Mandela wishes Bafana luck ahead of semi-finals

Former South African president Nelson Mandela met the national team on
Wednesday to wish them luck on the eve of their Confederations Cup
semi-final against Brazil.

The 90-year-old Nobel peace laureate greeted the players, who presented
him with a green Bafana Bafana jersey that had his name stitched on the
back.
 South Africa coach Joel Santana later spoke eloquently about what the
meeting with Mandela had meant to him and his team.
 "It was a historic moment, Nelson Mandela is a worldwide symbol. We all

got goose bumps when we met him," the Brazilian told a press conference at
Ellis Park.
 Santana added: "Nelson Mandela is a supremely charismatic person. His
presence and the way he spoke to us conveyed a great deal of tranquility
to us.
 "I thought I'd seen it all in my life but I hadn't - I feel extremely
proud to have had this opportunity and the players feel the same."
South Africa captain Aaron Mokoena echoed Santana's sentiments, saying:
"It was a special moment meeting the old man.
"He wished us all in turn 'good luck'. His presence and calmness is
unbelievable, that's something we have to take to the game tomorrow.
 "As a player you can get nervous when you're playing a game like this,
but his calmness will help a lot."
 After taking office following the fall of apartheid, Mandela harnessed
the popularity of sport in South Africa to press his message of racial
reconciliation.
He famously donned the jersey of the Springbok rugby team, a sport
especially popular among whites, to hand the 1995 World Cup trophy to the
captain, an image that became a symbol of the new South Africa.

Source 

France24.com