Though SALA is a relatively young organization, it has already begun to establish partnerships with youth organizations such as the Boys and Girls Clubs of South Africa, through which lacrosse programing will be delivered to more than 2,000 young people across eight different sites.
“This is a wonderful example of volunteers coming together to create life-changing opportunities for young people through participation in lacrosse,” said World Lacrosse President Sue Redfern. “It is particularly inspiring to see an athlete who is at the top of his game so focused on giving back and creating pathways for young people in South Africa to pursue our great game. We congratulate and thank Chris Boushy and everyone associated with the South African Lacrosse Association for becoming our newest member-National Governing Body.”
“It’s been quite a journey to get to this point and we are excited about what lies ahead,” said Boushy. “Our goals are quite simple: to get as many kids as possible to start playing lacrosse, in every and any way we can do that, whether that’s through partnering with charities like the Boys and Girls Clubs or developing on where we have already seen lacrosse have some success in areas such as the Limpopo Province.
“Hopefully, in the next decade, we will be able to send teams to represent South Africa on the World Championship stage. If we lay the groundwork now and do so in an orderly fashion and make sure it’s done right, I think that’s something we can surely do,” added Boushy.
“The membership application we received from the South African Lacrosse Association was outstanding, offering a long-term vision and plan for the continued growth of lacrosse in South Africa in which we have a great deal of confidence,” said Bob DeMarco, World Lacrosse Development Director and Board of Directors member. “We are proud to welcome SALA and the athletes, coaches, officials and volunteers it serves to the rapidly-growing World Lacrosse family.”
Emblematic of the growth in interest and participation lacrosse is experiencing around the globe, World Lacrosse has welcomed six new member-NGBs in the last 18 months:
Lithuania Lacrosse (December 2019)
Barbados Lacrosse Association (December 2019)
Panama Lacrosse Association (April 2020)
Dominican Republic Lacrosse (August 2020)
US Virgin Islands Lacrosse Association (November 2020)
South African Lacrosse Association (April 2021)