Zakumi: spirit of South Africa 2010
Michael Appel
23 September 2008
South Africa's 2010 Fifa World Cup local organising committee this week unveiled the tournament's official mascot, a leopard called Zakumi, completing another major milestone in the 626 days remaining to the start of the football spectacular.
"Its young, vibrant, energetic, enthusiastic, sociable [and] self-confident," LOC chief executive Danny Jordaan said in Johannesburg on Monday night.
"All of those things will serve as an inspiration to both young and old, and generate excitement around the 2010 Fifa World Cup."
Unique mascot
Many South Africans had speculated that the mascot was likely to be one of South Africa's famous "Big Five" animals, but the LOC surprised everyone in its choice.
"You have to represent something that is unique and something that is fresh," Jordaan said. "Many of the Big Five animals have been over-traded as mascots in major events, so we wanted to have a uniquely African and South African mascot."
Zakumi, he said, was a proud South African and, as such, an ideal ambassador for the first African World Cup.
Shared significance
Those attending the function were told of the origins of the word Zakumi: the "Za" coming from South Africa's international country code (ZA) and "Kumi", which is a ki-Swahili word that means 10.
Due to South Africa's intention to make sure that 2010 would be an "African World Cup", the LOC decided to use a word from a language that is widely spoken across the continent.
Another significant detail is that Zakumi was born on 16 June 1994 - Youth Day in the year that South Africa held its first democratic elections.
"The big party is in 2010 when Zakumi turns 16, but also, we will have had 16 years of democracy - representing the road that we have travelled in this country," Jordaan said. "He has become the ambassador for all our hopes, dreams and aspirations in South Africa."
Mascot a World Cup ambassador
Fifa marketing director Thierry Weil told reporters that the very first Fifa World Cup mascot was a lion, invented by England in 1966.
"The mascot's role is to be an ambassador for the 2010 Fifa World Cup in South Africa - an ambassador that embodies the spirit of South Africa," he said. "The mascot will be used to represent the World Cup and must become a symbol recognised around the world."
Weil said that while the selection of mascots was done by a panel of judges that included members from both Fifa and the LOC, the final decision was approved by the LOC board, making it a truly South African decision.
Source: BuaNews
