SA flag flies high in Duisburg
29 May 2006
South African canoeists, racing at the Duisburg World Cup, the Wimbledon of sprint canoeing, turned in a number of strong performers to do the Rainbow Nation proud in competition against the world's best.
The South African women's K4 crew emerged triumphant from a bitterly cold and windy day's racing on Sunday after winning their 1000 metres B final, just one day after coming third in their 500 metres B final.
The back-to-back successes in reaching the B finals marked a thoroughly successful debut at international level for the crew of Jen Hodson, Carol Joyce, Nikki Mocke and Michelle Eray, as they got the better of a significant number of more established and experienced women's K4 crews.
Won by almost a full second
They came back from a poor start to power their way through the B final field in the second 250 metres where they caught up five places. Then, they hit the front with a powerful kick 300 metres
from the line and won the final by almost a full second from the crews of Canada and Portugal, in a time that would have placed them seventh in the women's A final.
The final day's racing was also successful for key sprinter Shaun Rubenstein. After a disappointing day on Saturday, when he failed to make the finals line-up in the 500m K1 discipline, he powered into the 1000 metres B final where he finished second to the powerful Israeli star Roei Yellin.
There was disappointment for the highly talented K4 crew of Ant Stott, Shaun Biggs, Michael Arthur and Matt Bouman as they finished eighth in their 1000 metres semi-final, and missed the cut for the B final.
Fifth and eighth in 500m K4
On Saturday, the Kwazulu-Natal based crew finished fifth in the 500 metres K4 B final, while a boat consisting of Cape stars' Graeme Solomon, Dawid Mocke, Simon van Gysen and Tukkies' Hein van Rooyen came home in eighth spot.
Johannesburg speedster
Jenny Hodson also kept the South African flag flying high on an intense second day of competition by making the B final in the women's 500m K1 event against a big and powerful line-up of the world’s best sprinters.
She made it into the final thanks to a fast sub-two-minute semi-final in tricky cold and windy conditions at the regatta course in the forest on the outskirts of Duisburg.
There was disappointment for the talented Cape crew of Alexa Lombard and Donia Kamstra, the silver medallists at last year's world marathon championships. Racing in the outside lane most exposed to the wind and the waves, they finished eighth in their 500 metres K2 semi-final after a poor start.
The Duisburg regatta is attended by every major canoeing nation, and with two boats permitted to race in every event, it is arguably the most competitive regatta outside of the World Championships or Olympic Games.
SouthAfrica.info reporter
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