JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Enos Mafokate, South Africa's first Black show jumping champion and veteran equestrian, has died at the age of 80, his family announced on Thursday.
Mafokate broke racial barriers in a sport that was dominated by white riders during South Africa's decades of apartheid. He was widely known as "Kgosi ya Dipere," a Sesotho language phrase which translates to "King of Horses."
"His journey was shaped by several leading figures in South African equestrian sport who recognised his extraordinary ability and, at critical moments, supported him as he challenged the racial barriers of the time," his family said in statement.
Mafokate started out as a stablehand. He won his first riding competition in 1963 but the country's segregation laws prevented him from taking part in further competitions until 1975.
In 1980, he was the first Black South African man to compete internationally as a show jumper, placing fifth out of 31 riders at the Royal International Horse Show at Wembley.
#south #racial
Mafokate broke racial barriers in a sport that was dominated by white riders during South Africa's decades of apartheid. He was widely known as "Kgosi ya Dipere," a Sesotho language phrase which translates to "King of Horses."
"His journey was shaped by several leading figures in South African equestrian sport who recognised his extraordinary ability and, at critical moments, supported him as he challenged the racial barriers of the time," his family said in statement.
Mafokate started out as a stablehand. He won his first riding competition in 1963 but the country's segregation laws prevented him from taking part in further competitions until 1975.
In 1980, he was the first Black South African man to compete internationally as a show jumper, placing fifth out of 31 riders at the Royal International Horse Show at Wembley.
#south #racial
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