africans because it is the one element that can unify our people.”
Clarke paid tribute to the Nelson Mandela Bay metro for their interest in hosting the tournament and the massive amount of work that went on behind the scenes to make this happen.
“In addition, essential funds will be raised for various charities, which include the Endangered Wildlife Trust and the metro’s nominated beneficiaries, the Uitenhage & District SPCA and the Northern Lights school.”
He thanked the players who will test themselves on the only genuine links layout in the country.
