The 27km paddle around Robben Island on Freedom Day, 27 th April 2021, was celebrated in a fast andfurious manner as top paddlers from around the county raced for line honours in the Prescient FreedomPaddle.
World Marathon Champion, Hank McGregor partnered with Josh Fenn claiming back-to-backvictories and a hat-trick for McGregor. The duo pipped local favourites Dawid Mocke and Jasper Mockewho were thrilled with their silver medal. The race was not without incident however as the racers werediverted behind a container vessel, heading to the harbor which crossed the preferred route for thepaddlers.
This split the tight top bunch, unsettling the rhythm they had settled into. The more experienced crews ofMcGregor and the Mocke brothers managed the hurdle and created the gap necessary to keep theyoungsters off the pace. Once the opportunity arose, McGregor pounced and shut the door for others tochallenge his superior skills, especially around the far side of Robben Island, navigating the shallow reef andbreaking waves.
Fenn was up to the task of providing the power needed for McGregor to stay in control to the finish line.The Mocke brothers took all the risks possible however were not able to make up the deficit. Behind themthe youngster of Kenny Rice and Uli Hart, another local Cape Town crew and potential winners of this racein the future, kept out the other crews looking for the last step on the prestigious podium of the FreedomPaddle.
The women’s race however, was a different affair, with the order being established early on by anotherlocal crew of Candice Murray and Kira Bester. Their early lead remained this way for the race as theyclaimed the top spot in the ladies open race. Murray and Bester had the measure of the highly rated crewof Chloe Bunnett and Bridgitte Hartley, both winners of multiple titles including an Olympic bronze medalby Hartley. Defending Freedom Paddle Champions, Jenna Ward and the young Saskia Hockley managedthird place following an incredibly long racing season and particularly busy weekend with Hockley havingcompeted at the Lifesaving SA Inter-Provincial Championships in Durban over the weekend.
The planning, preparation and partnerships are key to managing the event and one of the most importantwere those with the City of Cape Town. Alderman JP Smith, Mayoral Committee Member for Safety andSecurity had the following in response to the smooth running of the event, “The COVID-19 pandemic hashad an immense impact on our annual events calendar with some events buckling under the pressure ofrestrictions. While many have had to be halted, we are pleased that events such as Freedom Paddle arecontinuing to wade through the storm. The City of Cape Town is pleased to provide support to events likeFreedom Paddle to pick up where they left off before the pandemic and we hope these can help reignitethe events ecosystem.”
Race organizer, Robin Tindall experienced first-hand the thrill of circumnavigating the Island with hisbrother and father in an S3.” This is a celebration in the truest sense of the word, and I am thrilled that theidea we had all those years ago has now reached this level of success. It has all been made possible throughteamwork from everyone.”
The significance of family freedoms was very much supported by the race as paddlers as young as SamuelMocke (11) completed the short course event with his mother Nikki Mocke, wife to second place finisherDawid.
Tindall’s event partner, Richard Kohler is no stranger to challenges and is set to complete a solo paddlefrom Cape Town to Brazil in an 8-meter custom designed kayak. After the race, he commented, “we allhave a distance which challenges us and so many have achieved this goal on Freedom Day, of going aroundthe Island successfully. It brings us great joy to facilitate this and seeing the happiness on the faces of thepaddlers on the finish line makes it all worthwhile.”With thanks to our partners; Prescient, Euro Steel, City of Cape Town, Dunlop, Department of Culture andSport (Western Cape Government), Peninsula Beverages, Carbonology Sport, Devils Peak and Brian’sKayaks.
