South African Olympic Teams to Take on Much Different Composition

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, June 21. ACCORDING to an article appearing in The Star in South Africa, the nation's sports committee is committed to equalizing both the gender and racial composition of its Olympic teams following the 2008 Beijing Games.

The article states that "several (government officials) baulked at the 74-member team's racial composition, expressing concern that it was 37 percent black and 63 percent white. They also regarded the team's gender make-up of 62 percent male and 38 percent female as being ‘unpalatable.'"

The National Assembly's sports committee chairperson Butana Komphela stated that a new law governing sport in South Africa required that teams match South Africa's demographic profile. Teams that do not comply with this new law will not be allowed to represent South Africa.

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