Pienaar: My greatest Madiba moment
Francois Pienaar, the 1995 Rugby World Cup winning Springbok Captain, said his greatest Madiba moment was when the former President agreed to be a Godfather to his two sons.
Speaking to journalists shortly before the Memorial Service for former President Nelson Mandela started at the FNB stadium on Tuesday, Pienaar, who had a personal bond with Madiba, also said it was up to young people to carry the former statesman’s legacy forward.
Pienaar’s world cup triumph was seen, amongst others, as sporting moments that contributed to the country’s reconciliation during the dawn of democracy.
“When my boys sat on his lap for the very first time, and when Stefan asked [Mandela] to be his godfather, and Mandela said yes. That moment when they sat on his lap, that to me was my best moment,” he said.
It was when Mandela, clad in a Springbok jersey and cap, handed a trophy to Pienaar in 1995 that the country and the world saw a moment that contributed to the country’s reconciliation.
“Children have got this wonderful opportunity to follow in his footsteps. They have got to vote, they are the ones that will carry Madiba’s legacy.
“I met Madiba for the first time in 1994 at the Union Buildings and I was very nervous then because I didn’t know why he wanted to meet me. I didn’t know what we were gonna talk about.
“But as our relationship grew, I felt very blessed.
“Our relationship has been such a wonderful journey. What is very special for me is that it was after the world cup that I got to know him better as a person, where there was nothing to gain politically for being my friend.”
Comments
The
functionality
you are trying to access is only available to subscribers.
If you are already a subscriber, you can Login Here.
If you are not a subscriber, you can subscribe now, by selecting one of the below options.
For more information or assistance, please contact us at subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za.
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation