{"id":257186,"date":"2020-05-10T06:30:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-10T04:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/257186\/sagf-establish-the-gymnastics-covid-19-relief-fund\/"},"modified":"2020-05-09T12:06:17","modified_gmt":"2020-05-09T10:06:17","slug":"sagf-establish-the-gymnastics-covid-19-relief-fund","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/sports-news\/2020\/05\/10\/sagf-establish-the-gymnastics-covid-19-relief-fund\/","title":{"rendered":"SAGF establish the Gymnastics Covid-19 Relief Fund"},"content":{"rendered":"

The South African Gymnastics Federation (SAGF) executive committee took the decision to establish a special Gymnastics Covid-19 Relief Fund.<\/p>\n

This will aim to assist gymnastics bodies in all nine provinces and districts and is now appealing to all sport-loving South Africans, the corporate sector and former gymnasts to help keep gymnastics alive in the country.<\/p>

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SAGF is active in all nine provinces, as well as 47 various districts with a total of 350 clubs,\u00a0 341 schools and over 19 000 registered members.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom head office to club level, gymnastics entities are facing a grave economic challenge,\u201d said Donny Jurgens, acting president of the SAGF.<\/p>

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\u201cThe overwhelming majority of clubs are small enterprises that survive with limited reserves.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would not be in the interest of our country if any club should have to close their doors.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have quantified the negative impact of Covid-19 on our industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe harsh reality is that should club businesses not be able to start some economic activity very soon then 238 of our 351 clubs will have to close their doors completely,\u201d said Jurgens.<\/p>\n

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Besides the economic impact, the social impact would be catastrophic.<\/p>\n

SAGF provides structured positive activities for thousands of South Africans of all ages.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe build confidence and self-esteem, we create positive role models and we combat social evils such as substance abuse and violence against vulnerable people,\u201d said Jurgens.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo ensure that the SAGF survives the pandemic financially, as well as continues to serve its members, the federation has cut all its expenses to the minimum and has launched its appeal to corporate South Africa, the general public and gymnastics alumni, to support our new Covid-19 Relief Fund.\u201d<\/p>\n

An independent committee set up by SAGF will administer the fund and consider applications based on the finances available.<\/p>\n

Funds will be distributed as soon as possible.<\/p>\n

Over the past month SAGF launched various initiatives to assist clubs to deal with the pandemic and prepare for a \u2018new normal\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thank the SAGF staff for initiatives such as ‘Club Connect’ and ‘Business Accelerator\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cThrough Club Connect, many clubs are talking to each other, sharing their challenges and solutions to the benefit of all.<\/p>\n

\u201cSimilarly, Business Accelerator is a free resource to our clubs to help better the structure and shape their businesses,\u201d said Jurgens.<\/p>\n

SAGF also launched the ‘Home Gym Challenge’, a daily online fitness segment on its Facebook page, as well as the \u2018Ambassadors Programme\u2019, aimed at keeping South Africans active at home.<\/p>\n

Please contact the SAGF if you would like to assist.<\/p>\n

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* Notice: Coronavirus reporting at Caxton Local Media aims to combat fake news<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dear reader,<\/p>\n

As your local news provider, we have the duty of keeping you factually informed on Covid-19 developments. As you may have noticed, mis- and disinformation (also known as \u201cfake news\u201d) is circulating online. Caxton Local Media is determined to filter through the masses of information doing the rounds and to separate truth from untruth in order to keep you adequately informed. Local newsrooms follow a strict pre-publication fact-checking protocol. A national task team has been established to assist in bringing you credible news reports on Covid-19.<\/p>\n

Readers with any comments or queries may contact National Group Editor Irma Green (irma@caxton.co.za<\/a>) or Legal Adviser Helene Eloff (helene@caxton.co.za<\/a>).<\/p>\n

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Contact the newsroom by emailing: Melissa Hart (Editor)\u00a0<\/span>germistoncitynews@caxton.co.za,<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>Leigh Hodgson (News Editor)\u00a0<\/span>leighh@caxton.co.za\u00a0<\/a><\/strong>or Busi Vilakazi (Journalist)\u00a0busiv@caxton.co.za.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

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