Josh’s aiming for podium finish

JOSH Evered-Hall has a rare savoir-faire when it comes to the Dusi Canoe Marathon. Two years ago he made race history being part of the first ever crew spanning three generations to compete in the three day race with his dad, Mark and grandfather, Ant.

Then last year a kilogram of biltong was set as a friendly wager between the Evered-Hall and the Biljoen families, with the former benefiting with an enviable stash of biltong. This year is no different for Josh who is aiming for a podium finish in the U18 category with his Westville Boys’ High School classmate and paddling teammate Jason Ward.

“I’ve been extremely lucky to have had the experience and wileyness of my dad and grandfather over the past two years. For this year’s Dusi I wanted to set a new goal of finishing strongly and beating my dad’s record of 11:22. ” Both Jason and Josh are part of the Mac Squad, which consists of 26 paddlers who have been trained by paddling legend Lee McGregor.

“Lee has been amazing, my confidence and strength has increased immensely under his tutelage. His training techniques have helped me take my paddling to a new career. I’m looking forward to this year’s Dusi and I think myself and Jason are a good pairing, we gel really well,” he said.

His coach Lee, who is the former South African Olympic coach, said the decision behind the Mac Squad was bringing new talent to the fore.

“Every sport needs youngsters coming through the ranks and paddling is no different. Youth development is the future of this sport,” he said.