Under-23 coach David Notoane does not expect the age cap to be a factor for football national teams when the Olympic Games takes place next year.
Currently, only players 23 and younger are allowed to be drafted into the side, with an invitation for three overage players to also represent football teams at the tournament.
With the Games postponed for a year, there is concern some players will not be eligible for a call-up, something Notoane hopes won’t happen.
“Nothing as yet has been put on the table in regard to that,” he told Eyewitness News.
“If one looks at the request from Japan for the tournament to be named Tokyo 2020, then logic should say that why then deny these particular athletes, especially for team sports like football, who have got an age cap, why deny them the opportunity to fulfill their childhood dream of playing an international tournament?”.
Notoane has also explained what happens now to his planning after the Games were postponed
“It gives everyone a year to put up good preparations programmes and build solid teams, to give us a really competitive football tournament and to pull out all stops to ensure we have good collaboration between us and the clubs to ensure the team is indeed prepared to do South Africa proud at the Olympics”.