NELSON Mandela Bay today celebrates winning the bid to host the South African leg of the fast-paced HSBC Sevens World Series rugby tournament for the next five years, after an announcement by the South African Rugby Union (SARU) this afternoon.

The inaugural event will take place in early December this year. SARU said that Nelson Mandela Bay went the extra mile to compile a bid that outshone the other cities.

“We received some outstanding bids, but the panel came to the unanimous conclusion that the tender provided by the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality and Eastern Province Kings was a clear winner,” said Jurie Roux, SARU chief executive. “They not only satisfied the standards that we expected from all the bidders, they went the extra mile to research exactly what players, spectators and other stakeholders require and provided innovative solutions for each one. The Panel was convinced Nelson Mandela Bay would produce an absolutely outstanding tournament, based on this document.”

A strong quadrant of city role-players collaborated in putting the bid together, including the municipality, Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism (NMBT), Eastern Province Rugby Union (EPRU) and the Nelson Mandela Bay stadium (which is owned by the municipality and operated by Access Management). All indications are that it was this united front that was a major factor in winning the city the bid, according to SARU.

Across the Eastern Cape politicians and officials also celebrated. Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture MEC Xolisa Tom said this coup was an achievement for the whole Eastern Cape.

“We are so excited,” said Tom. “We really feel that we deserved this win, it is long overdue because the Eastern Cape is a rugby playing province, so many of our young people play rugby. We want our province to be seen as a sports events destination.”

Tom said that she was keen to meet immediately with all the stakeholders to start planning. Cheeky Watson, president of EPRU echoed her sentiments at the announcement in Cape Town, advising his team that the hard work and planning starts today.

“This is a very exciting moment for Nelson Mandela Bay and the entire Eastern Cape. We are all very well aware that this is the heart and soul of black rugby and we are extremely excited that SARU, the IRB and the sponsors have chosen this region as the South African leg IRB HSBC Sevens Series. Between the IRB Sevens and inclusion in the Olympics, we expect Sevens Rugby to sky-rocket in the region.”

Bay executive mayor, Zanoxolo Wayile said the city was ready to put on a grand show set to the Sevens tone of other host cities like Hong Kong and Dubai and would develop a unique approach to make it a successful event.

“The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality is contributing R10,5-million to the event as well as other city support. But the economic spinoffs are expected to total R80-million per year,” said Wayile. “This will mean multipliers rolling out in our local economy as well as international media exposure. This bid is also a coup for not only the city of Nelson Mandela Bay, but also for the province.”

NMBT chief executive Mandlakazi Skefile said she was ecstatic on the prospects this held for the city’s tourism industry. “This announcement means a lot for the city. It secures us a long-term event in the early summer season and will boost the local economy with a cash injection. The IRB Sevens will also raise the profile of Nelson Mandela Bay as a tourist destination.”

She said the city is ideal for such an event. “It is big enough to accommodate the fans and participants, but everything is in close proximity for them to move quickly within the city. We live in a really friendly, convenient city, something tourists have been known to enjoy. Nelson Mandela Bay is perfectly placed for the tourism industry to benefit from the spinoffs of the event.”

She added that winning the bid was part of her greater strategy of growing sports tourism to the Bay and achievement would go a long way in establishing the Eastern Cape region as the sports tourism capital of South Africa.

The stadium operator, Access Management, was also thrilled with the announcement which is forecast to be a sold-out event. “We are elated and would like to thank all the role players who contributed to this successful bid, specifically the mayor, and Nadia Gerwel, Zolile Siswana and NMBT led by Ms Mandlakazi Skefile. This is a huge opportunity for our city and our facility – the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium – to shine,” said Stephan Pretorius, chief executive of the stadium.

Azad Cassim, Airport Manager of Port Elizabeth International Airport said; “As ACSA PE we are extremely proud to be hosting this prestigious event. The airport team together with our stakeholders and the organizers will ensure that all the teams, fans and aircraft are properly facilitated during the event. This will once again put the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality on the map for these events and will do all that is possible to ensure that the event is another great success for Nelson Mandela Bay.”

Sixteen countries participate in the fast-paced and hugely popular tournament which has cinched its place as a crowd puller after its inclusion as an Olympic sport from 2016.