Fleet-footed Flanagan medals for Fish Hoek
FISH HOEK’S Kirsten Flanagan struck gold twice on day one of the General Tire LifeSaving SA National Interclub Championships at Camps Bay yesterday.
Beach sprint champions Ryle de Morny and Mandi Maritz also dominated in the Beach Flags.
False Bay and Western Cape’s De Morny is to the sand in sprinting what Usain Bolt is to the track… guaranteed to cause a buzz and inevitably guaranteed to take gold.
De Morny, victor in the 90 metre beach sprint in the Interprovincial on Tuesday, added the South Africa National Interclub Flags gold in a dominant final display.
De Morny, on sand, has a Bolt-like aura and you have to experience it live to understand his presence when taking to the sand, be it doing the Flags or Beach Sprint.
Get to Camps Bay later today and watch the fastest man win gold over 90 metres in the inter-club event in his home city.
De Morny and Maritz are the king and queen of the beach sprinting event and both won again in the Flags. Maritz, Capebased but representing Durban Surf, beat False Bay’s Melissa Corbett into second place.
De Morny was a class above the rest in a final that saw False Bay teammate Taariq Hassiem the best among the chasing pack.
Hassiem, brother of Team South Africa Paralympian Achmat Hassiem, claimed the silver medal.
KwaZulu-Natal were confirmed Interprovincial champions from Day One’s action but the next two days are exclusive to the National InterClub Championships.
Fish Hoek are the defending champions and also the provincial club champions and the club’s talented and powerhouse squad immediately made an impact through Flanagan winning the Two Kilometre Beach Run.
Fish Hoek’s Frederick Wagenvoorde couldn’t quite match clubmate Flanagan’s effort and came in second to East London’s Cuan Coetzee in the Men’s Two Kilometre Beach Run.
No day at a provincial or national Lifesaving competition is complete without the KwaZulu-Natal’s Billsons taking gold, be it at interprovincials or interclubs.
Carmel Billson, whose record 17 national titles in 2016 can’t be mentioned enough, combined with sister Lauren, Siobhan Sharp and Savannah van Rooyen to win Marine the Rescue Tube Final.
Summerstrand, spearheaded by Daniel Jones, won the Men’s Tube Rescue.
Carmel Billson, Sasha-Lee Nordengen and another Billson (Natalie) placed second in the Board Relay, with Fish Hoek’s Flanagan, Candice Murray and Jordi Cleworth the winners.
Carmel Billson immediately bounced back to take gold in the Board Final, with (Fish Hoek’s) Cleworth and Flanagan second and third respectively.
Fish Hoek were also in the medals in the Men’s Board Final thanks to Nicholas Notten (1st) and Jayden Alford-Loots (third).
Interprovincial - final placing 1 KZN A 96.5 points 2 Western Cape 89 3 Eastern Cape 84.5
Tomorrow at noon a celebrity challenge takes place, featuring Springbok rugby legend Percy Montgomery, Olympic relay gold medallist Ryk Neethling and celebrated TV personality and General Tire LifeSaving SA brand ambassador Siv Ngesi.
The Interclub Nationals start at 8am today and tomorrowy. The General Tire Action Arena will be open daily during the Champs and is open to the public. Entrance is FREE and there will be prizes and giveaways.
General Tire recently committed in excess of R5 million to a three-year investment in LifeSaving South Africa to complement their road safety initiatives with the crucial need for water safety.