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Veronica Gwaze Sports Reporter
THE recent 2023 Netball World Cup which was held in Cape Town has been short-listed for Sports Business Awards in the “Best Sporting Event of the Year 2023” category in South Africa.
Hosted on African soil for the first time, World Netball’s flagship event saw the battle of 16 netball nations battle for silverware at the International Convention Centre.
Australia regained the title when they beat England in the final, while Jamaica claimed the bronze medal.
South Africa and Zimbabwe settled for number six and 13 respectively.
Netball South Africa president and 2023 Netball World Cup board member, Cecilia Molokwane paid tribute to World Netball for giving South Africa a platform to place netball in the spotlight. The nomination, she said, means a lot to all of us because we did what has never been done before on African soil.”
“That on its own is a huge success and the nomination is a gigantic win for us,” she said.
“On behalf of all the partners, I would like to thank everyone who played a role in making sure that we deliver.
“The event exceeded our expectations and was the culmination of four years of planning by World Netball, 2023Netball World Cup (local organising committee) and Netball South Africa.”
Highlights of the event, she added included having the World Cup as the most successful commercial programme in World Netball history. Sales were double those that were achieved at the Netball World Cup 2019.
Rights to broadcast the matches live were sold in all the major netball nations, with fans in all countries able to sign up and watch the live games.
On social media, some 109,437 posts referencing the 2023 NWC, more than three billion impressions and social media videos referencing the event generated 12.1-million views.
Sixty-three free fan parks and 30 viewing centres across the nine South African provinces drew the global tournament closer to all communities across the country.
Broadcaster SuperSport also made history by allowing the 2023 Netball World Cup to be recorded and produced by an all-women crew.
Molokwane also thanked the South African Government for ensuring that they staged the best-ever Netball event in Africa.
Speaking on the award short-listing, World Netball chief executive, Clare Briegal said while Africa was the only continent yet to host a Netball World Cup, the prestigious nomination is a demonstration of the hard work they put into the tournament.
“By awarding us the right to host the 2023 Netball World Cup, World Netball demonstrated its commitment to delivering growth for the sport worldwide,” said Briegal.
“We all embraced this opportunity and staged an incredible showcase, opening up netball to a wider audience than ever before therefore we deeply thank everyone who was involved in making it a success.”
Netball World Cup 2023 Board chairperson, Patience Shikwambana, expressed her delight at the prestigious award nomination.
“To be short-listed as best sporting event in the Sports Business Awards is a terrific moment not only for me and our Board but also the Netball World Cup LOC, the fans and country as a whole.
“South Africa has proved time and time again that we are capable of successfully staging the world’s biggest sporting events.
“It is a proud moment for me to reflect on the success of the Netball World Cup and its important contribution to the promotion, growth and development of netball and sport in South Africa, Africa and the world.”
Online Reporter