'White sports' are in extra time

26 April 2016 - 02:43 By Sipho Masombuka

White-dominated sports - such as bowling, hockey, rugby and netball - could run into difficulty due to the decline in the birth-rate of whites. According to the third Eminent Persons Group Transformation Status report released in Pretoria yesterday, the decline in the white population should not be ignored.Statistics SA figures show that the mortality rate among whites exceeded the birth rate in 2011. They also show that the white population could decline to 3 million by 2030 - from the present figure of over 4.5 million. The report warns that this signals a diminishing resource.It states: "Long-term sustainability from a human capital point of view needs to be addressed now by these codes because it is something that cannot and will not be resolved overnight."Willie Basson, a member of the group, said that currently 84% of the populace aged 18 and under was black, with whites, coloureds and Indians making up the remaining 16%. He said: "Whites are the only population group that is declining and, if they continue to shape their future around the white population, then those sporting codes are in deep trouble."The report stated that basketball, volleyball, table tennis, football, amateur boxing and gymnastics all exceeded the 60% target set in the transformation charter for representation by blacks, coloureds and/or Indians...

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