AFRICAN CANOEING CHAMPIONSHIPS
SA paddlers take African Champs
22 July 2002
The South African canoeing team retained it’s continental champions title, in an emphatic display at the BDO African Canoeing Championships at Nagle Dam outside Pietermaritzburg over the weekend, winning every single gold medal on offer.
The local team walked away with 37 medals – 24 golds, 10 silvers and three bronze medals – after completing a clean-sweep of the marathon events that concluded the two-day event on a very cold and overcast winter’s day.
The competition was dogged by the foul weather that has been gripping KwaZulu-Natal, and many events were raced in heavy rain.
Pretoria student Hein van Rooyen raced to victory in impressive fashion in the men’s 11km marathon event, with his terrier-like team mate Ryno Armdorf chasing him all the way, with the consistent Tunisian Mohamed Sdouki in third.
Claire Langenhoven, who was one of the standout performers, won the ladies’ 8km marathon overall. Not only did she wrap up victory
in her junior section, but she was also the fastest female on the water, beating all the senior ladies in every event.
Cath Collins cleaned up every gold in the senior ladies' division, fending off the challenge of Tunisian Olfa Dachraoui in the marathon event as well. Kelly Howe remained unbeaten in the Cadet (under-16 division).
In the boys' ranks, Erhardt Joubert made the Junior section his own, but was made to battle all the way by Nagle Dam local powerhouse Loveday Zondi. Capetonian Paul Lombard was a class act in winning the Cadets section from a plucky Tom Ngcobo.
After the event, the annual Congress of the African Canoe Federation voted Canoeing South Africa president Tim Cornish to the position of President of the continental body, with the Moroccan Abdellah Laraichi moving to first vice-president. The next continental championships will take place in Tunisia.
RESULTS
Cadets 8km Marathon
Boys:
1.Paul Lombard (RSA)
44:10.84
2.Tom Ngcobo (RSA) 52:11.90
Girls:
1.Kelly Howe (RSA) 51:22.68
2.Octavia Mzolo (RSA Inv) 55:36.78
Junior 8km Marathon
Boys:
1.Erhardt Joubert (RSA) 43:44.78
2.Loveday Zondi (RSA) 43:45.50
3.El Aidi Issam (Tunisia) 44:09.84
4.Assane Fall (Senegal) 46:20.09
5.Chebak Nabil (Morocco) 47:43.78
6.Ahmed Zouhir (Tunisia) 47:46.65
Girls:
1.Claire Langehoven (RSA) 47:30.56
Senior Women 8km Marathon
1.Cath Collins (RSA) 47:54.37
2.Olfa Dachraoui (Tunisia) 51:50.68
Senior Men 11km Marathon
1.Hein van Rooyen (RSA) 56:37.54
2.Rayno Armdorf (RSA) 57:54.04
3.Mohamed Sdouki (RSA) 1:00:42.84
4.Sarhane Dhakli (Tunisia) 1:01:40.54
5.Tony Lespoir (Seychelles) 1:01:45.08
6.Samba N’Doye (Senegal) 1:10.34.44
Medal and points table
1.South Africa 37 (24 gold, 10 silver, 3 bronze) – 416 points
2.Tunisia 7 (5 silver, 2 bronze) –
132 points
3.Morocco 4 (2 silver, 2 bronze) – 72 points
4.Seychelles 1 (1 bronze) – 42 points
5.Senegal 0 – 30 points
6.Namibia 0 - 16 points
Source: Canoeing South Africa
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