Port Alfred will once again play host to the annual Mutual & Federal University Boat Race competition, which attracts sportsmen and women from around the country.
Port Alfred will once again play host to the annual Mutual & Federal University Boat Race competition, which attracts sportsmen and women from around the country.
This event, which started on 8 September, sees rowers from nine South African universities take on the Kowie River in a series of races, culminating in the final on Saturday 10 September.
Port Alfred buzzes with excitement for the three days of the races, as students from the nine universities show their support by dressing up in their university colours, painting their faces and dying their hair.
Competing universities include the University of Johannesburg, the University of Pretoria, Stellenbosch University, University of Cape Town, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Rhodes University, University of the Witwatersrand, University of Fort Hare and the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University.
“With its tides and sharp bends, Kowie is renowned for being tricky and unpredictable," explained Sean Kerr, a Rhodes University student rowing representative.
"The rowers spend a lot of time in Port Alfred during university holidays learning to navigate the course,” he said.
The annual boat race has been hosted by the town of Port Alfred since its inception, and Caroline Da Silva, sales executive of the competition's sponsor Mutual & Federal, believes that the hospitality of this Eastern Cape community is part of what makes this event such a success.
She expressed her gratitude to the hospitable people of Port Alfred, and also thanked the organisers, administrators and safety overseers who put their time and energy into the event.
