Canoeing SA announces team for Portugal championships
“Having witnessed fantastic racing over the past month, it’s encouraging to see a resurgence of young paddlers in this discipline, particularly from Gauteng, Western Cape and the Eastern Cape,” said Canoeing SA president Kim Pople.
Canoeing talent exhibited at the SA Schools Canoeing Sprint Championships and National Selection Event for u-23 paddlers saw Germiston High School learner Helen Jansen van Vuuren selected to represent SA.
Jansen van Vuuren, a member of Victoria Lake Canoeing Club (VLCC), will be part of a six-person team to represent SA at the ICF Junior and u-23 Sprint World Championships in Portugal.
The selection was made by Canoeing SA after the SA Schools Canoeing Sprint Championships and National Selection Events.
“Having witnessed fantastic racing over the past month, it’s encouraging to see a resurgence of young paddlers in this discipline, particularly from Gauteng, Western Cape and the Eastern Cape,” said Canoeing SA president Kim Pople. “It is exciting for the future of sprinting, one of our Olympic disciplines.”
Pople said the structured flatwater training squads which have emerged are bearing fruit.
“Canoeing SA looks forward to watching their development even further.”
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With the postponement of the championships from July to September, the team has an extra six weeks of preparation, and a training camp is planned for the team. Besides Jansen van Vuuren, the team will be comprised of Finlay Leask and his K2 partner from the championships, Matthew Maccelari, Alexa Godden and Laila Maher.
Leask, from De La Salle Holy Cross College, won the 1 000m, 500m and 200m u-18 races. Rounding out the team is Callam Davis, an u-23 age category paddler.
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