SA’s top national sportsmen will receive financial aid from government after COVID-19 setbacks
While the sports sector is one of the communities in South Africa that has been hit very hard by the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture announced that his department has set up its own aid fund to assist sportsmen who suffered financial losses.
South Africa, like most other countries worldwide, is dealing with a national emergency, as all efforts of the government, private sector and civil society combine to fight the health disaster that threatens to ensue with the rapid spread of COVID-19 across our provinces.
Furthermore, the resultant projected economic losses are an additional threat for the country’s already struggling economy. The JSE, banking, telecommunications, mining, export and other sectors have already lost billions of Rands, and Moody’s has downgraded South Africa’s credit rating to junk status at the worst possible time for our economy.
This also means that South Africa’s Government Bonds will be excluded from the FTSE World Government Bond Index.
There is not a single sector that will not be affected and millions of ordinary South Africans will lose their incomes and livelihood in the months to come. President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced a relief fund along with other measures to assist primarily small businesses that are likely to suffer the most during the COVID-19 crisis.
It is with this massive challenge in mind that the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Nathi Mthethwa, earlier this week announced measures and a relief fund of R150 million towards assisting artists, athletes, technical personnel and the core ecosystem that supports them, to soften the economic impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on their livelihood, on 25 March 2020.
The criteria for accessing this support, the identification of beneficiaries and the mechanism through which the relief fund will be managed has now been finalised in consultation with, amongst others, national sport governing bodies for the different sectors.
Athletes and sportsmen who were confirmed to participate at events that have now been cancelled or postponed due to COVID-19, and whose income is generated solely through specific sporting events will be eligible for relief. They must provide proof that their events have been cancelled and their taxes must be in order.
Coaches and technical support personnel must work with athletes whose sporting events have been cancelled or postponed due to COVID-19, and make their earnings solely from these events. They too must have their tax matters in order.
Athletes on the Operation Excellence Programme (OPEX) are potential medallists earmarked for International Multi-coded events such as the Olympics, Paralympics, Commonwealth Games etc, and the above conditions and criteria are applicable to them.
For Sports, relief will only be availed to athletes, coaches, or technical support personnel after the date on which the cancelled or postponed event would have been held.
The relief support of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture is guided by Schedule 5 of the Constitution of the country. Therefore, athletes that have not earned the status of being national athletes would have to be catered for by their respective provinces.
Also excluded from the relief framework are, athletes, coaches and technical personnel who do not rely solely on income earned from participating at sport events and permanently employed personnel in institutions and organisations. In other words, athletes on fixed term contracts who earn salaries will not be able to claim.
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