After months of preparation, the SALGA KZNDSAC Games 2022 got underway on 8 December 2022 with the opening ceremony, followed by three days of non-stop sports from 9 December to 11 December 2022.
With the Amajuba District Municipality and its family of municipalities, Newcastle, Dannhauser and eMadlangeni hosting the event, thousands of athletes from the District Municipalities around KwaZulu-Natal gathered to compete in the tournament.
The Amajuba District Municipality Communications Department said that the SALGA KZNDSAC Games are currently the biggest sporting event in the Southern Hemisphere.
“The games are hosted annually in partnership with the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport, Art & Culture (KZNDSAC). Their inception is to promote social cohesion through sport and improve the lives of the youth in various communities across KZN. The Games started over 20 years ago with merely two sporting codes and have grown tremendously over the years. Due to COVID-19, SALGA has had to halt hosting these games for the past two years,” said the Communications Unit.
During the Closing Ceremony the Amajuba District Municipality Mayor, Cllr Ndabuko Zulu, commended the Local Organising Committee (LOC) tasked with ensuring a successful event.
“We believed our Local Organising Committee would do a good job. We anticipated that the display of sporting skill by young players from all over KwaZulu-Natal would enthuse the fans and win new supporters for sports,” he said.
Cllr Zulu then lauded the Local Organising Committee, Technical Teams, Managers, Officials, Emergency Services and all those who played their part. “We pay tribute to you for the determination with which you rose to the challenges.”
The last day of the tournament saw District Municipalities locking horns in the finals of the sporting codes such as Football, Basketball, Cross Country, Rugby and Volleyball with some codes having been completed a day before.
Here are the results from the SALGA games 2022:
- Dance
- Position 1 – Ethekwini Metro
- Position 2 – Zululand District
- Position 3 – Ilembe District
- Karate
- Position 1 – Amajuba District
- Position 2 – King Cetshwayo District
- Position 3 – Ilembe District
- Basketball Females
- Position 1 – Ethekwini Metro
- Position 2 – Umgungundlovu District
- Position 3 – Amajuba District
- Basketball Males
- Position 1 – Amajuba District
- Position 2 – Umgungundlovu District
- Position 3 – Ethekwini Metro
- Indigenous Games
- Position 1 – King Cetshwayo District
- Position 2 – Umgungundlovu District
- Position 3 – Amajuba District, Ethekwini Metro and Ugu District
- Netball Females
- Position 1 – King Cetshwayo District
- Position 2 – Zululand District
- Position 3 – Ethekwini Metro
- Rugby Females
- Position 1 – Amajuba District
- Position 2 – Ethekwini Metro
- Position 3 – Umzinyathi District
- Rugby Males
- Position 1 – Amajuba District
- Position 2 – Umzinyathi District
- Position 3 – Zululand District
- Athletics
- Position 1 – Ethekwini Metro
- Position 2 – Amajuba District
- Position 3 – Umzinyathi District
- Volleyball Females
- Position 1 – Amajuba District
- Position 2 – Umkhanyakude District
- Position 3 – Ugu District
- Volleyball Males
- Position 1 – Umgungundlovu District
- Position 2 – Umkhanyakude District
- Position 3 – Ethekwini Metro
- Football Females
- Position 1 – Ilembe District
- Position 2 – Amajuba District
- Football Males
- Position 1 – Umkhanyakude District
- Position 2 – King Cetshwayo District
- Position 3 – Ilembe District
The Amajuba Mayor thanked all the participating District Municipalities, partners, players and coaches for their roles.
“To our athletes, your conduct on and off the sports field and the team building spirit have been inspiring. Your energy, attitude, and skills you have displayed helped bring our people together as never before. I would like to thank my leader, uMphemba, the SALGA KZN Chairperson and the organisation he leads – SALGA KZN, the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture for their sterling work in support of the SALGA KZNDSAC Games 2022. Their financial and organisational assistance was critical to the success of this sporting activity,” said Cllr Zulu during the Closing Ceremony.
