Invictus

I recently went to watch ‘Invictus’ at the cinema and found it utterly inspiring. The film's trajectory is predictable as it is based on Nelson Mandela’s presidency during the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa, but it is full of emotion and interesting details that I was unaware of during the aftermath of the apartheid era.

It is a film that shows how sport can unify and inspire people to greater things. The crowd shots of the South African support in the final of the World Cup were spine-tingling. They captured the whole stadium erupting in cheer and unison despite the ever-present racial tensions and prejudice that were prevalent in the country at the time.

After watching these stirring images I dared imagine what the atmosphere might be like in London when the Olympic Games come around in 2012. I’m sure crowd spirit and support will be equally as powerful in London and will push our athletes to greater heights. Never can you underestimate the power of team momentum and support.

So there you are, go see ‘Invictus’, it will not disappoint.

P.S. In case you are interested, here is the poem ‘Invictus’ (meaning unconquered in Latin). It is a poem of hope and was apparently a source of inspiration for Nelson Mandela during his imprisonment.

Out of the night that covers me,

Black as the Pit from pole to pole,

I thank whatever gods may be

For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance

I have not winced nor cried aloud.

Under the bludgeonings of chance

My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears

Looms but the Horror of the shade,

And yet the menace of the years

Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishments the scroll.

I am the master of my fate:

I am the captain of my soul.

William Ernest Henley