South Africa reclaimed the record for the world's largest blanket on Friday‚ creating a woollen cover large enough to cover two-and-a-half rugby fields. "Thank you knitwits all over‚" said a tweet from the 67 Blankets for Mandela campaign after officials from the Guinness Book of Records confirmed that the Indian record had been broken at Drakenstein Correctional Centre in Paarl‚ Western Cape‚ where Nelson Mandela took his first steps to freedom on February 11 1990.Many of the blankets‚ which were laid on the ground and stitched together‚ were crocheted by prisoners across the country. The finished article‚ covering 17 181 square metres‚ far exceeded the target of 12 000 square metres - and was five times bigger than last year’s blanket.The 20 tons of blankets‚ which made up this year’s record-breaking cover‚ contained donated wool worth about R7-million. The blankets will now be returned to the provinces where they were made and distributed to the poor.Last August‚ campaign founder Carolyn Steyn and National Commissioner of Correctional Services Zach Modise established a partnership to introduce blanket-making to every prison. “It presents an opportunity where inmates across the country are giving back to society‚" said Modise. "Key to rehabilitation is empowering offenders with skills to function effectively in society upon their release. It is therefore encouraging to see more male offenders taking part in crocheting‚ an activity that has always been labelled to be feminine‚ yet it fosters discipline‚ patience and boosts self-esteem.” Since its launch in 2014‚ "KnitWits for Madiba" - the nickname given to blanket makers - has spread around the world‚ but Steyn said the prisoners' participation was "momentous". “The fact that thousands of men and women serving sentences in South Africa will be largely responsible for keeping thousands upon thousands of people in impoverished communities warmer over all the winters to come‚ in the name of the greatest prisoner of them all‚ is … indicative of a healing nation‚” she said. – TMG Digital/The Times..