Strong SA paddling team for African Games eye Olympic spots
To be eligible for selection for Team South Africa to the Tokyo Games the paddlers involved will need to secure a specific result at the World Championships, and then win respective events outright at the African Championships a week later to secure their qualification.
A STRONG team of eight paddlers have been selected to represent South Africa at the African Champs in Morocco from 16 to 31 August with a clear view of challenging for Olympic qualifications places that are available.
After clearing the precise details with SASCOC, the results required to secure qualification for next year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo through continental qualification have been agreed, and the sprinters can now set their sights on what needs to be done at the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Szeged before they head to Rabat for the Africa Games.
To be eligible for selection for Team South Africa to the Tokyo Games the paddlers involved will need to secure a specific result at the World Championships, and then win respective events outright at the African Championships a week later to secure their qualification.
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For the women’s 500m K1 and men’s 1000m K1, the threshold result is a 4th in the World Championship B final – effectively in the top 13 in the world while for the men’s and women’s 200m K1 races the minimum result required is a third place in the B final.
For the 1000m K2 races the crews will need to make the A final or win the B final, as well as beating another continent to secure their qualification for Tokyo, while the K4 crews have to beat another continent in Szeged to secure qualification.
“The criteria set by SASCOC are open and perfectly fair,” said Canoeing South Africa president Kim Pople. “The athletes now know clearly what is expected of them, and they can now focus on delivering the results they need. The door for Olympic qualification through continental qualification is ajar for them.”
South African Canoeing Team for 2019 Africa Game:
Esti van Tonder (K1 500m K1 200m K4 500m), Bridgitte Hartley (K2 500m K2 200m K4 500m), Donna Hutton (K2 500m K2 200m K4 500m), Nosipho Mthembu (K4 500m), Chrisjan Coetzee (K1 200m K4 500m), Louis Hattingh (K1 1000m K2 1000m K4 500m), Jarryd Gibson (K2 1000m K4 500m), Alex Masina (K4 500m).
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