Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton Mckenzie has demanded answers after Limpopo learner athletes were deprived of food and slept in a bus ahead of the 2025 national schools Sports Championship Autumn games.
The Limpopo athletic team pulled out of the sports championships Autumn games in the final stages due to accommodations and other logistical issues. The week-long championships were held in Bloemfontein in the Free State province from 2 to 6 April 2025.
According to one athlete’s parent who drove from Pretoria to Bloemfontein after hearing that her child spent the whole day without eating, bathing and slept in a bus, the pupils were subjected to a horrific experience.
“I called my son at 21h00 on Wednesday and he told me that they are still in a bus and no food and accommodation has been provided to them,” the woman said.
She added that the learners had to bath at a farm nearby on Thursday, 3 April, after sleeping with hunger in a bus, ahead of the competitions. On her arrival on Friday, the mother alleges that she found some learners crying in a bus after were informed that they can’t compete any more.
The South African Democratic Teacher’s Union (SADTU) Limpopo secretary Tjebane Sowell said the union is shocked and disappointed that the learners had to endure such hardships, due to the incompetency of both the departments of sports and education.
“We are deeply shocked by the fact that learners had to travel the entire distance from Limpopo to the Free State without being provided meals and refreshments.”
“As if that was not enough, upon arrival in Bloemfontein, learners were subjected to a horrifying experience when they discovered that no accommodation had been arranged for them. They were forced to sleep in buses, exposed to the harsh elements,” Sowell said.
He further lambasted the committee for arranging a last-minute accommodations, in Kimberely, Northern Cape Province which is more than 160 km from the venue where the games were taking place.
As a result the team had to be withdrawn from participating in the final stages of the athletic games due to the distance between the venue and where they are lodging.
Mckenzie took to his X social media account, formerly known as twitter, to express his shock and vowed to declare in public the money the department allocated for these games.
“Its sadly true that learners were not given food, I’m absolutely livid. I will have answers before end of the day, provisions for meals & accommodation is standard at these events (sic) We will also make public the amount that was given for food & accommodation” McKenzie posted.
Meanwhile the Limpopo Sports, Arts & Culture MEC Jerry Maseko, who signed a memorandum of understanding with the Limpopo Department of Education to allow the learners to participate in sports competitions, said both the departments will launch a full investigation following these incidents.
