Plain sailing in South Africa
A hundred young people from the black community in Cape Town will develop their talent for the sport of sailing, thanks to a contribution from Pirelli South Africa.
The company’s sponsorship has begun of the Izivungu Sailing Academy in Simon’s Town, the country’s first sailing school established to offer needy young people the opportunity of personal and professional growth through education in the values and techniques of the sport. Founded in 2001, the school is supported by the South African navy.
The youngsters sponsored by Pirelli will attend two nautical bases, dependent on the various programmes: for most of them the activity will take place at the school’s Simon’s Town headquarters at a military base, while 10 of them who already have some ability in the field will join the Cape Town school.
In the meantime, 17 sailing boats are crossing the Atlantic Ocean from Cape Town to Rio de Janeiro for the famous Cape-to-Rio Yacht Race. On board is a group of the Pirelli project’s sailors, who with this initiative confirm the traditional association with sailing for its values of sporting competition, team spirit and pressure heading for the destination, as well as the usual commitment to supporting the local community to which they belong.
Pirelli has been in South Africa since 1999 with a subsidiary who look after 700 retail clients direct. The company is mainly active in the car and motorcycle consumer segment, in which it achieves a significant margin, due in part to a good image and the growth of the UHP market.
Categories: Sustainability