Thursday, 02 June 2011 10:56
Top surfski paddler Dean Gardiner aims for Durban World Cup title
A number of top international surfski racing stars are listed amongst the early entries for the Dunlop Surfski World Cup on 26 June, including Australian surfski legend Dean Gardiner.
Gardiner famously spoilt the party at the first ever South African World Cup in 2004 by winning the single ski race from a strong and fired up field of local stars, and has consistently been a global pacesetter in major international surfski races.
Gardiner will be joined at the race by fellow Australians Bruce Taylor and Mark Anderson, with a number of other international entries expected to follow this week, ahead of the closing date for normal entries on Friday 10 June.
Anderson raced last year's World Cup and is looking forward to his return to Durban now that he is familiar with typical winter offshore conditions, while Taylor is one of the consistent star performers on the Australian domestic surfski calendar.
Gardiner is a seasoned veteran surfski racer who has over the years developed a rivalry with Durban racer Oscar Chalupsky, who is two years his senior. Chalupsky is relishing the opportunity to lock antlers with Gardiner again.
"Bring it on," said Chalupsky after learning of Gardiner's entry. "He has only beaten me once in World Cups and he is racing me on my turf, so I can't wait."
Last year's Dunlop Surfski World Cup was bumped out of it's usual spot in the international calendar by the FIFA Soccer World Cup in Durban, creating an unfortunate clash with the Molokai Challenge in Hawaii, which attracts most of the world's top endurance surfski stars.
However with the calendar returning to normal the Durban event now enjoys the undistracted attention of the surfski community, and is sure to feature a big field.
Significantly the race distance has also been shortened slightly, making it more attractive for visiting internationals.
"The Dunlop Surfski World Cup is the longest race on the ISPA World Series," said race organiser Billy Harker. "However we have decided to shorten it from 33km to 26km for a number of reasons."
"It makes for tighter racing, with the top paddlers likely to take about an hour and a half to finish. But the main reason is safety," said Harker. "We often have to wait for wind and start the race later in the day, and that means that the slower paddlers risk coming in in fading light, which is a problem we face with a mid-winter race."
The Dunlop Surfski World Cup last year attracted a record 296 paddlers, making it the biggest race on the ISPA World Tour. Harker expects that number to swell significantly with the return to the traditional date and the new race format.
Entries for the Dunlop Surfski World Cup close at midnight on Friday 10 June.
More information can be found at www.surfski.co.za
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