U23 rising stars deepen women’s Dusi talent pool

THE emergence of a number of classy female paddlers has boldly broadened the elite women’s field for this year’s Dusi Canoe Marathon which gets underway at Camps Drift in Pietermaritzburg on Thursday, 13 February. The recent graduation of a group of world class talent from the junior ranks into the U23 category has further boosted stocks and adds a refreshing, new element to the women’s clash.

Mt Edgecombe resident, Jenna Ward, and Kerry Segal may be the most experienced of the trio of the top U23 crews hoping to mix it up with their senior competitors, however they will undoubtedly have their work cut out for them if they are to even just make the top step of their age group’s podium their own in a few weeks’ time.

“The women’s under-23 category, with the likes of Abby (Adie), Robyn (Kime) and a couple of others having all been in the mix, has been a strong one for quite a while now,” said Ward. “Even though they’ve all moved up into seniors now, there are a few really good younger girls that have come up from juniors this year and taken Abby and Robyn’s places so the age group is still really competitive.”

Ward claimed her maiden senior river title at the Berg River Canoe Marathon in the Western Cape and is a regular top performer on the women’s racing scene.

The Dusi has however been her one stumbling block and, with her coach Lee McGregor encouraging her and Segal to focus more on sprinting in 2014, this year’s showcase is set to be an even tougher affair for the duo.

“It took a huge amount of persuasion to get Lee (McGregor) to allow us to even just take part in Dusi this year. When he finally agreed we entered that same night so that he couldn’t go back on his word,” chuckled Ward. “Both Kerry and I are coming off a really good base because we’ve been focusing on base training for the past little while so hopefully we’ll have the legs to carry us.”