Fourteen Peninsula Canoe Club (PCC) paddlers representing South Africa at the 2026 ICF Canoe Ocean Racing World Championship held in Villajoyosa, Spain, earned podium finishes at the racing event on Friday 9 October and Saturday 10 October.

Earlier this year, it was announced that 14 of the 18 South African Ocean Racing paddlers selected for the World Championship were from PCC.

Community club

The club is a leading paddlesports organisation based on the Zandvlei Estuary in Lakeside.

In the Women’s S1 Singles, senior division, Kira Bester claimed silver and Rosie Edwards bronze, with six South African women finishing in the top 10. In the u-23 category, Edwards went one better to win gold, with Georgia Singe taking bronze. In the u-18 division, Isabella Strydom powered to a silver medal.

The men’s juniors also excelled. Sam Mocke won gold in the Men’s S1 u-18, with clubmate Ryley Smith taking bronze. Mocke then doubled up with another gold in the Men’s SS1 Short Course.

The South African paddlers swept the podium in the SS2 mixed doubles. In the senior race, Jade Wilson, paired with Hank McGregor, took silver, while Georgia Singe and Uli Hart claimed bronze.

In the u-23 division, Holly Smith and Sam Mocke won gold ahead of Nicola Harcus and Matt Coetser in second. Hanna Solomon and Keegan Vogt won gold in the u-18 division, while Isabella Strydom and Ryley Smith took bronze.

The success continued in the u-18 Mixed Relay, where Strydom and Smith won gold, with Solomon and Vogt securing silver right behind them.

Preparation

The cumulative result: South Africa won the Nations Cup, the team trophy awarded to the country that accumulates the most points across the championship.

“These are outstanding achievements and especially that so many of the paddlers are from the ‘Deep South’!” said Rob MacLean of Peninsula Canoe Club.

This performance was an extremely successful trip for the local paddlers according to Paul Broxis, the Chairman of PCC.

“Our athletes are extremely dedicated and train like professionals. The legacy of success built up over many years filters down and gives younger paddlers an understanding of what is needed and some of the tricks of the trade, how to prepare and so on. Our current crop stand on the shoulders of the giants that have gone before,” he said.

Attention now turns to the next challenge. Fourteen of the 18 paddlers selected for the South African canoe marathon team will compete at the World Canoe Marathon Championships in Gualeguaychú, Argentina, from Friday 23 October to Sunday 25 October, are also from Peninsula Canoe Club.

“The team will leave early to adapt to long-haul travel, time difference and unfamiliar water conditions – learning, as MacLean notes, “how much to rest and how much to keep active so as to be both physically and mentally in good shape come race day.

“We certainly hope the successes inspire the younger guys and bring kids into the sport. There is also a strong crossover with the paddlers in the SA team and some of the Lifesaving clubs and this makes these athlete role models nicely accessible and helps bring kids across into paddling.”

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