CAPE TOWN – The country’s elite ocean paddlers face a long weekend packed with top-level racing, with national trials on Saturday followed by the Prescient Freedom Paddle – one of the most prestigious events on the calendar – on Monday.
Saturday’s trials, scheduled for Fish Hoek, will finalise selection for the national team heading to the World Championships in Spain in October, while the Prescient Freedom Paddle around Robben Island remains one of the most coveted titles in surfski paddling.
The prestige of the weekend’s racing is reflected in the entry lists for both events, with Cape Town hosting a who’s who of the South African ocean paddling community. The depth of the field is highlighted by the number of current and former world champions set to line up across both races.
In the men’s trial, the field is led by a trio hoping to repeat their success from the 2025 trials. Twelve months ago, former senior world champions Nic Notten and Kenny Rice led home teammate and former U23 and mixed doubles world champion Uli Hart to secure a clean sweep for Peninsula Canoe Club.
The paddler most likely to challenge their dominance this year is former U23 world champion Josh Fenn, while experienced campaigners Hank McGregor and Dawid Mocke continue to prove that experience can offset any perceived generational gap.
Doubles Racing
The trials will be contested in single craft, while the Prescient Freedom Paddle focuses on doubles racing, creating a different tactical dynamic – although many of the same contenders will feature prominently.
Defending champions Notten and Rice will once again carry the target on their boat, while Hart teams up with Gauteng powerhouse Clint Cook. Fenn, meanwhile, joins forces with multiple world marathon champion Andy Birkett in one of the strongest pairings in the field.
The two veteran stars have opted for family partnerships. McGregor teams up with wife Pippa and the pair start as overwhelming favourites in the mixed doubles race – and could dent a few all-male crews’ egos along the way. Mocke partners with his 16-year-old son, junior world champion Sam.
Women
The women’s racing promises to be equally competitive, with two-time world champion Kira Bester the paddler to beat. The leading group at the trials is expected to include rising talents Holly Smith, Jade Wilson and Saskia Hockly, alongside experienced campaigner Melanie van Niekerk.
For the Prescient Freedom Paddle, regular partners and close friends Bester and Van Niekerk start as favourites to defend their title, although a standout challenger pairing sees mixed doubles world champion Hockly team up with U23 world champion Rosie Edwards of the United Kingdom. Another exciting young crew combines Wilson and Smith, both age-group world title holders with significant international pedigree.
The Prescient Freedom Paddle offers paddlers two race distance options on April 27. Elite competitors will tackle the demanding 27km course from the Oceana Power Boat Club, around Robben Island and back to the start, while a shorter 10km coastal route caters for paddlers who prefer to avoid the full open-water circumnavigation.
The event is open to all seaworthy, human paddle-powered craft, including surfskis, lifesaving paddle boats, stand-up paddle boards, ocean sculls and ocean kayaks.
