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South Africa’s infamous record for
robbery, murder and rape may be the
biggest challenge facing the organisers of
next year’s football World Cup.
South Africa needs not only to protect
fans when they arrive, but convince them
it is safe to make the trip in the first place.
Not an easy task with one of the world’s
highest violent crime rates. Approximately
50 people are murdered a day. This is a
higher rate than in the US which has six
times the population of South Africa’s 50
million. In 2007-2008, there were officially
36,190 rapes and 14,201 carjackings, but
many crimes go unreported.
Organisers are attempting to allay fears,
pointing to South Africa’s good record in
protecting increasing numbers of foreign
tourists and its staging of many successful
international events. The police strategy
will be based on techniques developed
during the 2002 World Earth Summit,
which involve saturating areas including
Crime is of concern for World Cup 2010
hotels, stadiums and transit routes with at
least 41,000 specially deployed officers.
“We are preparing ourselves for a worst-
case scenario or any eventuality...
although we have the framework in
place, we must deal with issues as they
present themselves,” said Police Senior
Superintendent Vish Naidoo who leads
the 2010 team.
The government is spending 1.3 billion
rand ($US162 million) on the effort, which
includes new helicopters, surveillance
equipment - including unmanned drones
-vehicles and body armour. Around
700 officers will patrol every stadium in
addition to an army of private security
guards, Naidoo said.
But crime statistics, albeit improving
slowly, leave questions about what may
happen outside the venues, if visitors stray
away from protected areas. Organisers
warn that visitors must be vigilant despite
the police effort.
Many South Africans remain sceptical,
complaining that police are often too slow
to respond to the existing crime wave.
In the big cities where crime is rife, the
presence of private security companies is
far more evident than that of the police.
Homes are surrounded by a daunting array
of razor and electric wire and protected
by heavily armed private response units.
Clearly a special effort will be required
during 2010 if South Africa’s reputation
is not to be irrevocably tarnished. The
presence of comparatively well-heeled
foreign fans could be seen as a golden
opportunity for criminal gangs.
World Cup organisers have launched
marketing campaigns overseas to lure
visitors and counter crime fears. Signs so
far are that the fans are not deterred.
Insight
Swingers are winners in golf
New studies identify most effective warm-up exercises for improving golf
Most golf books and magazines will tell you that
stretching before hitting the links will improve your
score. Not so according to the latest research which
showed golfers who undertook a traditional stretching
routine before taking their first swing performed worse
than those who did not.
A 2009 study from Stephen F. Austin State University in
Texas reported that club head speed, distance, accuracy
and consistent contact with the ball decreased in the
15 competitive young male golfers who performed
20 minutes of static stretching before heading out to
the driving range. Similar findings were recorded by
golfers using a five-iron in an Irish study, “Dynamic
Stretching and Golf Swing Performance”, published
in the February edition of the International Journal of
Sports Medicine.
However, before you ditch stretching altogether, know
that flexibility is still crucial to perfecting your swing. A
good shoulder turn and a flexible set of core muscles
are essential to performing the kind of wide-arching
swing that is the mark of a good golfer. Why then is
stretching before your game so counterproductive?
The common ground in both studies is the type of
stretching that is done. Static stretching, defined as
holding a position for 10 to 30 seconds, is the focus
of the debate. Evidence suggests that this traditional
form of stretching may not produce the kind of results
once believed.
Similar findings of reduced strength and power output
have been found in other studies that evaluated
the effects of static stretching before exercise. The
benefits of traditional pre-exercise stretching have
been questioned for almost a decade, with sports
specific research reporting similar decreases in
performance markers after a period of stretching.
Researchers are not yet sure of the physiological
reasons why static stretching before exercise
hampers performance, though the main theory is
that increased laxity in the soft tissue temporarily
reduces maximum force output. What is known,
however, is that stretching is best left for after your
workout, practice or game when flexibility gains, not
performance, are the prime focus.
So, how should golfers warm up before a game?
Both studies recommend golfers engage in dynamic
stretching, which proved to be more effective than
static stretching in improving performance on the
links.
Dynamic stretching consists of sport-specific
movements that are done in increasingly larger
ranges of motion until they resemble the actual
pattern and speed of movement performed in
competition or practice. In the case of the Stephen
F. Austin State University study, the dynamic warm
up involved controlled golf swings with a variety of
clubs, starting with high irons and working up to
a driver. A dynamic stretching routine is the best
choice immediately before heading out on the course.
For the days between games, or immediately after a
game, a static stretching routine can be performed
to ensure that the body has enough range of motion
to facilitate proper swing mechanics.