SOUTH AFRICAN officials plan to lodge a protest over the alleged racist remarks made by UEFA president Lennart Johansson on a recent trip to South Africa.

He was quoted as saying: "When I came into the assembly hall, it was full of blackies and it was getting dark when they were all sitting together. I thought if this lot get in a bad mood, it won't be so funny."

And he added: "There are no black swimmers, nor hockey players, come to think of it. They run, jump, fight and play football."

"If these remarks are true, then it is quite serious," said Sam Ramsamy, president of the National Olympic Committee of South Africa. "We will definitely raise a protest with the Swedish Olympic Committee."

Johansson, head UEFA, is considered a challenger to Joao Havelange for the FIFA presidency. Johansson has apologised but said he does not remember using those words.

Ramsamy, in Cancun, Mexico, for a meeting of the world's national Olympic committees, said he had met with Johansson during the Africa Nations Cup. "He was very complimentary," Ramsamy said. "There was no indication that he was in any way racist. The remarks are a surprise to all of us, especially coming from a Swede."