Race Report: School League VLC race 23 August 2014

Well done to all the young paddlers who braved the icy wind and participated in the school league events on Saturday 23 August 2014.

Courtesy of Anton Nel VLC

Courtesy of Anton Nel VLC

There were quite a number of new paddlers doing their first race who coped very well and we are sorry for those few who were unable to finish or who had a cold swim!

Thanks again so much to the parents and helpers who handle all the registrations / entries, handing out bibs and numbers, as well as those who do the stressful job of the timekeeping and then also the results and database – its SUCH a great help and we couldn’t manage without them – lots of parents also help with organising the boats / pounds / kids on the water and are where we need them to be – voluntarily – much appreciated!!!

Victoria Lake Canoe Club provided a great venue for the races with a superb restaurant and change rooms, and with the support from the local Ekurhuleni Department of Sport, delicious food rewarded all who registered for the races, while the sponsorship of free ice creams went down well despite the cold – with young paddlers huddling near the fire to eat their tasty icies!!

Well done to all who finished the cold choppy race and although we do recognise the first three positions in each age group, boys and girls, remember that many who are not able to achieve a medal position may well be a medal earner in the next few years so keep working to achieve goals and get stronger and faster…..and ALL FINISHERS do get points for finishing their race which accumulate to the end of year prizegiving…..so NO race is a waste of time and a letter can be sent to YOUR school advising how many points YOU earned throughout the year for your school’s performance on the log!

Schools represented at the race covered the spectrum from Centurion Hoerskool, to Parys primary and high schools, Northern suburbs including St Davids Marist of Inanda and Parktown Girls high school, as well as schools from the South ie The Hill an Forest Town, and the West such as Charter House, Rand Park Ridge as well as Seekers, while in the East Rand St Theresa’s, Germiston High and Primary were represented.

The Under 18 paddlers who completed the 9km school league race were Colin Ledwaba (VLC), and Jared Tumiel (St Davids/Dabs), but the only girls in this age group attempted to do the main race of 24km, in a double.  They unfortunately did not complete the main race and the school league is only able to give points to K1 finishers.

In the Under 16 category, Anya Botes (CEN) finished the main 24km race in a K1 finishing in 2 hours 33 minutes as the ONLY female racer so kudo’s to her and we will be happy to ensure she gets top points for the log as well as a gold medal.  The Parktown High School girls finished the 9km school league event earning gold, silver and bronze medals for Danielle Goldschagg, Kate Brokensha and Pooja Satyaprakesh!  In the boys race, Alex Masina also completed the 24km main race in a K1 finishing  in 2 hours 15 minutes and received his gold medal for his effort, while fellow JCC paddler a new boy on the scene, Dominic Bojabotsheha managed to complete the 15km part of the 24km race which earned him a silver medal  for the Under 16 boys.  In the 9km school league race, the top three podium winners were Jonty Griesel, Thabo Mpehle and Khanyiso Ndlovu from Likkewaan (Parys), and Germiston Lake club VLC respectively.

The full times for the school league events will be sent direct to the school league mailing list in due course once captured.

In the Under 14 age group, Caroline van der Linde, Jaemi Wellish and Priyanka Padayachee took the top three spots – (Likkewaan, VLC, Dabs /Parktown), while the top three boys were Jonathan Jooste, Tristan Trican and Zanenhlahla Mbala (Likkewaan, FLCC, Soweto).

Megan Oelofse and Nicole Henson (Likkewaan/Dabs) were 1st and 2nd Under 12 girl finishers of the 6km race course, while the top three boys were Jayden Hunt, Connor Erwee and Osaro Evbay – also a brand new first time paddler  (FLCC/St Davids, Dabs / VLC).

In the Under 10 4km race, Matthew van der Merwe, Chentin Mienie and Nicholas Erwee led the racers to victory (FLCC/ Lik/St Davids, Dabs), while the only girl Anya Bornman (Lik) was also triumphant with her gold medal.

Finally the Under 8 race was 3km, and with no girls to show them the way – the boys that took 1st, 2nd and 3rd medals were Lynton Oelofse and Theo Dreyer (Likkewaan) and Ryan Macpherson (Dabs/St Davids).

The next school league race will take place at Roodeplaat on Sunday 14 September 2014.

Jennie Dallas

For GCU PR / School League Co-ordinator

082 857 8571