big mama almost alongside Mantra. Veteran marlin charter
captain Allan Myburgh who has seen many big blue marlin
from his home base in Madeira classed this fish as being
800 lb-plus.
We watched the fight from a fair distance and were devas-
tated when the big fish dived deep into the 2 000 metres of
ocean and could not be lifted. The line eventually gave under
the extra force being exerted as the crew tried to handline
the fish to the surface after radioing to Control to voluntarily
disqualify their fish.
The final tally for the 14 boats during the four-day tourna-
ment was 28 marlin released from approximately 60 reported
strikes. For marlin fishing this is an excellent result.
From a personal perspective my return to Mauritius to fish
the waters off Rivier Noir was an amazing experience and I
am extremely pleased I attended. The transformation is unbe-
lievable in all respects — facilities, boats, tackle, crews and themarlin fraternity that we experienced.
Pascal Henry and Albert Unienville and their team —
under the watchful eye of “doyen” Jean Pierre Henry himself
— executed a flawless event that easily compares with like-
styled events held worldwide. Congratulations on a job well
done.TOP SIX TEAMS- Russia 7 marlin 7 820 pts
- Reunion 3 marlin 3 270 pts
- South Africa 3 marlin 3 250 pts
- Slovenia 3 marlin 3 070 pts
- England 3 marlin 3 000 pts
- Bavaria 2 marlin 2 100 pts
18 • SKI-BOAT May/June 2017