World Champ teenagers looking to upset a few old hands

CAPE TOWN – World Junior Canoeing Champions Holly Smith and Georgia Singe have their sights set on upsetting a few of their elders at the 2024 Prescient Freedom Paddle surfski race on April 27.

Camps Bay High School’s Smith and Fish Hoek High’s Singe are well-known in the South African paddling community after their stunning victory in the junior race at the World Championships in Denmark last year.

The World Champions label means added pressure whenever the pair of teenagers team up to race in a double together, but that has not stopped them aiming to get the better of some of the senior crews in the iconic annual paddle around Robben Island on Freedom Day.

“We are still juniors this year, but we still want to race with the bigger girls and give them a go,” said Smith earlier this week. “Our main goal is not only to win the juniors, but rather to also do relatively well in the seniors as well.”

For Smith, the paddle around the famous landmark will be a first-time experience

“I’ve never actually raced it before, so I am quite excited to be able to do it. In the past there were always things in the way on the date of the race, so it is absolutely awesome to be able to race it with my good friend Georgia.

“I actually haven’t been able to paddle around there before, even as a training paddle, but it looks so beautiful from whenever I have looked at it from the shore.

“I do think of the race as bigger than most races, and I know the significance of the paddle on Freedom Day on the 27th, but I think when I get out there on the day, in my head it will be more just about the racing for me.”

The excitement of their World Championship victory in Denmark has not worn off for Smith, but already 2024 is shaping up to be a special year for the two Cape Town schoolgirls.

“We are both training quite hard at the moment because we have just come off lifesaving champs, where both of us have just made the South African lifesaving team to go to Australia later this year.

“So that’s awesome and I am really excited for that, and we also both wanted to try and make the World Marathon Canoeing team again so we can be in both the SA teams for lifesaving and marathon – and of course to be able to defend our title would be nice.”

As the year progresses, Smith may have to cut back on some of her paddling commitments as she has her final matric exams looming, although clearly her world-beating sporting endeavours are currently not getting in the way of her academics as she continues to get marks “in the 70s and 80s.”

The Prescient Fredom paddle is open to all human paddle-powered craft that are seaworthy enough to complete the course, including surfskis, SUPs (stand-up paddleboards), prone boards, ocean rowing boats and ocean kayaks.

Entrants have the option of two distances: The majority of the field will tackle the full 27km route, which takes all competitors around Robben Island. However, for those paddlers and rowers not confident enough to take on the open-water crossing to the world-famous island, there is a shorter, 10km option. In this event the competitors will hug the shoreline past Mouille Point and Green Point to a turning buoy just off Sea Point, before returning back to the start/finish area at the Oceana Power Boat Club.