It is going to be a busy weekend for Athletics SA (ASA) and SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) as both sporting bodies have serious engagements on the same day.

Sascoc will hold its general assembly meeting at the Olympic House in Johannesburg on Saturday, while ASA will hold its eagerly-awaited elections at the Southern Sun Hotel in Kempton Park on the same day, with both events scheduled to start at 10am.

Sascoc president Barry Hendricks is supposed to attend the ASA elections as an observer, but will not be able to attend both events. Hendricks said he also has a Zone 6 engagement that he has to attend on the day.

Zone 6 is one of seven regions determined by the Supreme Council for Sport in Africa (SCSA), the sports arm of the African Union. Member states of Zone 6 are Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Malawi, Mauritius, Swaziland, Seychelles, SA, Zambia and Zimbabwe. 

“We (Sascoc) have an AGM on Saturday and we will discuss burning issues and report back on the Olympic preparations. We will also discuss the Cricket SA issues. It is a busy day for Sascoc and me on Saturday. We won't be able to split the time," Hendricks told Sowetan yesterday.

Hendricks said he wished the ASA presidential nominees – incumbent Aleck Skhosana and his challenger James Moloi, the Central Gauteng Athletics (CGA) boss – well for the big day. Skhosana took on Hendricks for the Sascoc presidency and lost in November last year.

Meanwhile, ASA acting CEO Terrence Magogodela has promised a free and fair election.  According to Magogodela, the election venue will accommodate 140 members with social distancing. 

“We have been working on the logistics with the team at the hotel and we will adhere to the Covid-19 regulations. There will be social distancing. We have also held a meeting with our auditors and agreed that everything will be transparent and fair to all our candidates that are competing for various positions on the ASA board," said Magogodela.

Moloi is currently the chairperson of road running in SA, while Skhosana has been serving as ASA boss for the past six years.If Skhosana wins, he will extend his reign to 10 years. Magogodela said they have invited Sascoc to come and observe the elections.

“It is up to Sascoc to come as we have formally invited them to observe the elections. There will be no dirty tricks as we will be transparent. Everything will be fair and the results will be counted and available for anyone to see.

"It is a big week for ASA and everyone wants to know who will become the new president at the weekend. As part of the operation team, our task is to make sure that everything goes well," Magogodela said.