East London fans will be treated to a feast of rowing at the 2026 Buffalo Regatta, as the organisers have added another event to the programme, which starts on Thursday.
In previous years at the oldest rowing competition in SA, the gathering of top schools, universities and club rowers on the Buffalo River had consisted of the Buffalo Regatta and the Selborne Sprints.
This year, the Coastal Shoot-out has been included on the menu, and the discipline is a contrast to traditional rowing.
It is a rough version of the sport and is performed on open water, featuring two main competitive disciplines, endurance rowing and beach sprints rowing.
These disciplines have been added to the 2028 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
Members of the SA Coastal Rowing team are expected to be part of the event.
The shoot-out will be on Friday and on Sunday.
The Selborne Sprints will also be on Friday, while the Buffalo Regatta heats take place on Thursday with the majority of the finals on Saturday.
The East London Boating Association’s Kate Godfrey said they wanted to raise awareness regarding the Coastal Shoot-out.
“We want people to come and try out aspects of the sport, not just the traditional rowing we know.
“Beach sprinting is part of the Olympics. We have done some events before, but we want people to get used to the concept more,” she said.
The Buffalo Regatta has been running for more than 140 years and is among SA’s longest-running competitive sporting events.
It is among the top events that bring revenue to the Buffalo City tourism sector.
Over the past five years, it has been dominated by the University of Pretoria.
In 2025, the major trophies were claimed by the institution’s rowers.
University rower Paige Badenhorst became the first recipient of the Oarsome Hare trophy after winning the senior women’s single sculls.
The Tuks foursome of Chloe Cresswell, Doné Erasmus, Courtney Westley and Katherine Williams became the inaugural quad to win the Power of the Pride title, awarded to the senior women’s four.
In the men’s section last year, SA Olympian Christopher Baxter of Tuks stripped Bales-Smith of his Silver Sculls title earned in 2024.
Tuks also won the Grand Challenge for the senior men’s coxless fours.
The Women’s Sculls promises to be a standout contest this weekend.
Though Badenhorst is touted to defend her titles due to her form after achieving an impressive 8th-place finish at the World Rowing Championships in China, she will face fierce competition from Westley.
Westley edged Badenhorst in a tight encounter at the recently held VLC Sprints.
Westley is also in hot international form after winning silver in the women’s pair at the World University Games, alongside Kat Williams.
Zimbabwean lightweight Erasmus is another name expected to have a go at the women’s individual title.
She was recently an A-finalist at the U23 World Championships.
The Baxter and Murray rivalry is expected to be in motion again for the men’s title.
They will be pushed hard by Troy Zillen and Damien Bonhage-Koen, who are dark horses.
St Andrew’s School for Girls, based on recent form, are favourites for the schoolgirls’ titles while, for the boys, St Benedict’s College are tipped to walk away with the title.
Additional reporting by NovusPressBulletin
Daily Dispatch
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