Best surf lifesaving champs ever for Winkle SLC
Gene won the U19 single ski and later the U19 men’s double ski with partner Gareth Hazell.
SUNDAY, 2 February saw Winklespruit Surf Lifesaving Club juniors in action at the KZN junior lifesaving championships hosted by Suncoast Pirates at Battery Beach in Durban in near perfect championship surf conditions.
The first event of the day saw Gene and Terri Prato taking gold in the U19 mixed double ski event and this win set the tone for the team for the rest of the champs.
Gene won the U19 single ski and later the U19 men’s double ski with partner Gareth Hazell. Gene later won bronze in the board and iron man events.
Denham Dunnett, Dean van Wyk and Brendan Alberts, all first time competitors for the club, each made a big contribution to the team’s final results. Denham now knows the swim cans distance from the shore.
Not to be outdone, the women took on the challenge set by the high level among the likes of Marine, Durban Surf and Pirates competitors and Demi Mason extended the medal count with a silver in the U19 flags event, with Tyler Main winning bronze in the same event. Demi also won bronze in beach sprint. Bianca Potgieter and Terri Prato won silver in board rescue event and Bianca won silver in the surf swim.
The beach relay team of Tyler Main, Demi Mason, Megan Barber and Michaela Parker won bronze. Sarah Land also made a big contribution to the team results.
Team members achieved a host of placings in the top eight positions to earn the club enough points to get third spot for the U19 age group, ahead of Pirates and Umhlanga Rocks. Total points across the age groups took Winkle to fourth spot overall, probably the best positioning in a championships such as this that the club has ever achieved.
To top this result, Gene Prato and Demi Mason were selected for the squad that will become the KZN Lifesaving team to compete in The Strand in Cape Town in April.
This is good reason to put in some hard training in upcoming weeks.
The next championship will be the KZN Senior Lifesaving Championship on Saturday and Sunday, 22 and 23 February at Winklespruit Beach. Some of the U19 competitors will be entering against the seniors – watch this space.
