By Xinhua,
Johannesburg : Port Elizabeth has been removed as a venue from the FIFA Confederations Cup 2009 schedule after the organisers received a report from the OC’s Technical Team (OCTT).
Board of Directors of the 2010 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee South Africa (OC) made the decision after having communicated to the Mayor of Nelson Mandela Bay (Port Elibabeth) Nondumiso Maphazi.
The board met at SAFA House Tuesday, with a FIFA delegation led by its secretary general Jerome Valcke in attendance, and received updates on the progress at all 10 FIFA World Cup stadiums from the OCTT.
With respect to the Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth Stadium, the OC Chairman Irvin Khoza said that the OC was closely monitoring all the FIFA Confederations Cup stadiums and that if there was a chance that any of them failed to comply with the agreed deadlines, they would be removed from the FIFA Confederations Cup schedule.
“We acknowledge the progress that has been made on the Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth stadium in recent months,” he said.
“With the complex nature of the construction and erection of the roof of the stadium, however, it was decided that it would be too high a risk to keep the stadium in the FIFA Confederations Cup schedule.
“But the stadium has been one of the star performers of the FIFA World Cup construction process and again, we reiterate that the stadium will be a wonderful venue in 2010. We want to commend the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality on the work that has been done on the stadium,” said Dr Khoza.
“We fully support the decision which was taken today by the Board based on bare facts and the ongoing monitoring of the OCTT of developments in Port Elizabeth.
“The Board showed that it is not afraid to take tough decisions to ensure the overall success of the FIFA Confederations Cup,” he added.