Local panners dominate national champs
Panners from the Lowveld dominated at this year's National Gold Panning Championships in Mpumalanga's most famous-for-gold town, Pilgrim's Rest.
Local panners won four out of the five official sections at the tournament last week. Bronwen Crawford-Brunt won the junior category and Jané Vermaak the proficient ladies. Steve Barrow came out tops in the veterans’ category and Goodness Mashego won in the traditional pan section. The proficient men category title was claimed by Robin Hartman from Germany.
Other categories included pikkies, children, beginners, two to five-person teams, funny couples, jokers and provincial teams.
Also read: Mpumalanga panners take national titles
Judith Mason, one of the organisers, said it was a most successful competition.
“The fact that we had international participants shows that this event is held at a very high standard. We are very proud of this,” she said.
Winning results in all categories:
Juniors – Bronwen Crawford-Brunt
Proficient men – Robin Hartman (Germany)
Proficient ladies – Jané Vermaak
Veterans – Steve Barrow
Traditional pan – Goodness Mashego
Pikkies – Bokang Monareng
Children – Zipho Mdluli
Beginners men – Paul van Rooyen (Gauteng)
Beginners ladies – Maryna Kruger
Two-person team – The Entertainers
Three-person team – 3 time Champs
Five-person team – The Sammies 5
Funny couples – Funny Kats
Jokers – Linda Traill
Provincial team – Mac Mac
Also read: Panners return with gold from world championships
