Seeking to support grassroots local sports, The Cross Trainer generously sponsored the U16 Lethukuthula Secondary School basketball team’s participation in the prestigious 2022 St Stithians College Basketball U16 tournament over the weekend.
Lethukuthula Secondary School, an underprivileged school in Kathlehong, Germiston, was chosen as an invitational team by talent scouts to participate in the basketball tournament against well-known schools such as King Edward VII School, Kingswood College and Clifton School.
The team did not have enough funds available for kits or travel for their up-and-coming team to make their official debut, and St Stithians College therefore reached out to The Cross Trainer for assistance.
“The Lethukuthula Secondary School team showed such commitment, ambition and talent, and we at The Cross Trainer were pleased to be able to step in and help them in whichever way we could,” says Nick Rheeder, the Chief Marketing Officer at The Cross Trainer.
To make it possible for the U16 basketball team to participate in the tournament, The Cross Trainer supplied each of the 13 players with full basketball kits from its private label brand XT to the value of R3,800 per player. These kits included tracksuits, vests, shorts, socks, and shoes sponsored by Adidas.
The Cross Trainer also sponsored the team, their coach, and their assistant with meals and accommodation at the Holiday Inn in Woodmead, Sandton. This ensured that the learners received a good night’s rest and nutritious meals to keep them fighting fit for all the fast breaks, double-dribbles, and field goals.
“At The Cross Trainer, we are proud to serve and support local communities. As a sports fashion retailer, we are particularly passionate about helping children and teens to rise above impoverished and underprivileged circumstances to become the great sportspeople of tomorrow,” Rheeder notes.
The Cross Trainer CEO Mark Frame adds that the company is committed to walking a long road with Lethukuthula’s Development Team as part of its Corporate Social Investment (CSI) strategy, which aims to make sport more inclusive. The company’s next step will therefore be to invest towards developing the school’s sporting facilities so that learners can access a suitable space where they can practice properly, as well as a joint venture between The Cross Trainer and St Stithians College for all future tournaments that will be held.
“When these teens know that there are good people out there who believe in them and are willing to support their potential, you know they’ll grab the opportunity with both hands. We can all do our part to build up our communities and our country by taking one step at a time and paying it forward,” says Frame.
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