Benonians place second and third at a recent marathon canoe race
The marathon canoe race is long distance, fast and hard-paddling with shorter or longer sections for different age categories.
On April 11, a canoe marathon race, which was a K1 training opportunity, was held at Homestead Dam with Benonians placing second and third.
A K1 is a single kayak (5.2m) and is usually used for a sprint and marathon.
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The winner of the marathon race was Clinton Cook in a time of one hour, 35 minutes and five seconds, with the young u-23 Liam Stewart from Benoni taking second place in a time of one hour, 35 minutes and six seconds and his father, Michael Stewart, in the third position with a time of one hour, 35 minutes and seven seconds.
“A close and competitive race was had between these top-racing canoeists,” said Jennie Dallas, the Gauteng Canoe Union PRO.
The marathon canoe race is long distance, fast and hard-paddling (21km) with shorter or longer sections for different age categories.
“Marathon racing also includes several portages where paddlers have to take the boat and get out of the water, run a short distance at top speed and put the boat back into the water to continue paddling as smoothly and efficiently as possible and it takes years of training to be truly efficient,” she explained.
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“The Gauteng Marathon Championships will take place on May 8 and 9 at Germiston Lake, hosted by the Victoria Lake Canoe Club.
“The K1 race (one man kayak) will be on the Saturday and the doubles race (K2) on the Sunday.
“This marathon takes place to enable team selection,” she said.
“The team will be selected to represent Gauteng at the South African Canoe Marathon Championships, which takes place in Cape Town on May 22 and 23.
“This will lead to opportunities for paddlers to represent South Africa at the World Marathon Championships in Romania later this year.”
