Gallery

GARDEN ROUTE NEWS -  Today is the second-last day of the first-ever combined UIPM Biathle, Triathle and Laser Run World Championships.

This event, historic for more than one reason, kicked off on Santos Beach on Monday 8 December and will finish off tomorrow, Saturday 13 December.

The South African athletes started strong, grabbing nine of the 14 available gold medals on Monday and 12 gold on Tuesday.

Monday saw the athletes battling it out in the biathle heats and mixed relay events across multiple age categories. 

On Tuesday, it was the biathle finals - for the history-making para-athletes as well, competing on the same biathle field as the able-bodied athletes. This has never been done before.

Wednesday was the triathle heats and the triathle finals are taking place today (Thursday). These results will be published at a later stage. 

Biathle home talent

The Garden Route’s very own para-athlete, Minke Janse van Rensburg from George, won herself a biathle gold in the category PMP7.

Minke Janse van Rensburg. Photo: Hannes Naude

South African athletes (some from our host region) consistently featured in the top three spots across all age groups in the biathle finals.

Mossel Bay’s Johan Windt proudly claimed gold in the masters 70+ men, while both Oudtshoorn’s Liesel Wessels (masters 50+ women) and Knysna’s Marcel Roos (masters 40+ men) won silver in their categories. 

Johan Windt. Photo: Hannes Naude

Gavin Gericke (masters 60+ men) from George and Mia Botha (junior women) from Great Brak both won bronze medals.

Within each age group, country teams are also awarded medals based on the individual athletes’ combined points.

Botha’s team received gold, as did George athletes Annabelle McEwan (U17 girls), Duné Haasbroek (U19 girls) and Josua Vorster’s (junior men) teams. Two more George representatives, Marco Erasmus and Dirk Rossouw, won bronze as part of their junior men’s team.

Stars from South Africa

Circling wider than the Garden Route, these SA athletes also claimed the top spots in their biathle age categories: Sophia Greef (U9 girls), Blake Fisher (U11 boys), Zoe Morgado (U15 girls), Ryan Viviers (U17 boys), Simoné van der Merwe (U19 girls), Zac Fletcher (U19 boys), WJ Kruger (junior men), Andrea Ranger (masters 40+ women), Katherin McLachlan (masters 50+ women), Rodney Westgate (masters 50+ men), Lynette Fisher (masters 60+ women) and Adriaan Vermaas (masters 60+ men).

The whole South African team on Santos Beach. Photo: Hannes Naude

... and elsewhere

Another winner who stood out, even though not from SA, was the UK’s Mary Collette. At 77, she is one of the oldest athletes to compete in the world champs - she took the first place in the masters 70+ women category.

The UK’s Mary Collette. Photo: Hannes Naude

These athletes from Egypt earned their country gold medals: Mohammad Nassar (U9 boys), Roqia Abd Alsalam (U11 girls), Halla Abdelazim (U13 girls), Eyad Osman (U13 boys), Abdallah Abdallah (U15 boys) and Bhumi Agramal (junior women).

PHOTO GALLERY: First 4 days of UIPM Biathle, Triathle and Laser Run World Champs

The UK’s Martha Warner took gold for U17 girls, Lea Fernandez won the senior women’s category for France, the Swiss Alexandr Dallenbach came first among the senior men, and Portugal’s Ricardo Rego won the gold in the masters 40+ men.

See the full biathle individual final results below:

U9 girls
• 1st: Sophia Greef (RSA)
• 2nd: Lumay de Beer (RSA)
• 3rd: Kinda Sror (EGY)

U9 boys
• 1st: Mohammad Nassar (EGY)
• 2nd: Karlo Marais (RSA)
• 3rd: Stian Gericke (RSA)

U11 girls
• 1st: Roqia Abd Alsalam (EGY)
• 2nd: Asiel Magd Aldin (EGY)
• 3rd: Mia Schellink (RSA)

U11 boys
• 1st: Blake Fisher (RSA)
• 2nd: Aser Hasan (EGY)
• 3rd: Hilton Vos (RSA)

U13 girls
• 1st: Halla Abdelazim (EGY)
• 2nd: Hannah Morgado (RSA)
• 3rd: Baily Bowman (RSA)

U13 boys
• 1st: Eyad Osman (EGY)
• 2nd: Wanru Haasbroek (RSA)
• 3rd: Zac Edge (RSA)

U15 girls
• 1st: Zoe Morgado (RSA)
• 2nd: Ghazi Mahmoud (EGY)
• 3rd: Zoë Janse van Vuuren (RSA)

U15 boys
• 1st: Abdallah Abdallah (EGY)
• 2nd: Noah Spruce (RSA)
• 3rd: Tiaan Lamprechts (RSA)

U17 girls
• 1st: Martha Warner (UK)
• 2nd: Jessica Matthysen (RSA)
• 3rd: Annabelle McEwan (RSA)

U17 boys
• 1st: Ryan Viviers (RSA)
• 2nd: Arden Kotze (RSA)
• 3rd: Bradly Leppan (RSA)

U19 girls
• 1st: Simone van der Merwe (RSA)
• 2nd: Megan Kleynhans (RSA)
• 3rd: Evelina Powell (UK)

U19 boys
• 1st: Zac Fletcher (RSA)
• 2nd: Luc Smith (RSA)
• 3rd: Raijuru Suryansh Mohapatra (IND)

Junior women
• 1st: Bhumi Agramal (EGY)
• 2nd: Stephanie Verschoor (RSA)
• 3rd: Mia Botha (RSA) 

Junior men
• 1st: WJ Kruger (RSA)
• 2nd: Athanasios Spantouros (GRE)
• 3rd: Eduard van Driel (RSA)

Senior women
• 1st: Lea Fernandez (FRA)
• 2nd: Jayme Vermaas (RSA)
• 3rd: Tara Schwulst (RSA)

Senior men
• 1st Alexandr Dallenbach (Swiss)
• 2nd Flroan Barenthaler (AUT)
• 3rd Dylan Kruger (RSA)

Masters 40+ women
• 1st: Andrea Ranger (RSA)
• 2nd: Zoli de Kock (RSA)
• 3rd: Helen Wilkinson (RSA)

Masters 40+ men
• 1st: Ricardo Rego (POR)
• 2nd: Marcel Roos (RSA)
• 3rd: Tiaan Rossouw (RSA)

Masters 50+ women
• 1st: Katherin McLachlan (RSA)
• 2nd: Liesel Wessels (RSA)
• 3rd: Jené Bonfield (RSA)

Masters 50+ men
• 1st: Rodney Westgate (RSA)
• 2nd: Rupert Groenewald (RSA)
• 3rd: Martin Dreyer (RSA

Masters 60+ women
• 1st: Lynette Fisher (RSA)
• 2nd: Jillian Wallace (UK)
• 3rd: Rika Vermaas (RSA)

Masters 60+ men
• 1st: Adriaan Vermaas (RSA)
• 2nd: Francisco Alonso (ESP)
• 3rd: Gavin Gericke (RSA)

Masters 70+ women
• 1st: Mary Collette (UK)
• 2nd: Emily Freund (GER)
• 3rd: Stephanie Claassen (RSA)

Masters 70+ men
• 1st: Johan Windt (RSA)
• 2nd: Dolph Nortier (RSA)
• 3rd: Dr. Kurt Tohermes (GER)

‘We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news’