As paddlers prepare for The Unlimited Dusi Canoe Marathon that starts at Camps Drift on February 14th, shrewd observers have spotted signs of a changing of the guard as a new generation of young elite paddlers have started to muscle their way onto the podium that has for many years been dominated by established stars like Ant Stott, Len Jenkins, Thulani Mbanjwa, and Hank McGregor.
The depth of Under 23 talent is now being fed by a new breed of talented paddlers that have graduated from the junior (Under 18) ranks, and this summer have proven to be serious podium threats.
Triple Dusi winner and defending champ Andy Birkett (Team Best 4 Kayak Centre) is in his final year in the under 23 age group and will go toe to toe with pre-race title contenders Mbanjwa, McGregor and Jenkins for the 2013 spoils. However, he will be followed closely by 2012 Dusi surprise package and last year’s Non-Stop Dusi runner-up, 21 year old Lance Kime who looks to earn his first podium finish in the race this time around.
Add to that the class of fellow Under 23 standouts like Kime’s 2012 K2 partner Kwanda Mhlope (Computershare Change a Life) Ben Biggs, Siseko Ntondini, Mmeli Cele and Brandon van der Walt (Team Jeep), and the race for the gold medals and top ten placings will be hotly contested by the new generation of young turks.
Whilst the likes of Owen Gandar, Emile Theunissen, Stuart MacLaren and Gavin Shuter would also be considered possible top twenty challengers the hot topic of conversation at the moment is the former Maritzburg College ‘awesome foursome’ that has surged into the Under 23 category this year and made their presence felt in a strikingly big way.
South African slalom ace Donavan Wewege recently showed all just what he, and his fellow young stars, is capable of when he charged to a highly commendable fourth place finish in the N3TC Drak Challenge, edging out the likes of Kime, Stott, Jacques Theron and Cam Schoeman in the big Umzimkulu waters.
Wewege and fellow Team Best 4 Kayak Center team mates Murray Starr and James Speed as well as Murray Haw (Team Matelec) forced many to sit up and take notice in the final junior year in 2012 and, after starting 2013 on a similarly positive note, appear to have carried their form into the competitive Under 23 age group and will surely be a force to be reckoned with at this year’s Dusi.
Whilst the hardy annuals of McGregor, Stott, Jenkins and Mbanjwa look to be safe aloft their perch at the top, for now, many in South Africa’s paddling world are suggesting it is merely a matter of time before this wave of young talent follow in Birkett’s footsteps and start challenging their more senior competitors and idols for podiums and titles alike.
Competitors line up for the start of The Unlimited Dusi on the 14th of February at Camps Drift, and the race ends at Blue Lagoon in Durban on 16 February 2013. More information can be found at www.dusi.co.za
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