PAARL – Finishing the Berg River Canoe Marathon is by any standard a significant achievement, but there is one paddler in this year’s event whose participation will be extraordinary. If Jannie Malherbe makes it through the four days from Paarl to Velddrif on Wednesday to Saturday, in what promises to be cold and wet conditions, he will have finished a record 52 Berg River Marathons … at the age of 85.
There will be a bittersweet element to taking the record. The current joint holder with Malherbe – on 51 finishes – is the late Giel van Deventer, a close friend of Malherbe’s who lost his life in 2022 on the Breede River.
“Giel and I were great friends. We paddled for years together – I sold him his first canoe and I used to stay at his home often.
“But to be honest, I am not really paddling to break records … I will be doing something I love and it just happens that this time I will break the record.”
And why does he love it enough to go back for more than 50 years?
“Well, it’s like a holiday for me. A total break from work, people and cellphones.”
The training beforehand makes him “fit as a fiddle” and he finishes the event every time feeling rejuvenated and refreshed.
He lives in George and trains mainly on flat water. In the past he has competed in the various pre-Berg events but was not able to do so this year.
This year his challenge will be made all the tougher by a broken rib: “I fell against a table a few days ago and broke my rib. But funnily enough there is no discomfort when I paddle. Actually, I have done it before with a broken rib.”
Besides his extraordinary longevity in the sport, Malherbe has a storied record at the Berg: after finishing fourth in the first event in 1962 he won the next three races. The following year, 1966, he finished second.
He has also won a series of South African age group canoeing titles over the years and now jokes that he is certain to do so at the Berg “because I am the only competitor in my age group!”.
Asked what has changed about the event over the years, Malherbe says “not much”.
The character of the river changes every year – with new channels and shifting tree blocks – but the event itself has not and canoes are pretty much the same “other than the decks”.
Perhaps the biggest change, he notes, are the paddles, with the introduction of the so-called “wing paddles” about a decade ago.
And when will he hang up his paddle?
“As long as I am healthy I will keep paddling,” he laughs.