As part of the Proteas Fly Fishing Team, Marthinus Maritz (Grade 11), traveled to Czech Republic in August to participate in the World Youth Fly Fishing Championship in the beautiful region of South Bohemia, competing against the world’s best young fly fishermen.
After a few hours of sightseeing in Prague, the capital of Czech Republic, the team started preparing for the competition. They trained each day for at least 10 hours, as they still had daylight at 9pm and then did some fly-tying later in the evenings.
The opening ceremony was held on August, 10th where they were introduced to the other teams from Poland, Spain, USA, New Zealand, Czech, Belgium, Ireland and Slovenia.
The Vltava River was divided in five sectors for the competition. Two sectors were in Delvil’s Streams where the river does miracles along the huge boulders. Three more sectors were downstream of Vyššî Brod and in Rožmberk and Vltavou. The draws of the sectors, groups and beats were done and the competition started in earnest.
The competition lasted for three days, with two sessions of four hours each. The last hours of some of the sessions were done in total darkness, as it was overcast and it rained heavily.
Some wonderful fish were caught during this time – Rainbow & Brown Trout, Brook & Tiger Trout, Grayling etc. on mostly European Nymphing and Dry Fly techniques.
South Africa came 6th overall, which is a great achievement according to the coach and manager.
The championship was enjoyed by everyone, unforgettable experiences were gained and new lasting friendships were made.
Thank you to the coach, manager and many supporters back home who were backing our boys from all corners of the country.
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