Today was another special day for the team and a testament to the commitment and training this team of athletes, coaches and management have put in.
Once again every member of the team put in their time and support to get behind the members participating and gave their all to deliver the best possible result.
Taking into consideration that each team member had to run fundraising campaigns to get to the worlds championships it really was an achievement to be here in the first place. Without the support of the SUP community, family, friends and the general public we would never have been able to do it. We really are truly grateful for the incredible support from everyone back home.
We unfortunately did not have a full team this year as we were short 1 Prone Paddle Board Women and 1 Long Distance Women due to funding challenges which all counts when it comes to Team points. That said South Africa still managed to move up 2 positions in the World rankings finishing 9th.
Every single Team member achieved amazing results and we are super proud to take home 3 medals for the country this year. Jadon Wessels got South Africa’s first medal when he got the copper medal in Prone Paddle-board Technical Racing, followed by Tarryn King getting the Gold Medal in the Women’s Sprint Racing and concluded by Jadon Wessels once again excelling and receiving a bronze medal in Prone Paddle-Board long distance.
Athlete Holly Henderson from Great Britain showed true sportsmanship by kindly lending Jadon her Prone board (Ruby) so that he could still compete when his board was held up in Hong Kong. This for any athlete can be their worst nightmare and thank goodness for athlete Holly and her Team Manager Dave.
Morning and evening bus trips to and from the venues were always filled with a combination of cheering laughter and a great vibe that we shared with our fellow athletes from Australia.
The ISA World Stand Up and Paddle-Board Championships has certainly been an experience to remember. I would also like to say that without our legend hostess @LeMeridian Shimei Beach Sally Su we would have been at a complete loss.
I know that each of us look forward to heading home in the morning and seeing all our family and friends. I shall stop off in Hong Kong for a small detour to see mates on route home but the rest of the team