Veteran sports administrator and apartheid activist Sam Ramsamy will be inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame (ISHOF) for his life-long contribution to sport.
The induction ceremony will be held in Fort Lauderdale, USA, on Saturday September 30.
Born in Magazine Barracks, Durban, Mr Ramsamy, 85, was the founding member of the South African Council for Sport, established in 1973. In 1976, he became chairperson of the South African Non-Racial Olympic Committee (SANROC) and in 1978 was named the executive chairman of SANROC. The two sports organisations were united in their purpose in pursuing an international sports ban on South Africa’s athletes and by doing so, they fostered greater global support for the resistance against Apartheid.
Following the Soweto uprisings in 1976, Ramsamy petitioned countries to formalise a boycott of South African Sports, which culminated in the Gleneagles Agreement of 1977.
Mr Ramsamy fought for the eradication of the colour ban in sport; he insisted on unity in the sporting arena and advocating for the selection of teams that would be based on merit. He insisted that athletes of all race groups must be given an equal opportunity to participate in sport. He became the head of the National Olympic Committee of South Africa in 1991 and led the first non-racial South African team to the Olympic Games in Barcelona in 1992.
At the induction ceremony in Fort Lauderdale, swimming greats Michael Phelps (USA) and Zimbabwe’s Kirsty Coventry, will also be recognised. Phelps is one of the most accomplished Olympians in history, with 28 medals, while Coventry, Zimbabwe’s minister of youth, sports, arts and recreation, has won seven Olympic medals.
On receiving this recognition, Mr Ramsamy said it was among the best accolades he has received. He has received numerous accolades over the years and is a prominent sporting personality in South Africa and abroad.
“I have always been deeply involved with swimming and became a member of the Durban Indian Surf Lifesaving Club. I got involved with coaching many top black swimmers during Apartheid times, mainly at the Asherville pool,” he told the media.
“My swimming teacher, Balkumar Singh, taught me how to swim at the Durban Bay when I was a boy.”
Mr Ramsamy said he learnt the importance of equality and non-racialism at a young age, and this spurred him on to fight for equality in sport.
An injury that cut short his athletic career pushed Mr Ramsamy to find other ways to be involved in sport. He also explored a career in coaching and teaching.
Mr Ramsamy has been a member of the International Olympic Committee since 1995.
He defined the role of sport in South Africa – to unite people irrespective of the colour of their skin.
