Official Beijing Olympics website
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Some Olympics Related Links
Here are some sites that you can use to access different information about the Olympics in general and paddling at the Olympics in particular.
Never Again
On this day in 1945 the 'Little Boy' atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima.
We pray that mankind never again sees fit to allow an act like this.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Olympic Preview - Shaun Rubinstein
What a time to be competing! Adam van Koeverden and Tim Brabants are in absolutely stunning form and have been for the last two years.
Sprint paddling legends like Eirik Veraas Laarsen, Marek Twardowski and Ben Fouhy are regularly being relegated to also-ran status.
The regular powerhouses like Hungary, Germany, Poland just haven't been able to produce anyone to take these two on.
In the midst of this South Africa, with a tiny history of international sprint racing, has one guy steadily improving and climbing his way up the ranks - Shaun Rubinstein.
Ruby, as he is known in South African racing circles, has quietly been earning a solid reputation and respect amongst the international elite.
He finished the 2007 season ranked number 3 in the world. He achieved his ranking through consistency and although there is no question he is improving and is now a regular finalist at World Cup and World Championship events he has not established himself as a reguar medallist.
2008, so far, has been a tough season for Ruby. His world ranking dropped to 5 after the World Cups. He didn't score any points in the first World Cup in Szeged.
As much as he is a tremendously focussed and composed athlete I wonder whether the enormity of the Olympics is getting under his skin. I trust that Nandor with good experience of preparation for Olympics is working very closely with him.
I think Shaun's own words best describe his potential for an Olympic podium “If I can get my peak and all other aspects involved in having a perfect race right, I believe I am good enough to win a medal,”
The key to this is that I think he knows that at this stage of his career he needs a near perfect race to be in line for an Olympic medal.
Adam and Tim, however, are paddling so well that they don't need perfect races to medal. I expect that between them they will grab the K1 golds and silvers. That leaves only the bronze medals up for grabs.
I am pretty confident that he will make at least one K1 final and I hope like crazy that he does have a perfect race and win a medal.
It breaks my heart to say this but I don't think Ruby is as a likely to medal as Jen is. There won't be many people happier than me if I'm wrong.
JZ and Disturbing Under Currents
JZ's day in court starts today. He must be so relieved that at last he can start to prove his innocence.
Or is he? It appears that his legal team once again will be delving into the fine points of the fine points of law trying to get his case thrown out or delayed or ... anything but tried.
Zuma and his cohorts are complaining how he has been prejudiced by how long it is taking for his day in court to come about. Yet he and his team were castigated by a ConCourt judge for wasting so much time and interfering with the process of bringing his trial to court.
On other fronts:
- The ANC Youth League, who profess respect for the law, are projecting severe disruption of the country if the case goes to court.
- It appears that Mbeki is being pressurised to stand down early so that JZ can assume the country's presidency. Which introduces a whole set of challenges around trying a ruling president.
- Even further there is talk that elements within the ANC are seriously considering using the ANC parliamentary dominance to change the constituion so that a ruling president cannot be tried. How great would that be - you could then commit any crimes you like as long as you become president before the courts get you.
- There is even talk of pushing for a blanket amnesty for anyone who might have done anything wrong relating to the whole suite of arms deals.
To me this speaks volumes about lots people in high places with real fears of what might come out in the wash. I find myself beginning to wonder if this is dirtier than we ever thought.
Or is he? It appears that his legal team once again will be delving into the fine points of the fine points of law trying to get his case thrown out or delayed or ... anything but tried.
Zuma and his cohorts are complaining how he has been prejudiced by how long it is taking for his day in court to come about. Yet he and his team were castigated by a ConCourt judge for wasting so much time and interfering with the process of bringing his trial to court.
On other fronts:
- The ANC Youth League, who profess respect for the law, are projecting severe disruption of the country if the case goes to court.
- It appears that Mbeki is being pressurised to stand down early so that JZ can assume the country's presidency. Which introduces a whole set of challenges around trying a ruling president.
- Even further there is talk that elements within the ANC are seriously considering using the ANC parliamentary dominance to change the constituion so that a ruling president cannot be tried. How great would that be - you could then commit any crimes you like as long as you become president before the courts get you.
- There is even talk of pushing for a blanket amnesty for anyone who might have done anything wrong relating to the whole suite of arms deals.
To me this speaks volumes about lots people in high places with real fears of what might come out in the wash. I find myself beginning to wonder if this is dirtier than we ever thought.
Olympics Preview - Jen Hodson
I can imagine how the tension is building for Jen.
One thing that Jen has shown without doubt over the years of her international paddling career is her mental toughness and determination.
I recall the comments about her being a token female paddler and lucky to be included when she first competed overseas.
Her belief in herself and the belief that a few others have had in her is now being shown to be justified.
When Nandor speaks about Jen and her mental strength he shakes his head in awe and respect.
Jen showed that strength in the face of Bridgitte Hartley's tremendous rise in the South African women's paddling ranks.
Jen has been absolutely determined to paddle in the Olympics and to a certain extent her place in the team was secure - until Bridgitte hit her stride. Against expectations Jen's K1 500M place wasn't a given anymore.
The final selection for the women's 500 M K1 berth went down to the wire with Jen beating Bridgitte by less than quarter of a second at this year's Szeged World Cup.
That race alone was a magnificent milestone for South African sprint racing. What other nation has managed to get two paddlers into a World Cup final? Suddenly South African women's paddling was in the same league as the two greats of international women's racing - Hungary and Germany.
Considering the build up to the limited Olympic races for women this was one of the great women's starting lineups.
Here are the results of the race:
1 Kovacs Katalin HUN 1:57.776
2 Benedek Dalma HUN 1:58.178
3 Wagner-Augustin Katrin GER 1:58.796
4 Hodson Jennifer RSA 1:59.936
5 Hartley Bridgitte RSA 2:00.182
6 Zhong Hong Yan CHN 2:01.118
7 Paldanius Sophia SWE 2:01.124
8 Johnson Carrie USA 2:01.226
9 Leonhardt Carolin GER 2:03.236
Not blindingly fast but look at who was there. With Sophia Paldanius, Carrie Johson and Carolin Leonhardt filling out the last three places this could not have been an easy race, no matter what the times may say.
I don't know haw many international golds were represented in this but this was a great race for South Africans.
So back to Jen and her Olympic chances.
With one paddler per country this race would be a very strong indicator of how the womens K1 500M final could go.
Simply on that basis I think Jen is a very real medal hope.
Kayakmaster is totally behind you. Go Jen, go!
Ruby's Logo
Shaun Rubinstein has applied a new logo to his blog.
I think it works pretty well. What do you think?
Friday, August 1, 2008
Olympic Preview from SAKayak
Thanks to Dave Macleod for this report from Beijing
The biggest team of South Africa canoeists to take part in the Olympic Games will begin the campaign in the slalom and sprint events confident of reaching the finals in a number of disciplines, with two genuine chances to win medals.
Flatwater sprinters Shaun Rubenstein and Jen Hodson are both serious medal contenders, and have both wrapped up their Olympic preparations at their camp in Szolnok in the best shape of their careers and itching to start their challenge for Olympic glory.
“If I can get my peak and all other aspects involved in having a perfect race right, I believe I am good enough to win a medal,” said Shaun Rubenstein, who has been a regular feature on the A finals for both the 500m and 1000m K1 races at the World Cup regattas in the build-up to the Olympic games.
“My training has been going very well. We are starting to do a lot more training on the course to prepare our bodies for the intense racing that is coming up,” said Rubenstein, who has been training with fellow South Africans Ant Stott and Nic Burden, as well as fellow Olympians Australian Ken Wallace of Australia and Slovenia’s Jupancic Regent.
Jen Hodson is also optimistic about a strong challenge for a medal in the A final of the women’s 500m K1. “Realistically there are 6 or 7 girls who can all medal on the day, and I include myself as one of these,” said the Pietermaritzburg raised star who relocated to Gauteng to train under national coach nandor Almasi several years ago.
“After all these months it’s difficult to realise that we are days away from the opening ceremony,” said Hodson. “I can definitely feel the big race is coming up, and the enormity of what we are about to experience is starting to feel real.”
Hodson will also anchor the high flying women’s K4 that has rocketed from obscurity to being a genuine force in the tough and competitive world of international K4 racing.
The K4 crew of Michèle Eray, Carol Joyce, Nikki Mocke and Jen Hodson has made major strides, and will be looking to start the women’s K4 final in a strong position and is aiming for at least a top six finish.
“There will probably be about a second separating us all so it is all about getting it right on the day, at the right time!” said Nikki Mocke, the wife of Capetonian surf ski ace Dawid Mocke.
“Training has been going well, and the K4 is hitting some super-fast times,” said Plettenberg Bay based Eray, who will also partner Tukkies paddler Bridgitte Hartley in the 500m K2 races.
This combination was only initiated in June, following the needle tussle between Hartley and Hodson for the right to race the blue ribbon women’s 500m K1 event, which was only decided at the final trial at the World Cup in Hungary which saw history being made as the two South African women raced into the top five places in the A final.
“Bridgitte (Hartley) and I have been working hard to become much quicker off the mark,” said Eray. “It’s paying off and we are feeling a lot faster than before. We still have only paddled together very few times compared to other international pairs, but I am very positive about our combination.”
Making up the balance of the challenge from Team South Africa in the flatwater sprint events is teenager Calvin Mokoto, who is the first South African paddler to qualify a C1 canoe berth at the Olympic Games.
The enthusiastic Wattville youngster has won plenty of admirers in his first international season, after being spotted and nurtured by German champion Andreas Dittmer several years ago.
Three athletes will contest the slalom competition at the challenging new artificial white water course, all of them in canoes. It is the first time that South African paddlers have qualified a place at the Games in canoes, in which the paddlers kneel in the craft and use single bladed paddles.
Cameron McIntosh, the Bethlehem based doctor who for years campaigned to qualify a K1 for the games, will partner Cyprian Ngidi in the C2 competition, while Siboniso “Master” Cele will contest the C1 events.
Cele has improved rapidly since making his international debut five years ago and is aiming to make the cut of the top twelve paddlers to secure a berth in the semi-finals.
McIntosh, who must take much of the credit for doggedly driving the dreams of slalom paddlers and founding the Dihlabeng slalom canoe club outside Bethlehem that is the home of elite slalom paddling in South Africa, started the slalom careers of Cele and Ngidi while they were members of the Lembethe Canoe Club at Nagle Dam, deep in the Valley of a Thousand Hills.
He is determined to take his C2 partnership with Ngidi to new heights on the tough heavy water of the Shunyi course, and has set a top ten finish in the heats, which will earn them a place in the semi finals, as their first goal.
The trio has been training on the new course in Beijing, which is arguably the toughest man-made white water course in the world. He said that the intense heat and humidity has made training difficult.
“The Zulu’s are getting “kathele” in this heat,” said McIntosh. “I’m dosing them up on vitamins and liquids to combat the heat.”
The slalom and flatwater events will be held at the new purpose built facility nestled in the forest park region of Shun Yi, 40km to the north of the centre of Beijing.
The slalom competition starts on Monday 11 August and ends on 14 August, while the flatwater racing gets under way on Monday 18 August and concludes on Saturday 23 August. All the canoeing events starts at 3:30pm Beijing time each day.
The biggest team of South Africa canoeists to take part in the Olympic Games will begin the campaign in the slalom and sprint events confident of reaching the finals in a number of disciplines, with two genuine chances to win medals.
Flatwater sprinters Shaun Rubenstein and Jen Hodson are both serious medal contenders, and have both wrapped up their Olympic preparations at their camp in Szolnok in the best shape of their careers and itching to start their challenge for Olympic glory.
“If I can get my peak and all other aspects involved in having a perfect race right, I believe I am good enough to win a medal,” said Shaun Rubenstein, who has been a regular feature on the A finals for both the 500m and 1000m K1 races at the World Cup regattas in the build-up to the Olympic games.
“My training has been going very well. We are starting to do a lot more training on the course to prepare our bodies for the intense racing that is coming up,” said Rubenstein, who has been training with fellow South Africans Ant Stott and Nic Burden, as well as fellow Olympians Australian Ken Wallace of Australia and Slovenia’s Jupancic Regent.
Jen Hodson is also optimistic about a strong challenge for a medal in the A final of the women’s 500m K1. “Realistically there are 6 or 7 girls who can all medal on the day, and I include myself as one of these,” said the Pietermaritzburg raised star who relocated to Gauteng to train under national coach nandor Almasi several years ago.
“After all these months it’s difficult to realise that we are days away from the opening ceremony,” said Hodson. “I can definitely feel the big race is coming up, and the enormity of what we are about to experience is starting to feel real.”
Hodson will also anchor the high flying women’s K4 that has rocketed from obscurity to being a genuine force in the tough and competitive world of international K4 racing.
The K4 crew of Michèle Eray, Carol Joyce, Nikki Mocke and Jen Hodson has made major strides, and will be looking to start the women’s K4 final in a strong position and is aiming for at least a top six finish.
“There will probably be about a second separating us all so it is all about getting it right on the day, at the right time!” said Nikki Mocke, the wife of Capetonian surf ski ace Dawid Mocke.
“Training has been going well, and the K4 is hitting some super-fast times,” said Plettenberg Bay based Eray, who will also partner Tukkies paddler Bridgitte Hartley in the 500m K2 races.
This combination was only initiated in June, following the needle tussle between Hartley and Hodson for the right to race the blue ribbon women’s 500m K1 event, which was only decided at the final trial at the World Cup in Hungary which saw history being made as the two South African women raced into the top five places in the A final.
“Bridgitte (Hartley) and I have been working hard to become much quicker off the mark,” said Eray. “It’s paying off and we are feeling a lot faster than before. We still have only paddled together very few times compared to other international pairs, but I am very positive about our combination.”
Making up the balance of the challenge from Team South Africa in the flatwater sprint events is teenager Calvin Mokoto, who is the first South African paddler to qualify a C1 canoe berth at the Olympic Games.
The enthusiastic Wattville youngster has won plenty of admirers in his first international season, after being spotted and nurtured by German champion Andreas Dittmer several years ago.
Three athletes will contest the slalom competition at the challenging new artificial white water course, all of them in canoes. It is the first time that South African paddlers have qualified a place at the Games in canoes, in which the paddlers kneel in the craft and use single bladed paddles.
Cameron McIntosh, the Bethlehem based doctor who for years campaigned to qualify a K1 for the games, will partner Cyprian Ngidi in the C2 competition, while Siboniso “Master” Cele will contest the C1 events.
Cele has improved rapidly since making his international debut five years ago and is aiming to make the cut of the top twelve paddlers to secure a berth in the semi-finals.
McIntosh, who must take much of the credit for doggedly driving the dreams of slalom paddlers and founding the Dihlabeng slalom canoe club outside Bethlehem that is the home of elite slalom paddling in South Africa, started the slalom careers of Cele and Ngidi while they were members of the Lembethe Canoe Club at Nagle Dam, deep in the Valley of a Thousand Hills.
He is determined to take his C2 partnership with Ngidi to new heights on the tough heavy water of the Shunyi course, and has set a top ten finish in the heats, which will earn them a place in the semi finals, as their first goal.
The trio has been training on the new course in Beijing, which is arguably the toughest man-made white water course in the world. He said that the intense heat and humidity has made training difficult.
“The Zulu’s are getting “kathele” in this heat,” said McIntosh. “I’m dosing them up on vitamins and liquids to combat the heat.”
The slalom and flatwater events will be held at the new purpose built facility nestled in the forest park region of Shun Yi, 40km to the north of the centre of Beijing.
The slalom competition starts on Monday 11 August and ends on 14 August, while the flatwater racing gets under way on Monday 18 August and concludes on Saturday 23 August. All the canoeing events starts at 3:30pm Beijing time each day.
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