McIntosh retains title in thriller showdown with Cape teenager

Cameron McIntosh retained his SA slalom canoeing title on the Ash River outside Clarens on the weekend, in a ding-dong tussle with Cape junior Michael Watson.

Watson stunned the event by beating McIntosh in qualifying, and went into the semi-final as the fastest boat on the full Ash river course, which had been set up by the visiting French coach Jean Jerome Perrin.

In the semi-finals Watson was less than half a second behind multiple SA title holder McIntosh, with the seasoned Barcelona Olympian Alick Rennie, who was battling with a bad cold, a few seconds further down the leaderboard, setting the scene for a thrilling showdown in the final.

In the final McIntosh turned in another fast run, touching just one gate, while Watson went faster, but touched two gate poles, each costing him a two second penalty, and ended the classic encounter less than three seconds behind McIntosh on the combined scores from the semi-final and final.

Master Cele won the C1 title from Cyprian Ngidi, and produced the fastest clear run in the final, evidencing his strong progression as a top class C1 paddler.

Kate Cornish took the senior women’s title, from Laura Thompson, who battled with the unfamiliar course.

The event was attended by paddlers from Swaziland and Zambia, and was watched by an enthusiastic crowd from nearby Clarens and Bethlehem.

The new course on the Ash river was set up over an exciting stretch of river, but was accessible to the less skilled as well as the experienced paddlers. The offset gates seven through none, which required the paddlers to traverse the full width of the river, through some big waves, caused most of the trouble.

ICF Slalom chairperson Jean Michel Prono conducted a slalom beginner’s clinic on the flatwater near the course, training a number of keen novices. He was impressed by the event, which ran in full compliance of all the ICF rules, and was enthusiastic about the emerging slalom talent on display.

SUMMARY OF RESULTS
SENIOR MENS K1
1.Cameron McIntosh 216.67
2.Michael Watson 219.85

3.Alick Rennie 227.79
4.Guy Collyer 228.03
5.Simon Dube 230.08

SENIOR WOMENS K1
1.Kate Cornish 361.17
2.Laura Thompson 684.53

JUNIOR BOYS K1
1.Michael Watson 219.85
2.Ian Rennie 248.35

MENS C1
1.Master Cele 237.81
2.Cyprian Ngidi 265.54