The Long Run to Freedom: Sport, Cultures and Identities in South Africa is the follow up to author John Nauright’s book (Sport, Cultures and Identities in South Africa) that detailed sport in South Africa. Written during the mid 1990’s, the first book came shortly after South Africa’s Rugby World Cup victory and at a time that despite the recent success, the future of sport in the country was uncertain.

The second edition of this book was spurred by recent major international events involving sport in South Africa in 2009 and 2010. The first event was the release in 2009 of Invictus, a movie that details the events surrounding the 1995 Rugby World Cup. The second event is the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa that marks the first time the event has been held on the African continent. The Long Run to Freedom: Sport, Cultures and Identities in South Africa comes at a time that the future of sport in the country is again uncertain.

It is the aim of the book to show how the sports of football, rugby as well as cricket (the other major team sport in South Africa) have shaped identities in the country. The hope of the author is that the book will, “Give those turning an eye to the country for the first time a sense of the role that sport has played, in sub-Saharan Africa”. Through the three main team sports the book shows the development over the last 150 years of the social, economic and political sectors in South Africa.

Play the Game recommends this book to anyone who seeks more insight into the meaning and history of sport in South Africa.

Title: The Long Run to Freedom: Sport, Cultures and Identities in South Africa
Author: John Nauright
Publisher: Fitness Information Technology
ISBN: 9781935412045
Pages: 227

To order the book, go to Fitness Information Technology's website