National Varsity Sports athletics spectacle moves to UJ

The hi-octane intervarsity athletics spectacle, originally planned to be held at North West University of Potchefstroom, has been switched to take place at the University of Johannesburg (UJ).

Varsity Sports is a high-performance competition platform that enables South African universities to compete against each other in six different sporting codes. These codes are athletics, hockey, football, netball, rugby sevens and beach volleyball.

Construction of the new tartan track at the PUK Macarthur Stadium in Potchefstroom has been delayed by the persistent rain that has fallen over the region recently. While the record rainfall might well have caused the venue change, this won’t put a dampener on what promises to be one of the most exciting Varsity Sports events – one where other records are about to be put to the test.

The adrenalin packed action starts at 5.45pm on Monday, 14 April.

The UJ event is the second athletics meeting of the popular USA college-style Varsity Sports. Twenty six athletes from universities around the country will be competing for both individual and team honours in a festival style atmosphere.

If the success of the first athletics event, which was held at the NMMU grounds in Port Elizabeth, is anything to go by, this promises to be another fun-filled evening during which up and coming athletes strive for glory in front of the packed stands.

The fast pace of the Varsity Sports concept, now well into its successful second year, is a buzz from beginning to end with every minute jammed packed with action.

“One can expect nothing less if you put together some top sportsmen and women – add a little music and the cheering of spectators,” says Duitser Bosman, CEO of Varsity Sports.

“Our sponsors have helped us create an ideal opportunity for our young athletes to ready themselves for Olympic glory,” says a justifiably proud Bosman.

“The commitment of FNB, Cell C, Famous Brands Group, Samsung, and the Edcon Group to sport in South Africa is making a huge difference. For those who are unable to get to the various venues, events will be televised on SuperSport every Monday evening.”

Varsity Sports is part of Advent Sport Entertainment & Media (Pty) Ltd. (ASEM), which is headed by SA rugby legend Francois Pienaar, who is rarely far from a sports field.

Participating universities across all six sporting codes (athletics; hockey; football; netball; rugby sevens and beach volleyball) are: Limpopo; Free State (Kovsies); University of Fort Hare (UFH); Tshwane University of technology (TUT); Vaal University of Technology; The University of Cape Town (UCT); Pretoria (Tuks); Stellenbosch (Maties); NMMU (Port Elizabeth); North-West University; (Pukke); Rhodes University; the University of the Western Cape and Witwatersrand (Wits) and the University of Johannesburg (UJ).

“The events are short in duration,” says Key “but the memory of an exciting evening will linger for a long time. We don’t often get the chance to watch live performances from our top athletes, these young stars thrive on spectator support and it is indeed a privilege to watch them in action.”

Programme for 2014:

• Varsity Athletics from 21 March to 28 April in Port Elizabeth, Johannesburg, Stellenbosch and Pretoria.

• Varsity Hockey (Men) from 3 May to 19 May in Johannesburg (Wits University), Stellenbosch, Bloemfontein and Johannesburg (University of Johannesburg).

• Varsity Football from 21 July to 15 September.

• Varsity Netball from 15 September to 20 October.

• Varsity Rugby Sevens and Varsity Beach Volleyball from 28 to 30 November.

• Venues for Football, Netball, Rugby Sevens and Beach Volleyball to be announced.