In an electrifying match that had the world on the edge of its seat, South Africa&#8217;s Springboks made history by clinching their fourth Rugby World Cup title. Defeating the formidable New Zealand All Blacks 12-11, the Springboks claimed the Web Ellis Cup for the fourth time.



On October 28, 2023, the Springboks etched their names into the annals of rugby history. For the first time ever, a team hoisted the coveted Webb Ellis Cup four times. The moment was profound, and its ripple effect was felt far beyond the walls of Paris&#8217;s Stade de France. South Africa defeated New Zealand 12-11 in a nail-biting battle for rugby supremacy, marking their fourth win in the history of the Rugby World Cup.


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="700" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762438181.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60048" style="aspect-ratio:1.4628571428571429;width:654px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762438181.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762438181-300x205.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762438181-768x525.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo by Julian Finney &#8211; World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


In 80 tense minutes that could have gone either way, South Africa displayed a level of intensity that was palpable from the get-go. Leading 6-0 just 13 minutes into the game thanks to two penalty goals from flyhalf Handre Pollard, the Springboks signaled their intent early. The All Blacks notched their own penalty goal in the 17th minute, but Pollard&#8217;s third penalty four minutes later kept South Africa ahead; by halftime, the Boks led 12-6.



The New Zealand All Blacks left no room for complacency. Despite being a man down for much of the game due to red cards and injuries, they nearly clinched it. Their first try was disallowed due to a clear knock-on, but when Beauden Barrett scored the first valid try of the match, the tension was almost unbearable.



However, South Africa managed to hold their lead during the All Blacks&#8217; sensational second-half performance, driving the Springboks constantly back toward the try-line but never quite managing to cross it again. By the final bell, South Africa had clinched the victory by a single point.



South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa was on the sidelines of the match itself and joined the team to hoist the Webb Ellis Cup. His office congratulated the team in a statement: &#8220;Stronger Together is a belief that came to life for Springbok supporters all around our country, continent, and the world. Sport has the power to transform lives and lift the spirits of entire nations.&#8221; The President also extended his congratulations to New Zealand for a hard-fought campaign, calling them &#8220;deserving finalists.&#8221;



In South Africa, fans swarmed public venues like the Durban International Conference Centre and Montecasino, many of which reached full capacity hours before kickoff. &#8220;Tonight, Siya Kolisi and the 2023 World Cup champions have gifted us an extraordinary, inspired, and inspiring national achievement that lifts our hearts and hoists our flag even higher,&#8221; President Ramaphosa added.


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<figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="682" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762113459.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60050" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762113459.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762113459-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762113459-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa, with Springboks. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


This win has lifted the gloom of a nation plagued by corruption, power outages, and social strife, allowing South Africans, for a moment, to dare to dream again. &#8220;We found a way,&#8221; said Springbok Captain Kolisi in the post-match interview, still breathless from the game. &#8220;Honestly, I don’t think people not from South Africa understand what this means for our country… Our country goes through a lot, and we are that glimmer of hope that they have.&#8221;


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<figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="724" src="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762435141.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-60047" style="aspect-ratio:1.4143646408839778;width:462px;height:auto" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762435141.jpg 1024w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762435141-300x212.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/GettyImages-1762435141-768x543.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">(Photo by Julian Finney &#8211; World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div>


As the dust settles on this monumental victory, one thing is abundantly clear: the Springboks have done more than win a tournament; they&#8217;ve won the hearts of a nation desperate for unity and triumph. And that, perhaps, is the greatest victory of all.

New Zealand v South Africa: Final – Rugby World Cup France 2023

South Africa’s Springboks Make History with Fourth Rugby World Cup Win: A Nation Rejoices

TOPLINE New Zealand authorities announced a nationwide lockdown on Tuesday after its largest city, Auckland, reported the country’s first local Covid-19 case in nearly six months, posing a threat to the country’s successful ‘zero-Covid’ strategy that has so far managed to keep the more infectious delta variant of the virus at bay.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-facts">KEY FACTS</h2>



New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/jacindaardern/videos/384119913274194" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">announced</a>&nbsp;that Auckland and the town of Coromandel will enter a seven-day lockdown while the rest of the country will be locked for the next three days.



The new case has&nbsp;<a href="https://covid19.govt.nz/alert-levels-and-updates/current-alert-level/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">triggered</a>&nbsp;‘Alert Level 4’—the highest pandemic alert level across the country, which&nbsp;<a href="https://covid19.govt.nz/alert-levels-and-updates/alert-level-4/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">means</a>&nbsp;a stringent stay-at-home order is put in place with all physical contact being limited to household members.



While the single case has not been confirmed as a delta variant case, Ardern said the authorities are working under the presumption that it has been caused by the highly infectious variant.



The 58-year-old man who tested positive isn’t vaccinated and over the weekend he and his fully vaccinated wife traveled to the small town of Coromandel—located on the western side of New Zealand’s North Island.



Authorities said they have identified 23 locations of interest—10 in Auckland and 13 in Coromandel—visited by the man while he was infectious.



The source of the man’s infection is yet to be identified as he has no obvious link to any cases reported at New Zealand’s borders, raising fears that there may be other undetected cases spreading in the community.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-number">BIG NUMBER</h2>



22.9%. That’s the percentage of eligible people in New Zealand who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, a total of 934,207 people,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/covid-19-novel-coronavirus/covid-19-data-and-statistics/covid-19-vaccine-data" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according to</a>&nbsp;official government data. While the number is significantly lower than other developed nations, the country’s vaccine rollout has begun gathering pace, trending&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/covid-19-coronavirus-vaccine-tracker-how-many-kiwis-have-been-vaccinated-and-how-do-we-compare-with-the-rest-of-the-world/ENMCOHM5QW6W3UN6MRMCOQKO2U/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">slightly ahead</a>&nbsp;of the government’s projections.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-key-background">KEY BACKGROUND</h2>



With measures such as having one of the strictest border restrictions, quarantining of all incoming travelers and strong contact tracing, New Zealand has emerged as one of the pandemic’s success stories so far. New Zealand has only&nbsp;<a href="https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/covid-19-novel-coronavirus/covid-19-data-and-statistics/covid-19-case-demographics#case-details" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a>&nbsp;2,926 Covid-19 cases and 26 deaths since the start of the pandemic, with a large number of those cases being detected at the border and isolated. This has allowed the country to effectively stomp out the local spread of the virus, eliminating the need for dragged-out lockdowns and other Covid measures. But the country’s relatively sluggish vaccine rollout may put its early success in danger if the more infectious delta variant manages to gain a foothold in the community. New Zealand’s trans-Tasman neighbor Australia—which had also managed to largely stomp out the local spread of Covid, is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2021/08/07/more-than-half-of-australias-population-under-lockdown-amid-unrelenting-delta-variant-covid-19-surge/?sh=6cca1d657a17">currently witnessing</a>&nbsp;one of its worst outbreaks of the pandemic, largely fueled by the delta variant. Last week, New Zealand authorities&nbsp;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2021/08/12/covid-free-new-zealand-plans-to-reopen-borders-early-next-year/?sh=656e99d25154">announced</a>&nbsp;plans to reopen the country’s borders to foreign travelers with more lenient quarantine measures in place for fully vaccinated individuals from low-risk countries. But the reopening of its borders is likely to make it much harder for the country’s government to pursue a ‘zero-Covid’ strategy.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-further-reading">FURTHER READING</h2>



<a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/covid-19-coronavirus-prime-minister-jacinda-ardern-announces-level-4-lockdown-for-auckland-coromandel-new-zealand/ITGVJ7X446SLBQD3VSUHTXNNVM/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announces level 4 lockdown for Auckland, Coromandel, New Zealand</a>&nbsp;(New Zealand Herald)



<a href="https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/449376/covid-19-community-case-nationwide-level-4-lockdown" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Covid-19 community case: Nationwide level 4 lockdown</a>&nbsp;(Radio New Zealand)



<a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/new-zealands-ardern-orders-nationwide-lockdown-over-one-covid-19-case-2021-08-17/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">New Zealand&#8217;s Ardern orders nationwide lockdown over one COVID-19 case</a> (Reuters)



By Siladitya Ray, Forbes Staff

NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern Announces Lockdown Restrictions After Positive COVID-19 Case Detected In Auckland

Single Covid-19 Case In Auckland Triggers Nationwide Lockdown In New Zealand

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="720" height="405" src="https://www.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/WHO.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-46685" srcset="https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/WHO.jpg 720w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/WHO-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cms.forbesafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/WHO-600x338.jpg 600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px" /><figcaption>Flags fly at the World Health Organization headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. Photo Eric Bridiers/ <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/us-mission/14195612051" target="_blank">U.S. Mission Geneva</a>/ <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/" target="_blank">CC BY-ND</a></figcaption></figure>



The World Health Organization (WHO) has been under attack- efforts being made to defund it, ridicule it, undermine it. The world is fighting a major pandemic which rivals the flu of 1918, which killed over 50 million people.



The Coronavirus pandemic may well be a precursor of what is to come in the future. This for sure is not the last pandemic the world will grapple with, <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/opinion/2020/05/13/without-universal-health-coverage-we-are-sitting-ducks-when-the-next-pandemic-strikes/">so let’s brace for impact</a>, as the velocity and virulence of the next contagion may be far more fierce and destructive than COVID-19.



A recent remark that “WHO has been bought by China” is painful to hear. Coming from a senior leader of a country which is the beating heart of the UN’s multilateral system, and has been at the vanguard of improving lives and livelihoods of populations all over the world, is puzzling.



Words matter, and by promoting a number of incorrect and insinuating statements, such language may damage the overall pandemic response and undermine an organization that is doing its best – under the extraordinary circumstances – to save lives across the globe.&nbsp;



I live in Kenya, and on a day to day basis I see the WHO working with countries across the continent to strengthen health systems and tackle health crises. These African countries, like many others especially in Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, rely on WHO for guidance, expertise and often for human resources, particularly around disease responses like Ebola, Marburg, Zika or the plague.&nbsp;



I myself have been a beneficiary of the organization’s work, having been immunized as a child through one of the WHO immunization programs, and <a href="http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/09/qa-we-need-a-decisive-win-against-polio/">surviving polio</a> thanks to these efforts. Small pox would not have been eradicated without WHO. Billions more have benefited from WHO’s work, and humanity as a whole stands to gain from a well-funded, highly operational institution not only during this pandemic, but for years to come to prevent the next pandemic and build robust health systems.



Currently, there have been more than 15 million confirmed coronavirus cases and over 600,000 deaths around the world. But this tiny microbe has impacted far more than just the global health system. It has pressure tested our political, economic, social and cultural institutions, attacking not only our bodies but the very threads of humanity that hold us together. What’s clear already is that the virus mercilessly exploits any chinks in national unity or global solidarity, making it an enemy far more formidable the modern world has seen in recent history.&nbsp;



At a pivotal time for tackling the pandemic, the global response needs solidarity, not politicization. The attacks against WHO threatens to derail global efforts to bring this pandemic under control.



Over the course of the next few months, governments will determine not only how they tackle COVID-19, but they will set a precedent that will guide the world for tackling future global threats.&nbsp;No country can overcome this pandemic on its own, no matter how advanced its economic systems are or how mighty its military is.



This pandemic is threatening lives, livelihoods, social and economic systems that have taken decades to build. It is an enemy that is threatening to reverse the gains the world has made in healthcare, education, poverty reduction, eradicating hunger and strengthening political unity.



For the sake of humanity, we must stand united against it, and this means supporting institutions that are playing a key role in the pandemic response.



From the climate crisis to inequality, antimicrobial resistance to the threat of a meteor hit, global challenges need global solutions, and these solutions cannot be developed if we focus on demonizing institutions rather than addressing the real issues at hand.



In terms of COVID-19, we have seen examples from around the world that clearly show that no matter how bad the outbreak, leaders can get a grip on the virus. By working with a whole of government and whole of society approach, the virus can be brought under control. Countries that have done this successfully, including New Zealand and Vietnam, which stand out as exemplars of how to tackle the pandemic, have shown us that a singular focus on preventing transmission and keeping their populations safe – not engaging in politics, blame games and blatant denial of science – is what is needed to ultimately flatten the curve.



WHO continues to provide valuable leadership in navigating the pandemic, helping the world deal with this crisis by distributing much-needed Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and diagnostics, providing technical guidance for health workers, leading efforts to find a vaccine and disseminating&nbsp;information that is playing a critical role in keeping people safe. Reducing support for WHO at this time is therefore tantamount to saying that we are all on our own. But we are not.



At the conclusion of the 73rd World Health Assembly on 19 May 2020, the WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said “COVID-19 has robbed us of people we love. It’s robbed us of lives and livelihoods; it’s shaken the foundations of our world; it threatens to tear at the fabric of international cooperation. But it’s also reminded us that for all our differences, we are one human race, and we are stronger together.”



Let’s take a moment to look at the value WHO brings to the world. It may not be a perfect institution, but it is providing global leadership at a time when it is needed most.



What WHO has achieved in 72 years is remarkable, and undeniable. To accelerate the science, find solutions to the COVID-19 challenges and build global solidarity; now more than ever, the world needs WHO.



Siddharth Chatterjee, is the United Nations resident coordinator to Kenya. He has served with the UN and the Red Cross Movement in various parts of the world affected by conflicts and humanitarian crisis. He is also a decorated Special Forces veteran and a Princeton University alumnus. Follow him on Twitter&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/sidchat1?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor">@sidchat1</a>



The views expressed in this article are the author’s own.​​​​​

Attacking WHO is Unhelpful-Let’s Focus on Defeating The Virus

There can’t be many people who can say a rough day at work was worrying about a crazed gunman jumping from behind a bush and shooting you off your horse. That was how I felt on the trail of a crack-shot and would-be assassin who wanted to shoot, stone dead, the Head of the Commonwealth, Queen Elizabeth.
That white-knuckle ride through the wild, dense bush of New Zealand’s West Coast, fording rivers and struggling up rocky hills, proved the genesis of a story that I bashed out on a rickety old typewriter. It  won me an award and made world headlines for weeks.
We were looking for a 22-year-old armed robber called Christopher John Lewis who was on the run after knocking over a bank and post office. He claimed to be a ninja warrior as well as a right-wing extremist and gun fanatic. In his first slip through police fingers he dived into a river to escape – apparently a ninja-style way of evading capture.
My editors on the Dominion Post, in the capital Wellington, despatched me to the West Coast to report on the hunt. The photographer and I asked around and tracked down the four-man police sniper squad to a hotel bar and persuaded them to let us go with them on the manhunt the next morning.
So I came to grips with a horse – that I had no idea how to ride – from dawn until dusk for a couple of days. Every half an hour, the police raised their telescopic sights, we dismounted and lay flat on the ground waiting for a bullet that, luckily, never came. I was 24 years old and living every minute as if it were my last.
In the end, Lewis got away by hanging onto the floor of a passing train, before jumping on the ferry to Wellington and getting another train to Auckland at the other end of the country. Police arrested him &#8211; believe it or not &#8211; when he gave a credit reference to buy a car. A woman vouched for him and then tipped off police and Lewis, strangely enough, for a man of violence, went like a lamb.
Back in the bush my journalist antenna was working overtime. We had been led to believe Lewis was a mere felon; yet the police sniper squad talked of him as if he were Rambo and the Terminator rolled into one. I spoke to each of the snipers in their off-guard moments in the bush to glean what I could – it&#8217;s surprising how people will tell you stories face-to-face that they won’t do over email.
It led me, with the help of the news desk, back to retired Detective Tom Lewis (no relation) who spat out the whole story from his new home in Australia. He had arrested Lewis, back in 1981, and drawn him out by flattering his ego, telling him how he had given the police the run around, which led to the confession about attempting to blow the Queen’s head off as she walked the streets of Dunedin on the royal visit a few months before. Lewis had used the helpful map of the Queen’s route, published in the Otago Daily Times, to draw  his field of fire and how many seconds he had to get in a head shot. His first shot was clear as day, the detective told me, from a roof  overlooking the street. It was only a couple of policeman who climbed onto that roof, to get a better view of the Queen, who messed up Lewis’ clear shot.
“There is no doubt he could have plugged her from there,” the detective told me. To this day, I wonder whether those policemen know their vantage point could have saved the Queen and averted a change in the course of history.
Detective Lewis recommended that the gunman be charged for treason that would have brought the whole story out. Police chiefs in Wellington were horrified – the revelation would have made them look like idiots and could have ended royal tours to New Zealand – and opted to sweep it under the carpet.
That is, until I came along six years later with my dogged reporting, poor horse riding and rickety typewriting. It is immensely satisfying to see, 31 years later, in this age of fake news and sloppy reporting, that every word I wrote was verified by newly released intelligence documents; even more so because the police at the time tried hard to pour cold water on my story.
If it had been possible to Google Christopher John Lewis in 1987 it would have been a lot easier and, undoubtedly, I would have got more information – but I probably wouldn’t have got the story.

Guns and fear on the trail of the man who wanted to kill the Queen

Broad and tall, Francois Pienaar is a big man in every sense of the word. A man who ploughs his own furrow. He muscled his way to win the Rugby World Cup before millions of viewers and nearly 20 years later had the guts to dress up as a potato chip in a Lays commercial.
“Sometimes you will be remembered for that, not for the rugby career. When I check-in at the airport the lady at the counter would look at me and say: ‘Oh, the Lays guy,’” says Pienaar.
In many ways, Pienaar is an enigma. He is the law graduate who never argued a case; the conservative Afrikaaner who led his reluctant players to coach black youngsters in the townships; a man as South African as a springbok, who now spends most of his life outside of the country. On the way, he is trying to find the next Pienaar destined for rugby glory.
The image of Pienaar accepting the World Cup trophy from former president Nelson Mandela, dressed in a number six jersey, is one that lived long in the memory.
“Seeing Mr Mandela wearing my jersey was very incredible, emotional and humbling,” says Pienaar.
Overnight Pienaar became a household name through that unifying moment—an Afrikaaner and a former political prisoner together.
“For Mandela to ask everyone in the country to support the Springboks as their team was unusual but also visionary. The 1995 story was a story about human triumph, where a country that was much divided got an opportunity to celebrate together. All religions and creeds became world champions for the first time.”
The celebrity status stuck. In March this year, Pienaar the businessman shared a stage with Steve Wozniak, the co-founder of Apple, and Jordan Belfort, the American stockbroker, at the South African Success Summit in Johannesburg, before 5,000 delegates.
Pienaar and Belfort grew up worlds apart but both saw their life stories told by Hollywood. In the 2009 movie Invictus, Matt Damon played Pienaar. Leonardo DiCaprio played Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street.
The only disappointment about the movie for Pienaar was the rugby.
“It’s the human story of how South Africa came together and there are a lot of emotional scenes that I like about it but I don’t like the rugby scenes. They are awful. If you played the game, rugby is more beautiful than what is shown in the movie. But, I can understand it was made for the American audiences.”
Pienaar has business interests in university sports development, media and entertainment but says his initiative, Make A Difference Foundation (MAD), is his way of giving back to the poor. Pienaar is the chairman of MAD and it enjoys the support of other former international captains, such as David Kirk, the first winner of the World Cup for New Zealand in 1987, John Eales of Australia, Martin Johnson of England, John Smit of South Africa and Nick Farr-Jones of Australia.
“Make A Difference gives back to the poor people. We founded it 10 years ago in order to help kids in the townships and impoverished areas,” he says.
“We get them to good schooling and give them financial backing to achieve success. One of our first learners we brought on board will be receiving an engineering degree at Harvard University this year,” says Pienaar.
Pienaar says these days he lives for sport development. He runs a business called Varsity Rugby which was founded in 2008. It gave birth to the Varsity Cup tournament, in which eight universities compete. A second tier competition, the Varsity Shield, arrived in 2011 and was then followed by the under-20 category, Young Guns.
“I am passionate about sport. My first love at school was cricket but rugby took over. I have been very privileged to see how sport can change people; it can transform people as well as communities and a country.”
Varsity Rugby not only makes money, Pienaar says it has produced nine Springboks (players that have represented South Africa internationally) and hundreds of professionals in the domestic leagues.
“Sport is powerful; it can unite or divide a nation. Rugby in the years of apartheid divided us and in the democracy it united us.”
Pienaar was among the first group of South African rugby players to play in Europe. He signed with Saracens in London and became CEO of the club, before returning to Africa to live in Cape Town.
He thinks it is naïve to stand in the way of players who want to maximize their earning potential in the richer overseas leagues. This is the exercising of freedom that Mandela would no doubt have approved of.

What Mandela’s Captain Did Next

March 19, 2010. It was a joyful Friday night in Robertson in South Africa’s Western Cape. Wedding guests drove through the cool breeze of a warm night on their way back from a cruise on the river and everyone was merry. The piercing sound of a cellphone stopped the joy in its tracks.
“I just knew there was something wrong,” says Carl Bates.
“I always knew I would get a phone call from New Zealand late at night. This was at 10:15 on a Friday night. I always thought it was going to tell me that one of my grandparents had passed away.”
The voice on the other end of the line told Bates the bad news: his father had suffered a stroke back home in Wanganui in New Zealand and couldn’t speak or use the right side of his body. It was the prelude to a worst day that would tear at the heart of the Bates Family.
“I knew what this would mean for me: wealth destruction, business destruction and family destruction.”
It was a story rooted in rural Wanganui. The Bates family was known for its entrepreneurs in the small town, population 45,000, where the Wanganui River flows into the sea on the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island. Between them they ran a butcher’s shop, a greengrocer’s, a bicycle shop, a florist and a concrete plant.
“They were all small businesses. I was wondering why have none of these businesses made a whole lot of money? What is stopping them succeed? This whole learning and thinking was going on in my brain,” says Bates.
One of the biggest fish in Wanganui was Mike Bates, the father of Carl, who ran a plumbing; property; plant and vehicle hire business.
“I was born on March 13, 1983; dad’s business was incorporated on August 15, 1983. I had grown up with the business. I had learned about the business and watched it grow; I had watched the trials and tribulations, like when his secretary had stolen his money from him and when builders had gone bankrupt and we had not been paid,” says Bates.
“My dad was fun loving, carefree, a little bit unreliable but he was clever. He was determined and stubborn and he was a winner. People knew who he was; he wasn’t in everyone’s good books. He was fit and went to the gym and had played international roller hockey for New Zealand. He was only 51 when he suffered the stroke.”
Sadly, for Bates junior, in the years leading up to the tragedy, he had struggled to talk to his father of the dangers of building a business around one person. Ironically, passing on this message to entrepreneurs around the world was the core of his business. In his late 20s, Bates built up a R10 million-a-year ($1.16 million) business, Sirdar, which he expanded to South Africa in 2008 after a chance meeting over breakfast in Hong Kong. The business specializes in coaching entrepreneurs through independent non-executive directors assigned by the company.
Bates, who entered Massey University, Palmerston North, aged 16, had a claim to being a wunderkind of Wanganui. He studied accountancy and finance, while working full-time at McDonald’s. At 17, he was elected chairman in Palmerston North for the Young National Party; at 18, he became a director of a private hospital in the city; at 20, he was a director of Arena Manawatu—the largest multi-stadium complex in New Zealand.
Little in life could have prepared Bates for the ordeal he was to suffer on March 26, 2010, as he sat in South Africa and agonized over his father’s business.
“I was the power of attorney, along with the family lawyer, while everyone agreed that this decision to liquidate his business had to be made, I knew dad would blame me,” says Bates.
“On March 26, 2010, I made the single hardest decision of my life. I assigned the resolution that put my dad’s business into voluntary liquidation. It involved 30-odd staff; some of whom had been with dad for 30 years. My granddad, Ken, a greengrocer and part-time magician, who has just won a lifetime award at the New Zealand Magic Convention, had to talk me through signing the bit of paper. He was on the phone from Wanganui coaching me, though it was late at night. What it meant was that 30 years of business had gone. It couldn’t have carried on, the business was all built around my dad and the minute you took him out, it didn’t work. Most small-business people do this. My brother worked in the business and he said he didn’t want to take it over in the middle of the building depression.”
The signing of the paper was not the beginning of the end, to borrow words from Winston Churchill, but maybe the end of the beginning.
“The bank jumped all over the problem, they froze accounts, called in mortgages and what they did to my dad’s property company was send it under and all the businesses followed. To save the family, my mum and I took over some R6.5 million ($757,000) of debt on property assets. The value of the assets and the value of the property left us with negative value. We were drained trying to hold it all together. I used to get up at 4am bleary eyed, in South Africa, to negotiate with the banks and key creditors,” says Bates.
The rift between father and son proved just as complicated and even more heart rending.
“In an instant the hierarchy of our family was turned upside down. I was gutted, I knew dad would hold it against me, which he did. He literally didn’t communicate with me for six months. He can’t talk but he can communicate.”
Clearing up the financial mess by realizing family assets, triggered even more pain.
“A trespass notice was served on him to get out of the house in December 2011 while we were still dealing with tidying up the mess. One of the things we had to do was sell the house he lived in… He decided he didn’t want it sold and he barricaded himself in and got someone to change the locks to stop us getting the building inspector in to do the final inspection. We had a cash offer on the table, but couldn’t sell. Dad had another mini stroke while he was driving to buy some food. While he was in hospital we had to sell the place, then he didn’t communicate with me for another six months.”
As the Bates family balanced the books and licked its wounds slowly, very slowly, the sun peeped through the clouds over Wanganui.
“Out of every hardship comes opportunity. I think for my father it was a release from something that could have killed him. Dad’s stroke was the basis for a book I wrote called The Laws Of Extreme Business Success, I knew dad’s business had some problems, I wanted to show him the way he could make it a sustainable business. Ironically, he had the stroke and his businesses has gone and now I am travelling the world telling business people like him what they can do to create a sustainable business, moving from being a craftsman to being entrepreneurs. Now, he spends his time doing what he always wanted, he doesn’t have to work, he has no financial pressure and spends his time sketching, painting and recovering. He is exercising every day and slowly getting movement back. He is a case study for Auckland University on stroke recovery.”
Even so, the family feud was not quite over.
“I went home to New Zealand in August 2012. When I went to his house he tried to close the door on me and if my grandmother wasn’t there he wouldn’t have let me in. Then after two minutes in the house he made us go and then his social worker asked me to come back next day. That started us talking and when I came back to South Africa he started skyping me,” says Bates.
“I use this story as an example. I talk about my dad and I think about him all the time.”
Finally, father and son appear on the road to healing the wounds of their worst day.

A Tale Of Sorrow And Salvation

Money, money everywhere—what a contrast to the first time an African nation won the trophy 16 years ago in the twilight of the amateur game.
<div id="attachment_111" style="width: 484px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-111" class="size-large wp-image-111" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Morne-657x1024.jpg" alt="" width="474" height="739" />February 1980. South African rugby legend and Springbok rugby captain Morne du Plessis.</div>
On 24 June 1995, a collection of South African schoolteachers, estate agents and business professionals achieved something very rare; they won the Rugby World Cup on home soil at the first time of asking. What a different game it was just over 16 years ago. At the time, toplevel rugby in the world was run as an amateur sport with players being paid under the table through so-called ‘shamateurism’. On the field, the forwards were a heavy-footed collection of giants and portly gentlemen, who pummeled each other in the scrums and loose, while the backs were a group of lithe speedsters who claimed all the glory. Modestly built men such as Wilf Rosenberg and Hugh Bladen were masters of the sidestep and looked it up the middle’, in the manner of England’s Mike Tindall, France’s
Mathieu Bastareaud or the imposing All Black No 12—Ma’a Nonu. That golden tournament in 1995 will be remembered for Mandela in a Springbok jersey, a last-gasp winning kick from Joel Stransky and a juggernaut of a man called Jonah Lomu.
Here was a 20-year-old man from New Zealand. He was 1.96 meters and around 120 kilograms and yet played on the wing, where he struck fear into the hearts of those who dared get in his way. One Springbok said the mere sight of Lomu striding from the team bus listening to music through oversized headphones put the fear of God into him. Lomu arguably won the semi-final for the All Blacks by shellacking England, in the process bulldozing their tough fullback, Mike Catt, to score four tries in a 45-29 victory. The sport had rarely seen such an athlete and Lomu’s explosive impact pushed the game towards professionalism within a year.
Cut to 2011: the Springboks are in New Zealand to defend the Webb Ellis trophy and a small player in the backline is a rarity. There are now more like four or five ‘Jonahs’ on a team. Players spend five days a week, eight hours a day, working at their game. Highly paid fitness experts, sports psychologists and doctors all play a huge part in preparing players for peak performance and for this there is one requirement—money. Compared to 1995, the present day South African Rugby Union (SARU) is awash with money. According to its financial report for 2010, SARU had R102 million ($14.6 million) in cash reserves, with R82 million ($11.7 million) of these cash reserves attributable to deferred broadcasting and sponsorship revenue.
Television has put many times more money into the coffers of rugby and its players than gate receipts ever could. On top of that, the South African team has three hefty sponsors: Absa, Canterbury and BMW are all pouring millions into the game. Former Springbok captain Morne
Du Plessis, who played from 1971 to 1980 and was also the manager of thevictorious ’95 South African team, believes that although players these days are well paid, the salaries are nowhere near those of professional footballers. “It’s a different game now. It’s a profession. It’s from 08h00 to 17h00— even more. We were amateurs, we practised twice a week,” says Du Plessis. “If you look at footage from my day, it looks like a different sport now. The skills today and the strength is something to behold, the guys today are just so powerful. Professionalism and money in the sport has made it a better sport.”
<div id="attachment_110" style="width: 484px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-110" class="size-large wp-image-110" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Trophy-689x1024.jpg" alt="" width="474" height="704" />24 Jun 1995: South African rugby captain Francois Pienaar receives the William Webb Wellis Trophy from President Nelson Mandela after they defeated New Zealand to win the Rugby World Cup Final at Ellis Park, Johannesburg, South Africa. Mandatory Credit: Dave Rogers /Allsport</div>
Looking to the World Cup, Du Plessis, who led the Springboks, is optimistic about the defending champions’ chances. “Don’t take anything that happened in the Tri-Nations as a marker for the World Cup. There are probably three important matches at the World Cup—the quarter final, the semi-final and the final. To be ready on those days will be key. I think we will go in as underdogs but I believe it’s the best position we play from. “I think we can do it. We’ll be up against the Australians and the All Blacks, the Irish team is to be reckoned with and England is also a good team. There are no real favorites,” adds Du Plessis. The final will be on October 23. For South Africa it is the chance of retaining the trophy and winning it for a third time in the land that bore the mighty Jonah Lomu. Win or lose, the Springboks will return home with bigger bank balances than the heroes of ’95 could ever dream of.
<div id="attachment_109" style="width: 484px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-109" class="size-large wp-image-109" src="/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Rugby-1024x809.jpg" alt="" width="474" height="374" />New Zealand winger Jonah Lomu is tackled by South African scrumhalf Joost Van der Westhuizen during the Rugby World Cup final played against New Zealand June 24. On left is South African centre Hennie le Roux, on right No 8 Mark Andrews</div>

Tag: New Zealand