SOUTH AFRICA BOASTS WORLD’S BEST SKATE PARK

MEC John Block of the Northern Cape Department of Economic Development and Tourism recently accepted the trophy when the Kumba Skate Plaza in Kimberley took the honours as the Skate Park of the Year at the recently held Global Skateboarding Awards in Turkey. The state-of-the-art skate park was built four years ago and is home to the annual Kimberley Diamond Cup world skateboarding championships presented by Kumba Iron Ore, a business unit of Anglo American, as well as a community leisure park.

The Northern Cape Province also tied with New York City Parks and Recreation in the category for public entities such as municipalities, cities or provinces that made a significant contribution in promoting skateboarding and creating social responsibility programmes to further the sport. The province has been invested in the Skateboarding for Hope community outreach programme for the past four years and has introduced the sport to more than 100 000 youth throughout South Africa.

Accepting the awards on behalf of the Northern Cape Province, Block expressed the gratitude of the province. “We were very honoured to have been nominated amongst these well-established skate parks and huge cities in the various categories. We are obviously absolutely thrilled to have our efforts recognised on a global platform. Our association with the Kimberley Diamond Cup was driven by our youth and their need for social development. The fact that they embraced skateboarding so passionately and have supported this campaign so enthusiastically has definitely contributed to us winning these awards.”

“As a provincial government, we will continue our involvement with skateboarding and help to spread the positive message amongst the youth of our country. We are also looking forward to welcoming the skateboarding world to Kimberley again from 7 – 10 October 2015 and invite them to enjoy the warm hospitality and incredible tourism offerings of the Northern Cape,” explained Block at the awards ceremony hosted during the Global Skateboarding Summit in Istanbul, Turkey.

The Kumba Skate Plaza eked out competitors such as the Etnies Skate Park in Lake Forest, California, the Southside Skatepark in Houston, Texas, Clairemont YMCA in San Diego and the Skatehalle in Aurich, Germany. The Kimberley facility is the only one of its kind in the world offering free access, training clinics and contests all-year round. Thousands of skaters are drawn to the park on an annual basis and it has become one of the key tourism attractions in the capital city of South Africa’s largest province.

According to Tim McFerran of World Skateboarding Grand Prix, the skate park is an undeniable asset for the community of Kimberley and the Northern Cape. “Over the past four years, more than 120 000 people have visited the Kumba Skate Plaza. Free skateboarding training is presented on a daily basis. Since the Northern Cape provincial government has embraced skateboarding as part of their youth development programme, the skate park has played an enormous role in uniting the youth of the province and creating a sense of ownership amongst the burgeoning skateboarding community. Last year saw an unprecedented 37 countries being represented at the world championships and we’re expecting an even greater turn-out for 2015,” mentioned McFerran.

For further information, visit www.kimberleydiamondcup.com or connect with us on Twitter at KDiamondCup #kdcskate and KimberleyDiamondCup on Facebook.
ENDS

Author: Ronelda Visser from Peridot Communications.
More Info link: http://www.kimberleydiamondcup.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/KDiamondCup
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/KimberleyDiamondCup
Images: For high res version/s of Three image/s please contact: Peridot Communications.

Northern Cape MEC for Sport, Arts and Culture Lebogang Motlaping and MEC for Economic Development and Tourism John Block proudly accept the awards on behalf of the province from Tim McFerran of World Skateboarding Grand Prix in Turkey, Istanbul. Photo: Supplied

The Kumba Skate Plaza in Kimberley, Northern Cape at sunset during the 2014 Kimberley Diamond Cup skateboarding world championships presented by Kumba Iron Ore. Photo: Supplied

Hundreds of SA kids have been introduced to the joy of skateboarding during weekly clinics and demonstrations at the Kumba Skate Plaza in Kimberley. Photo: Supplied

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