Rosebank canoeist, Holly Spencer can celebrate being the first women from Gauteng to finish in this year’s FNB Dusi Canoe Marathon.
The 25-year-old Dabulamanzi Canoe Club member and former Parktown High School for Girls canoeist finished her fourth Dusi this year.
It was her second in K1 (single canoeist), and she finished 15th overall.
A series of events on the river in KZN led to Spencer feeling both happy to have finished but also disappointed at not finishing in the top 10.
“I found this the hardest Dusi I’ve done, mentally,” she said. “I was seventh at one point. Unfortunately, I swam a few times and got lost on a portage so I dropped to 15th over the course of the race. It’s disappointing to be so close to achieving a personal goal (top 10 women), only to have it slip away due to silly mistakes that can’t be blamed on anyone other than me.”
Spencer said it was only thanks to her support team which gave her food, water, and encouragement along the way, that she finished the race at all.
The time-consuming swims and Spencer picking up a bug from the water led her to shift her personal goal to just finishing the 120km event that includes more than 20km of running.
When asked if Gauteng’s best canoeist only finished 15th meant the province was behind in canoe racing, Spencer said this was not the case.
“I think canoeists in Gauteng are already as good as those elsewhere, I just think there is a dearth in the senior age gap (18–35). It’s hard to pinpoint why, but I have great faith that the next generation won’t face the same challenge.”
She said the Dusi was also unique in that knowledge of its many channels and tricky rapids could make a big difference in a race.
Related articles:
Parktown Girls canoers achieve excellent results #SchoolSport
