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There are fewer than 200 days to the World
Cup, after the milestone was reached on Sunday, 22 November amid a tour round Joburg.
THE little traffic there was on
Johannesburg's roads on a sunny Sunday morning almost came to a standstill as
an ancient double-decker London bus full of vuvuzela-blowing football fans and
an odd-looking vehicle shaped like a football rumbled through the streets.
The Diski Striker attracts attention wherever it goes
This ancient bus and the odd-looking
vehicle, attracting so much attention from motorists and pedestrians alike, was
the cavalcade drumming up support for the 2010 FIFA World Cup on 22 November,
200 days before the event kicks off at Soccer City.
The month-long event starts on 11 June and
ends on 11 July 2010. Johannesburg, with two match venues - Soccer City and
Ellis Park - will host the opening and final matches of the tournament.
Activities started off early at 9am, when
the two vehicles left the James Hall Museum of Transport in La Rochelle,
southern Joburg. About 30 football fans, all wearing 2010 T-shirts, started the
party going, blowing vuvuzelas and singing football songs from the slow-moving
bus.
Shaped like a football with a dung beetle
perched on top, the Diski Striker led the bus as they wound their way on to the
M1 highway to Sandton, the first stop of the celebrations.
"The dung beetle is the Diski Striker
mascot. The creature is unique to the African continent and spends its day rolling
dung into a ball using its hind legs," explained Peter Hall, the head of the transport
museum.
He added that the name given to the vehicle
was taken from township lingo, defining the style of playing football and the
ball itself.
Sandton
As the party entered the quiet streets of Sandton, the blasts of vuvuzelas
ricocheted off the walls of tall hotel buildings. Some windows opened and
peeping faces could be seen.
Football legends, like Jacob Mekgoe, took part in the festivities
Though it was quite early, Nelson Mandela
Square was already a buzz of activity with restaurants serving breakfast. As
Diski Striker - the only vehicle from the entourage that managed to enter the
busy square - lumbered into view, some waiters and cooks left their customers
and pans momentarily to gape at the spectacle.
As soon as it came to a stop at the foot of
the dancing six metre tall Nelson Mandela statue, scores of children swarmed
around, gaping at the odd-looking vehicle.
Footballs were dished out by Glady Bailey, a
staunch supporter of Ajax Cape Town Football Club and Bafana Bafana, and signed
by soccer legends like Paradise Legodi and Jacob Mekgoe. Ball pens and 2010
stickers were also handed out.
Then the Diski Dancers took to the stage,
wowing the crowd that had gathered with their football dance. The Diski Dance,
a jive comprising a series of choreographed football moves, is aimed at
generating excitement for the World Cup.
After a series of dazzling moves by the
dancers, spectators were asked to join in and everyone literally had a ball.
Parkview
Then it was off to Zoo Lake, a prime outdoor recreation area in Parkview. Here,
the 2010 party found a party already going with hundreds of picnickers enjoying
the morning sun and children frolicking on the vast expanse of grass.
Unlike in Sandton, there was no need to
call on people to join in - Diski Striker and the vuvuzela-blowing football
fans actually joined their party. However, Diski Striker caught the attention
of many children and their parents when they saw footballs being dished out to
curious people who wanted to take a closer look at the vehicle.
Legend Paradise Legodi was on hand to sign memorabilia
In a minute, a snaking queue had formed and
the balls soon ran out. To pacify some glum-looking children, vuvuzelas were
then dished out by the dozen. Waves and shouts of "Bafana Bafana!" accompanied
the Diski Striker party as it left Zoo Lake, heading for Mary Fitzgerald Square
in Newtown.
At the square, there were a few people
milling around and the first two lucky children to get footballs were six- and
three-year-old Aaqid and Ismail Ravai from Fordsburg. The two, who were
accompanied by their father, Ashraf, said they were delighted to get balls.
"We will play football the whole day
today," said Aaqid, rolling the new Kopanya ball in his hands.
"I will make sure I buy tickets for the
2010 World Cup for me and my boys," said Ashraf.
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