Clinton Cook produced a sensational sprint finish to win the men’s 21km K1 on the first day of the Gauteng Canoe Union (GCU) Marathon Championship series final at Homestead Dam on May 31.
After six gruelling laps, the Dabulamanzi Canoe Club (Dubs) kayaker outsprinted Brad Boulle, Nicholas Notten and Sam Butcher on the final lap, stopping the clock in 01:38.00.
“It was a really fun race. I raced within myself. I raced quite conservatively, waiting for that last sprint where I managed to get the win,” Cook said.
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Boulle was a second off the pace after coming home in 01:38:01. The Western Cape Canoe Union’s (WCCU) Notten completed the top three in 01:38:02 while the University of Pretoria’s Butcher crossed the line in 01:38:09 for fourth place.
The race started with a large group of paddlers shooting to the front but it broke down to a seven-man bunch led by Butcher after the first lap.
Midway through the second lap, the group was reduced to Butcher, Cook, Boulle and Norton as they went into the first portage. The quartet maintained a slight gap over the chasing group of Siseko Ntondini, Benjamin Mntonintshi, Jack de Swardt and East Rand Kayaking’s (ERK) David Gerber.
The quartet remained intact, with the lead exchanging hands a few times going into the fifth lap. Boulle was first to portage, followed by Cook, Notten and Butcher going into the final lap.
With the race going down to the wire, Cook had an ace up his sleeve. Placed third at that point, he waited until after the turn buoy into the finishing straight to launch his attack, ultimately producing a scintillating sprint for the win.
Meanwhile, Cook teamed up with Notten to win the K2 marathon on June 1. The duo clocked 01:35:23, beating the Dubs pair of Wayne Jacobs and Boulle, who were 23 seconds off the pace. Ntondini and Sibusiso Zulu finished third in 01:35:47.
Boulle was the overall series winner with 2 480, with Matthew Ballenden second with 2 335 points, while Robert Crichton was third with 1 920 points.
Women’s race
Allison Hay dominated the women’s race, winning by almost five minutes after stopping the clock in 02:06:38, the Dubs duo of Gabriela van Rooyen and Renschi van Zyl.
Van Rooyen clocked 02:11:29 for the runner-up spot, while Van Zyl clinched the last podium position in 02:12:22.
In the K2 race on day two, Van Zyl and Van Rooyen were a class above the rest, clinching the win in a dominant 02:01:53. Lerato Mashaba and Asekho Mzibeli were second in 02:37:35.
Emily Langley and Jana Prinsloo rounded up the podium in 02:37:49.
Langley was the overall series winner with 1 845 points. Van Zyl was second with 1 500 points and Van Rooyen third with 1 190.
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