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SADSAA NEWS AND VIEWS
THE 2024 SADSAA Annual General Meeting (AGM) was held in April and the attendance was excellent.
In general the AGM went well with all matters being dealt with in a constructive manner.The minutes will reflect that all reports were accepted without correction and that we have a group of portfolio holders who are working well together, with each looking after their respective portfolios.
We voted in a new Public Relations Officer,Jean Schoonhoven, but most of the other office bearers are continuing in their current positions.We welcome Jean to the team and know that he will bring a fresh set of eyes and energy to the Association.
Sadly, our long-serving secretary, Vikki Bezuidenhout, has decided it is time to move on.We thank Vikki for all the years of service she has given to SADSAA.We will announce her replacement as soon as the appointment has been finalised.Suffice it to say that Vikki has set a high standard, and we ask that you all support the new secretary as they find their feet in this challenging position.
Safety colours
Our National Safety Officers were pleased to announce that the following SADSAA Safety Colours will be issued from the provincial nominations received:
• Gary Lunt (BDSAA)
• John Luef (BDSAA)
• Keith Schmidt (EPDSAA)
• Tim Leach (FSDSAA)
• John Pumphrett (GDSAA)
• Abrie Coetzee (GWDSAA)
• Willem Pretorius (MDSAA)
• Jan Harm du Plessis (NDSAA)
• Herman Fourie (NDSAA)
• Johan Kuit (NDSAA)
• Chris Schorn (SCDSAA)
• Frank de Oliviera (SGDSAA)
• Pieter Welgemoed (WPDSAA)
• Gerry Delport (ZDSAA)
Special safety awards go to:
• Late Markus Fourie (GDSAA)
• Late Andrew Bowie (GDSAA)
We congratulate all these members and thank them for their dedication to SADSAA and the safety of small craft in South Africa.
Two internationals in a month
The month of May was a busy one! For the first time since 2019 when we hosted the Angling World Games in South Africa, we have been able to host not one, but two fully fledged international championships.
Five years ago, EFSA,the European Federation of Sea Anglers, asked us to host the 2024 EFSA Big Game Championships.EFSA has been hosted in South Africa in the past, and their members remembered it fondly and were looking for an opportunity to return to our fair shores for another go at the prolific tuna found in our Cape waters.
The initial request was for the tournament to be hosted from Simons Town, but due to a few logistical issues we moved it to Hout Bay and the Atlantic Boat Club (ABC).Plans could not have worked out better, and on 6 May we were finally able to welcome eight different nations and so the Championship began.
In the lead up to the EFSA Big Game Championship, our bottomfish anglers, having been made so welcome overseas at previous EFSA tournaments, approached various countries to come out earlier and join us at our SADSAA Bottomfish Nationals.The hope was that we would be able to run an international tournament alongside our nationals.
This invitation was eagerly accepted by Iceland and Gibraltar, and so, alongside the planning for the EFSA Championship,Nick Nel (SADSAA Local and International Tournament Officer) and his team started preparing for a second international.That competition would be held the week before the Big Game Championship, and was hosted by the Struisbaai Deep Sea Angling Club and Western Province.
The full report on that event appears elsewhere in this magazine, so I shall just say that it was a resounding success, and congratulations must go to all those who jumped in to make it so.
Before I share more about the tournament itself, allow me to give a very brief history of who and what EFSA is. According to their website, the European Federation of Sea Anglers was formed in 1961 by a group of international anglers who were taking part in a fishing festival being held out of Looe in England.
Many of these anglers had fished together for several years and seven nations were represented in this formative group:England,Belgium,France,Holland,Denmark,Norway, and Scotland.Within six months of its formation, no less than 16 countries were represented in the Federation, either by formation of member sections or affiliation of existing clubs.
The objects of the Federation, as laid down at the time of its formation and which are still in force today, are to promote the sport of sea angling and maintain the list of European Sea Fish Records, and to keep a watching brief on all commercial fishing activities in European waters.
As EFSA has grown, it has included countries such as South Africa and has hosted tournaments all around the world.Big Game is just one of the many facets of Saltwater Angling that they support and promote, with others being Shore,Boat and Species Angling.South Africa is active in most if not all of these disciplines, and so we are privileged to be able to compete in these various championships.
Back to the 2024 EFSA Big Game Championship.On the evening of 6 May,all the participating nations paraded down the quayside of the Hout Bay Harbour to the sound of the minstrels of the local Cape Malay marching band. Atlantic Boat Club,using the premises of their partner – the Lookout Restaurant,welcomed everyone to a three-course meal and the welcoming speeches and formalities.
Sadly,the one and only thing we were unable to control – the weather – did not play ball and so day one was a blowout.This did,however,allow the competitors time to get to know each other a little better and it was a merry group that found their way home that evening.
Day two promised great weather and delivered.All nine boats got away without incident, and it was with great anticipation that we awaited the first call up at 10am. Unfortunately it was disappointing to say the least, with no fish being intentionally released.
Our tuna fishery is amongst the best in the world with yellowfin, bluefin, big eye and longfin all present in our Cape waters, but it seems the fish were just not that hungry after such a bad blow the previous day.
Even the commercials were finding the fishing slow, but by the time the next call up came through, there were at least some numbers to indicate that the bite had come on a little later.
The tournament was fished on 24kg/50lb line and was a full measure and release competition, with the fish not being extracted from the water.A measuring tape was trailed alongside the catch and a video recorded the approximate size.This was then converted to points and the fish was released to swim away and fight another day.In the unfortunate situation where an animal did not survive, it did not count towards that team’s points for the day, so it was paramount that the teams handled all their fish with care and consideration.
As the boats started coming into the harbour, the videos started hitting the desktops of the adjudicators, and it was time to start reviewing them and assigning points to the individuals and their teams.The Protea Green boat took the day with four beautiful yellowfin counting to their tally.All in all, the teams had a good day on the water, but not many fish came out.
Day three was a go, and again all the boats got away well.This proved to be a far more productive day, despite the big swells that were pushing through, and as the call ups came in, it was obvious that the fleet had found the fish and were having some great fun.
By the end of day three,36 yellowfin had been measured and released. Sadly, this is where it stayed as day four was again a blow out.
The closing ceremony and medals prizegiving was held on Friday,10 may,and again we had an amazing evening with another superb three-course meal.One thing our visitors will not be able to moan about is the quality of the food throughout the tournament – it was truly first class!
The final standings saw Iceland taking gold with an incredible performance of seven fish caught on day three. Our South African team of nine anglers took silver, with the Barbarian team made up of anglers from Iceland,Belgium and Portugal taking bronze.The way the scoring went, a country could enter as many as three boats (nine anglers) and their score would be an average.
This was an excellent competition, and we thank all the skippers and deckhands who stepped up with their time and their vessels, for their dedication to our sport.
Thanks and congratulations to Nick, Vikki, Sonja and Roger Marias, and Chris Day and his team from ABC – we salute you.
Until next time, we wish you all tight lines.
Keep up to date with all the SADSAA news by visiting our website www.sadsaa.co.za or our facebook page @sadeepseaanglingassociation
