121 What is Afrikaans? Ethnic groups in South Africa also include Asians and the so-called Coloureds , i.e. people of mixed race. Initially, the idea of Black American athletes was to boycott the Games as a protest, but it was then decided that they should participate to give visibility to their cause. WHEN SPORTS FIGHT RACISM South Africa and apartheid The Afrikaans word apartheid, meaning segregation , is used to indicate a policy of racial segregation in the state of South Africa, where the National Party forced the majority of black people to live in segregated areas and make use of separated public services. Nelson Mandela, the most famous anti-apartheid activist, was arrested for his campaigns against segregation and spent twentyseven years in prison, from 1964 to 1991; in 1993 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace. How sports reacted to apartheid Following apartheid and Mandela s arrest under the accusation of high treason, in 1964 the IOC banned South Africa from the Olympic Games held in Tokyo. The ban continued until 1992, when apartheid was finally abolished in the country and South Africa could take part in the Games after 28 years of ban. The election of Nelson Mandela as President of South Africa in 1994 proved beneficial to sport in the country. He encouraged black people to abandon racial hate, also promoting the practice of sports such as rugby, considered for white people only. The nation then started having excellent results in world competitions: South Africa s is now one of the world s strongest national rugby teams. The Afro-American civil rights movement fist: pugno to shed light: fare luce treason: tradimento The Afro-American civil rights movement was born to grant protection and equal 226 HISTORY, PHILOSOPHY, AND CIVIC EDUCATION rights to Black people in the USA, who were often discriminated and segregated. The movement, which was particularly active between 1955 and 1968, had Reverend Martin Luther King as its leader. He received the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1964 but, unfortunately, was assassinated in 1968. Sports and the Afro-American movement protests In 1968, a remarkable protest was put into being during the Mexico City Olympic Games by two Afro American runners, Tommie Smith and John Carlos . Smith won the gold medal in the 200 metres race and Carlos the bronze one. They went on the podium without shoes, as a symbol of poverty, and wearing a black glove on one hand. During the medal award ceremony, while the national anthem was being played, they put their heads down and raised their gloved fist, a symbolic gesture of the Black Power movement. The two athletes were immediately removed from the American running team and sent home; however, despite the initial, negative reaction, their gesture, which shed light on the civil rights issue, has remained a symbol of the Afro Americans struggle, making the two runners role models for athletes suffering from racism.