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The latest Legacy Champion for the Nelson
Mandela Foundation is footballer Clarence Seedorf, who is determined to make a
difference in the lives of children.
Clarence Seedorf is determined to make a difference
CLARENCE SEEDORF, the AC Milan football star
and founding president of the Champions for Children Foundation, is looking
forward to the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.
Speaking to the media after meeting the former
president and political icon, Nelson Mandela, at the Nelson Mandela Foundation
offices in Saxonwold on Friday, 5 June, Seedorf said he would be in Johannesburg
to witness the City's hospitality as a visitor and also, hopefully, as a player
during the tournament.
"I will definitely be in South Africa
during the 2010 World Cup. I am happy that the World Cup is coming to Africa
and my message to South Africans is to enjoy the event ... I hope Bafana Bafana
will make it to the finals and make the people proud."
Seedorf said it was important that the
World Cup was being staged in Africa for the
first time. "I hope the World Cup will leave a lasting legacy for South
Africans and Africans as a whole after the event has come and gone."
Talking about his visit to South Africa, a
visibly ecstatic Seedorf said he was over the moon for having met Madiba.
"I am inspired by Mandela's life and work.
I am also here to make sure that the work he started carries on. During my
meeting with Mandela, I shook his hand as much as possible."
Legacy Champion
Because his Champions for Children Foundation helped children around the world
live a better life, he was the latest Nelson Mandela Foundation's Legacy
Champion, Seedorf announced.
He would also participate in the international
Mandela Day, to be launched on 18 July, in recognition of the 67 years Mandela had
devoted to social justice.
Mandela Day called on people around the
world to give 67 minutes of their time on that day to doing good. "In those 67
minutes, I think people will make a difference and I hope people will have lots
of fun during the day."
He said the Champions for Children
Foundation planned on building a multi-purpose sports centre in Cape Town as part of the
broader Champions Playground project that enabled children to grow up in a
creative and sporting environment.
The footballer was born in the South American country of Suriname; his foundation also runs projects in
countries like Cambodia and Kenya.
"It is important that people give back to
those in need. It is also important that they give back to their roots ... After
I have hung up my boots, I will dedicate more time to charity," he said.
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