Marie Coetzee Nieman - South African
Marie Coetzee Nieman - Member of the World Paddle Awards Academy
A landmark for the paddlesports community, it is an absolute honour to have Marie Coetzee Nieman as a member of the World Paddle Awards Academy.
Marie is the mother of Hendri Coetzee, the deceased South African paddling legend who was known across Africa and internationally for river exploration plus pioneering by kayak and raft. Marie upholds and extends the memory of her late son.
Hendri was declared dead in 2010 after being attacked and pulled under by a crocodile whilst leading a kayak descent documenting uncharted territory of the Lukuga River, one of the tributaries that flows into the Congo River – his body was never found.
Ex-special forces medic, Hendri received much acclaim for his 6700km source-to-mouth expedition of the Nile in 2004. He was further known for rafting and guiding descents on rivers in 10 different countries, 7 of which in Africa. In 2008 Hendri led a therapy program run by the Norwegian Government taking youth offenders from the Nile source in Uganda to South Sudan.
A highly spiritual man with an affinity for nature, Hendri walked 1000km from Mombassa to Rufigi River along the East African coastline, spent 3 months in the Congolese wilderness in 2009, did a 3-month meditation course in Thailand and had an honours degree in Psychology from the University of South Africa.
Hendri was not just a gifted athlete, but an incredibly talented and visual writer: his account of when he kayaked the Murchison Falls unsupported through Uganda's largest national park was published in Africa's Veins in 2004, his blog The Great White Explorer has had well in excess of 100,000 hits to date, furthermore he wrote a beautiful autobiographical account of some of his expeditions, which have since been published under the title of Living the Best Day Ever (LBDE) – his mother Marie, with the HCT team, were instrumental in managing and driving its publication.
Following the memorial service for Hendri held in Centurion, South Africa on 28th January 2011, some of his closest friends decided to form a committee to preserve his legacy through various initiatives under the banner of the 'Hendri Coetzee Trust (HCT) – to this day Marie has spearheaded the HCT.
Marie presently dedicates her time and energy to the HCT; its objectives are 1) to manage Hendri’s legacy, 2) to steer the publication of LBDE and encourage people to live their own best day ever through his words 3) to raise funds through innovative and creative outlets 4) to share the ripple effect of Hendri’s story promoting his timeless inspirational message and philosophy.
Additionally the HCT plans to do much-valued work for associated charities and worthy causes by offering financial support to projects that improve the quality of life for individuals and communities that were close to Hendri’s heart. The first project was the printing and selling of his book and the proceeds of the sales will then be made available for these worthy causes.
Marie's membership to the World Paddle Awards Academy is the paddlesport community's way of recognising Hendri's achievements, preserving his name as well as acknowledging the legacy and other charity work that Marie herself has done.
The HCT sponsored the 2015 WPA ceremony in Augsburg by providing the award-winners with copies of LBDE.
Links:
- Hendri Coetzee Trust: livingthebestdayever.com
- Sportscene's review of Living the Best Day Ever here.
