Mike Arbuthnot has gone 44 from 44. The 86-year-old completed, in 2017, his 44^th Midmar Mile out of the 44 editions held.

That kind of consistency and dedication is unparalleled in the open water swimming world. He has done a total of over 80 swims across the Midmar Dam and keeps training and maintaining his healthy lifestyle. For his original vision in creating the Midmar Mile, for this decades-long commitment to support the event in every and any means possible, and for his continued wellness that serves as an inspiration to those in the younger generations, Arbuthnot’s 42nd consecutive Midmar Mile swim is a worthy nominee for the 2015 World Open Water Swimming Performance of the Year.

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Pietermaritzburg, the capital city of KwaZulu-Natal, boasts in hosting two annual internationally recognised events, both linking the City to Durban. The first is the famous Comrades Marathon and the second is the Duzi Canoe Marathon, which starts on 15 February 2018 and finishes at the Blue Lagoon in Durban on 17 February.
The history of the race is littered with legends. The idea of racing down the uMsundusi and uMngeni Rivers was born during World War II when Ian Player, while in Italy, came up with the idea of a race downriver from Pietermaritzburg to Durban.

This dream was finally realised when on 22 December 1951, eight paddlers set off from Pietermaritzburg. Six days, 8 hours and 15 minute later Ian Player (pictured) was the only paddler to finish, having survived two days of low rivers and then a flash flood and finally a night adder bite. When Player arrived in Durban he undisputedly became the first person to “do the Duzi”.

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