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All eyes will be on Paris over the next couple of weeks.
Such a pleasure to see our canoeists back in the SA Olympic team, and on the boat during the opening ceremony.
The French, as expected, have certainly not held back with the glitz and glamour. Not even the persistent rain could put a dampener on the opening proceedings.
It is now down to work, and our team have left the Olympic village and taken up their lodgings at the rowing/canoeing venue.
The sprint program starts on Tuesday.
If the sprinting is even half as exciting as the slalom was, we are in for a heck of a week.
As I mentioned last week, download the Paris Olympics app for all of the schedules.
I was trying to put the speed of the sprinters into perspective when chatting to a couple of members of our surf ski group earlier this week.
At our age, maintaining an average of 12kph for a session is considered an achievement. Some even get up to 15kph for a few metres, before they go blue in the face. So, when I told them, that if they could paddle at an average of 15kph for a whole kilometre, they would be a almost a full 30 seconds behind the winner of the 1000m at the Olympics, they had an inkling of what would be required.
The majority of us only reach those speeds when we are flying down the face of a big run, during a cracker downwind.
France is not the only country that will feature some exciting paddling over the weekend.
The annual Sella Descent will be taking place on Saturday, from the town of Arriondas, to the seaside village of Ribadesella, in the North of Spain.
The largest one day canoe race in the world, with over 300 000 spectators, and a party atmosphere of the highest order.
South Africa will be represented in the K1 category by Christie MacKenzie and Hank McGregor, and in the K2 class by the brothers Fenn (Matt and Josh), as well as the current Berg winner, Tom Lovemore, who will be partnered by Jeremy Maher.
I have asked the organisers for the livestream link, but they have not been forthcoming, as yet.
On a relatively smaller note, and quite possibly a far more chilly one, the season opener in KZN will be taking place on the upper Tugela this weekend.
The ever popular "Tugela 20's" will double as the KZN Inter-Schools K1 river champs. |
