Top paddlers back Berg team event
5 June 2008
South Africa's top paddlers have given their thumbs-up to the innovative new professional team element that has been introduced to the Isuzu Berg River Canoe Marathon that starts in Paarl on 9 July.
"This is going to add a new dimension to the race," said defending champion Hank McGregor. "In the old days the team event was based on provincial lines, which was difficult for paddlers from outside of the Cape.
"But now there is excellent prize money for this team competition, and it shows that the race is changing with the times," McGregor added. "In a few years, it might be like the Tour de France in terms of the team dynamic."
'A hugely positive effect
Former Berg Champion, and one of the race's most determined competitors, Graeme Solomon, said that the team event will dramatically alter the race at the front. "It will have a hugely positive effect on the Isuzu Berg," he said.
"The reality is that in any given year there are just a handful of athletes with a realistic chance of winning the first prize. Now, with the team event, there are a whole lot more top-end paddlers that can contribute to a team capable of a top three finish," he explained.
The team competition caters for teams of three or four paddlers, with three results to count, to contest a first prize of R60 000, with R20 000 for the second placed team and R10 000 for the third placed team. This is in addition to any individual prizes won by the paddlers.
'For pro team athletes'
"Sport is changing fast and many of the top paddlers are part of a professional team set-up that is involved in many different disciplines," said Andre Collins, the head of the race organising committee. "To make sure that this race, which is nearly 50 years old, stays abreast with the times, we have created this new tier of competition to cater specifically for the pro team athletes."
The sponsor of each team will pay R13 000 to enter the elite team competition, while the paddlers will enter the race as normal.
To ensure that the team competition is competitive, the race organisers have included a rule that prevents any paddler who has finished in the top three places in the past three years from being in the same team. That means that none of Hank McGregor, Graeme Solomon, Gert van Deventer, Len Jenkins, Simon van Gysen and Paul Marais may be in the same team.
Intrigued
McGregor was intrigued by the rule splitting up the top paddlers, and said that the top elite paddlers were already asking exploratory questions. "It would have been great to put together a team with some of my KwaZulu-Natal friends, like Len Jenkins, but we will have to look elsewhere now. It will be interesting."
Collins has assured the sponsors that the race will provide ample opportunities for exposure, particularly if the team is competitive during the race. "We will profile each team on the race website, and guarantee the sponsor branding and exposure on their athletes and their boats, as well as branding along the route.
"There will be an official 'podium' prize giving every day, just like the Tour de France, which the team sponsors can brand," Collins added. He also encouraged teams to take advantage of the luxury tented accommodation that is on offer at each overnight stop, which creates another excellent branding opportunity.
Two-minute bonus
To add needle to the team race, on each day there will be a two-minute time bonus for the team that the first paddler to reach a designated hotspot represents. These hotspots will be at Lady Loch Bridge, Hermon Bridge, Gouda Bridge, Train Bridge, Misverstand Dam wall, Moravia Bridge, Klipheuwel, Kersefontein and Kliphoek.
The event will also see the retention of the individual bridge prizes, where the first paddler to reach the bridges at Lady Loch, Gouda, Moravia and Kersefontein will earn R1 000 on each day.
The race committee has also opened the door for a separate team competition catering for the veteran and masters age groups, where the sponsored teams entry is R5000. "Many paddlers remain highly competitive when they move into the older age groups," said Collins. "We may well be surprised by the demand for this competition."
The Isuzu Berg River Canoe marathon starts in Paarl on Wednesday, 9 July and ends at Velddrif on Saturday, 12 July. The race will be preceded by a seeding time trial on Tuesday, 8 July.
More information can be found at Isuzu Berg River Canoe Marathon.
Source: Canoeing South Africa
