After a coming of age second place finish in the 2023 Dusi Canoe Marathon, Msawenkosi Mtolo continues to lead the way in challenging Dusi legend Andy Birkett for the overall title.
Mtolo will be back and racing as hard as ever for the 2025 K1 Dusi set to take place from February 20-22.
In 2024 the 27-year-old wrapped up another runner-up finish when he and Sbonelo Khwela finished behind Andy Birkett and Matt Fenn over the three days of racing and would have been slightly disappointed after they led following stage one.
That marked a third consecutive runner-up finish for Mtolo who will be hopeful that he can make that step up to the top step of the podium in 2025.
For the Plastrading.com paddler, the Dusi is a critical part of his year’s racing and heading into 2025 he feels he’s heading in the right direction.
“You always want to make sure that you are maintaining through the Christmas period because you don’t know how much your opposition has been doing,” Mtolo said.
“I feel like I can’t afford to slip behind, but I’ve also made sure that I am not over-training because there is still a lot of time to go until Dusi.
“I’ve tried to maintain an average pace through my training over the last few weeks heading into the new year.”
There are a number of races in the John Oliver Series and the N3TC Drak Challenge to look forward to before the 2025 Dusi. For Mtolo he tries to make sure he prioritises the Dusi over other races.
“I love paddling the Drak Challenge but for me it’s more part of my preparation for the Dusi because the two races are so close together. I use the Drak as match practice for the Dusi,” he added.
Mtolo and the chasing pack have the unenviable task of trying to unseat 14-time champion Andy Birkett and it’s a task that has proven too difficult for many over the years.
Mtolo understands that Birkett is a true champion but will look after his own race before worrying about the opposition.
“Andy is one of the greatest the Dusi has ever seen but over three days you have to understand that anything can happen.
“He’s going to be very hard to beat again this year, but I’ll just look after my race and hope that things work out for me,” Mtolo mentioned.
The 2025 Dusi Canoe Marathon will once again see some of the country’s best river paddlers fight it out for the prestigious title of being the 74th Dusi Canoe Marathon champion.
