The South African Guild of Motoring Journalists (SAGMJ) today announced the Jury and Trainee Jury members for the 2021 South African Car of the Year Competition.
The criteria for Jury eligibility include:
- All candidates must be members in good standing with the SAGMJ
- A member must have completed a minimum of two years of Jury training, however in exceptional circumstances could be considered after a one-year trainee programme.
- Jury members must be active members of the SAGMJ for a minimum of three years.
- A Jury member must be an industry-recognised journalist who participates in the industry by attending manufacturer launch events, and/or by driving test vehicles during the eligibility period.
The criteria for Trainee Jury eligibility includes:
- All candidates must be members in good standing with the SAGMJ
- The new Affiliate membership category that is more inclusive of electronic media was introduced at our AGM 2 years ago. These members are now eligible to participate and become Trainee Jurors.
- A Trainee Jury member must be an industry-recognised journalist who participates in the industry by attending manufacturer launch events, and/or by driving test vehicles during the eligibility period
Considering the uncertain times facing the media, the SAGMJ have opted to increase the number of trainee jurors and include more reserve members. Any of the reserve members can change position based on their levels of scoring. A crucial part of COTY is that jurors and trainees must be exposed to test cars and attend launches. Jurors and trainees who find themselves in precarious work situations may decide to withdraw as jurors should they be unable to fulfil this requirement. The phenomenally successful ongoing online scoring system was introduced in 2019 and will continue to increase in importance. It serves as a barometer of member activity and provides an incredible quantity of statistical data, as well as measuring juror and trainee juror levels of activity.
Following a vote by the Full membership of the SAGMJ, the following members of the Guild have been nominated and vetted by the Executive Committee as the Jury, Trainee jurors and Reserves for the 2021 competition, and have confirmed their participation (with the exception of one juror who has not reverted to confirm as requested):
2021 South African Car of the Year Jurors (in alphabetical order)
- Adam Ford
- Bernard Hellberg Jr
- Carl Wepener
- Charleen Clarke
- Colin Windell
- Derek Watts
- Dirk Gallowitz
- Egmont Sippel
- Ferdi de Vos
- Graham Erasmus
- Hannes Visser
- Janine van der Post
- Jason Woosey
- Jeanette Kok-Kritzinger
- Johann van Tonder
- Justus Visagie
- Lawrence Smith
- Mabuyane Kekana
- Marnus Hattingh
- Melinda Ferguson
- Pritesh Ruthun
- Ray Leathern
- Roger McCleery
- Rubin van Niekerk
- Sisanda Mbete
- Stuart Johnston
- Vuyi Mpofu
- Wynter Murdoch
Reserve Jurors (in alphabetical order)
- Denis Droppa
- Lerato Matebese
- Liana Reiners
- Sean Nurse
2021 South African Car of the Year Trainee Jurors (in alphabetical order)
- Alan Rosenmeyer
- Brendon Staniforth
- Chris Wall
- Fanelesibonge Bengu
- Khulekani Dumisa
- Martin Pretorius
- Richard Wiley
- Roger Biermann
- Shawn Brett
Reserve Trainee Jurors (in alphabetical order)
- Clare Vale
- Justin Jacobs
The eligibility period for vehicle ranges that may be considered for the 2021 South African Car of the Year competition is from 1 November 2019 to 31 October 2020.
The SA Guild of Motoring Journalists is the custodian of the South African Car of the Year competition since 1986 and has a long-standing heritage of awarding automotive excellence. It remains the most prestigious and credible Car Competition in South Africa and continues to evolve to remain on the cutting edge, aligning itself with practices of the World and European Car of the Year competitions.
