Plastic & Chemical Trading Champions Msawenkosi Mtolo & River Protection

The Dusi Canoe Marathon in KwaZulu-Natal

The Dusi Canoe Marathon, held annually in KwaZulu-Natal which runs through the valley of a thousand hills from Pietermaritzburg to Durban is an adventure in the wilderness, a tough physical test and an epitome of the bond between athletes and the environment. In the 2025 edition, which took place from February 20 to 22, Plastic & Chemical Trading proudly sponsored Msawenkosi Mtolo, whose dedication and resilience led him to a commendable fifth-place finish in the marathon.

Msawenkosi Mtolo:
The Dusi Canoe Marathon is considered by some to be the toughest most physically demanding race in the world. Just to compete is hard enough but to train to win takes very special application. Plastic & Chemical Trading is immensely proud to support an athlete who in the pursuit of excellence is an inspiration and role model to the youngsters in the valley of a thousand hills where he comes from.

The Dusi since its inception just after the second world war has always been a great adventure. In the first event took place in 1950. Race founder Ian Player was the winner and only finisher arriving in Durban 6 days 8hours 15minutes after departing from Alexander Park. Sleeping in the valley, fighting off wildlife, heat and treacherous rapids he was the only one to finish from the 8 starters. The race remains today a great adventure, but the amount of plastic pollution in the river is a massive problem.

Highlighting Our Abuse of Our Rivers

Today with the rush of development and our poor stewardship of nature the race is fulfilling an important role in highlighting our abuse of our rivers. Every year the race and build up remind us that we have to do better in looking after our water. Plastic&Chemical Trading feel it is important to keep talking about these issues so together we can find lasting solutions.