The South African Masters surfing team is set to defend four World titles at the ISA World Masters Surfing Championships which get underway with the Parade of Nations and Sands of the World ceremonies on the Pacific coast of Panama later today (Saturday).

After a 40-hour journey that saw the team fly to Sao Paulo, Panama City and Santiago before embarking on a 5-hour overland trip to the contest venue of Santa Catalina, the South Africans have enjoyed excellent surf in the 2-2.5 metre range for the past two days.

“We’ve settled in well at Santa Catalina, a very rustic village on the edge of the jungle with incredible rainfall – there was 200mm overnight,” said team captain Marc Wright, who will be defending the Kahunas (over 45 year-old) title he won at the last ISA Masters event in Peru in 2008.

“The spirit in the team is fantastic and it’s such an honour to be appointed captain given the amount of experience the other guys have. We’ll be going all out to bring home the gold,” the Durbanite added.

Andrew Banks (Port Shepstone), a semi-finalist and member of title winning 2008 SA team, concurred by saying, “Santa Catalina is an awesome place to compete and the wave is pretty tricky – big, powerful and perfect. We traveled for 40 hours to make it here and we intend to take the trophy home for the third consecutive year.”

The event features a veritable United Nations of surfing with more than 120 surfers, all 35-and-older, from 21 countries competing in the Masters (o/35), Grand Masters (o/40), Kahunas (o/40), Grand Kahunas (O/50) and Women’s Masters (o/35) divisions.

Team SA holds the proud tradition of having won the team gold medal at both the previous editions of the event – in Puerto Rico (2007) and Peru (2008). Along with Wright in the Kahunas, Chris Knutsen (Durban) will be defending the Grand Kahunas title (he was also crowned Kahunas champion in Puerto Rico) and Heather Clark (Port Shepstone) is the defending Women’s Masters champ.

The rest of the South African team is made up of Masters Wayne Monk (East London), Grand Masters Andre Malherbe (EL) and Robert Moore-Boyle (Durban) and David Malherbe (Coffee Bay), a two-time finalist in the Grand Masters division who has moved up to the Kahunas this year.

The team is coached for the third time by 1977 ISA World Champion Ant Brodowicz (Margate) and the manager is Dave Fish from East London.

On Saturday the international teams will march through the streets of Sona, 45 minutes from Santa Catalina, in the Parade of Nations before attending the Sands of the World and Opening ceremonies.

The first heats in the ISA World Masters Surfing Championships get underway at Santa Catalina on Sunday morning with Round 1 of both the Masters and Grand Masters scheduled for completion.

The event uses a double-elimination format that sees the top two in each four-man heat progress in the ‘qualifiers’ stream while those finishing outside the top two drop into the cutthroat ‘repecharge’ rounds where anything other than a top two placing  means elimination from the event.

All the action from the event, including live webcasts, daily videos, photos and contest news in both English and Spanish can be found at www.panamaisaworldmasters.com. The event is scheduled to start at 6.30am local time daily. (1.30pm SA time).

Event updates are also available through the ISA Facebook, Twitter and YouTube accounts.

The SA Masters Team preparations and attendance at the 2010 ISA World Masters Championships is made possible thanks to a R150 000 grant from the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF).

Ends

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About the International Surfing Association (ISA)
The International Surfing Association (ISA) is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the World Governing Authority for Surfing. It was originally founded as the International Surfing Federation in 1964 and has been running world championships since 1964 and the Junior World Championships since 1980.  

ISA membership includes the surfing National Governing Bodies (NGBs) of over 60 countries on six continents. Its headquarters are located in San Diego, California. It is presided over by Fernando Aguerre, first elected in 1994 in Rio, and re-elected six times since.  The ISA’s four Vice Presidents are Alan Atkins (Australia), Robin de Kock (South Africa), Mike Gerard (USA) and Karín Sierralta (Peru).

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Surfing South Africa

Contact:            Robin de Kock, General Manager 
Cell:                  082 454 1149
Email:               surfingsouthafrica@gmail.com

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World Champion Marc Wright of Durban North will captain the South African Masters Team at the ISA World Masters Championships in Panama. The 49 year old was named captain of the team at the recent training camp in Coffee Bay.

Team South Africa are the defending World Champions having won the team title at both previous World Masters events in Puerto Rico in 2007 and Peru in 2008.

The team will make the long journey to Panama in Central America on Monday (August 23) after a seven week wait for their visas. According to team coach Ant Brodowicz the eight surfers in the side are fit and raring to show the world why they are the champions.

The team contains three World Champions in Wright, Heather Clark of Port Shepstone and Chris Knutsen of Durban. This trio are joined by regular World Masters Championship finalists David and Andre Malherbe of East London, former SA Masters Champion Andrew Banks of Port Shepstone and new Masters caps Wayne Monk of East London and Rob Moore Boyle of Westville.

Over 160 surfers from 17 nations will be competing in the ISA World Masters Championships which begin on August 27 and end on August 4.

The SA Masters Team preparations and attendance at the 2010 ISA World Masters Championships is made possible thanks to a R150 000 grant from the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF).

2010 South African Masters Surfing Team
Over 35 (Masters) : Wayne Monk (Border), Andrew Banks (SKZN)
Over 40 (Grandmasters) : Andre Malherbe (Border), Robert Moore Boyle (CKZN)
Over 45 (Kahunas) : David Malherbe (Border), Marc Wright (CKZN)
Over 50 (Grandkahuna) : Chris Knutsen ( CKZN)
Women Over 35 : Heather Clark (SKZN)

Coach : Antoni Brodowicz (SKZN)
Manager : Dave Fish (Border)

Ends

Compiled by

Robin de Kock
General Manager
Surfing South Africa
082 454 1149

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Twelve surfers, a coach, judge and manager have been selected to compete in an international surfing contest in Reunion Island from October 14-16.

The SA Junior Invitation team is made up of surfers whose contest performances have impressed the national selectors over the last twelve months.

Heading the group is talented Jeffreys Bay surfer Bertie Stuurman who, along with SA Championship runner up Alice McGregor of East London, will surf in the U20 Boys and Girls Divisions respectively.

Jacob Mellish of Somerset West, the reserve for the Under 18 Division of the 2010 SA Junior surfing team, gets his chance to compete internationally along with ISA Scholarship recipient Papi Makinyane of Delft and top Durban surfer David Van Zyl.

The three Under 18 girls are 2010 SA Junior team reserve Holly Armstrong of Scarborough, fellow WP surfer Sabrina Scott of Glencairn and up and coming Nikita Kekana of Durban.

SA Grommet Games U16 Boys champion, Marshall Renz of Jeffreys Bay, will be joined by SSA Scholarship recipient Brandon Benjamin of Retreat while the U16 girls are SA Grommet Games winner Micaela Venter of Durban and talented Emma Smith of Jeffreys Bay.

Eastern Province Surfing Council stalwart Brian Abrahams has been appointed Manager, WP’s Craig Johnson will coach the team and Grant Arendse of Strandfontein will accompany the group as a Judge.

The tour by the SA Invitation Team is both a competitive visit to the volcanic island as well as a reciprocal cultural exchange. A group of surfers from Reunion visited Cape Town and Durban last year, competing in two separate events and staying with South African families.

The project is a major talent identification initiative and the trip is supported by funding from the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund.

Surfing South Africa is the governing body for the sport and is recognized by Sport and Recreation SA (SRSA). SSA is a member of the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) and the International Surfing Association (ISA). All South African teams are chosen by a selection committees appointed by the Board of Directors of Surfing South Africa.

Ends

Compiled by Robin de Kock
General Manager
Surfing South Africa
surfingsouthafrica@gmail.com
0824541149

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Surfing South Africa has announced the names of the 2010 South African Masters Team that will compete in the ISA World Masters Championships in Peru in August and September.

The SA Masters Team preparations and attendance at the 2010 ISA World Masters Championships is made possible thanks to a R150,000 grant from the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF).

Included in the side are Over 50 World Champion Chris Knutsen, Over 45 Champion Marc Wright (both Durban) and Heather Clark of Port Shepstone, the over 35 Women’s World Champion. All three were members of the South African team which won its second successive World Team title in Peru in 2008.

The balance of the team is made up of former two time SA Men’s champion and new cap Wayne Monk of Gonubie and 2009 SA Masters Champion Andrew Banks of Uvongo. Monk and Banks will compete in the Over 35 age group where Gary Van Wieringen of Warner Beach is the non travelling reserve.

Andre Malherbe of East London, who will represent the SA Masters Team for the fourth year in a row, and new cap Robert Moore Boyle of Westville compete in the Over 40 age group where Gareth Sepp of East London is the non travelling reserve.

Wright will be joined by multiple SA Champion and four time Masters team member David Malherbe of Coffee Bay in the Over 50 age group and Mike Brent of Border is the non travelling reserve.

2007 and 2008 World Champion Chris Knutsen will travel to Panama with Team Manager Dave Fish of East London as the reserve in this division.

Ant Brodowicz of Margate, the 1978 World Champion and the coach who guided the 2007 and 2008 SA Masters teams to victory at the respective World Championships and also coached the team in Namibia last year, will take on the coaching duties for the fourth year in a row.
Dave Fish, the Border Surfriders Association President who competed in the 2009 SA Masters team, will be the South African Team Manager .

The 2010 ISA World Masters Championships are scheduled to get under way on August 27 in Santa Catalina in Panama.

South Africa will be joined by the hosts, Panama, and 14 other countries at this international team event.

2010 South African Masters Surfing Team

Over 35 (Masters) : Wayne Monk (Border), Andrew Banks (SKZN) : Non travelling reserve : Gary van Wieringen (SKZN)

Over 40 (Grandmasters) : Andre Malherbe (Border), Robert Moore Boyle (CKZN) : non travelling reserve : Gareth Sepp (Border)

Over 45 (Kahunas) : David Malherbe (Border), Marc Wright (CKZN) : non travelling reserve : Mike Brent (Border)

Over 50 (Grandkahuna) : Chris Knutsen ( CKZN)

Women Over 35 : Heather Clark (SKZN)

Coach : Antoni Brodowicz  (SKZN)

Manager : Dave Fish (Border)

Ends

Compiled by
Robin de Kock
General Manager
Surfing South Africa
surfingsouthafrica@gmail.com
0824541149
www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

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South African junior surfer Dylan Lightfoot stunned his Kiwi counterparts by clinching victory in the premier Under 16 boys division of the Billabong Grom Series presented by Oceanbridge at Mount Maunganui in New Zealand on Sunday.

Lightfoot, a member of the South African junior surfing team that achieved its best ever result of fourth in the recent ISA World Junior Surfing Championships in New Zealand in January, defeated the cream of the Kiwi juniors in the small but contestable 0.5 to 0.75 metre waves on offer at the venue of Tay Street.

“I struggled out there today.  I am much bigger than Kiwi boys” commented the 15 year-old from Jeffreys Bay.  “They were flying across the waves doing all these turns.  I was just lucky to get that one wave and get a good score to push me into the lead.”

In the final Lightfoot battled to find high scoring rides in the small conditions, racking up a best score of 4.5 out of a possible 10 in the shore pound.  However, late in the heat he finally latched on to a wave that ran down the beach and proceeded to hit the lip several times until he finished on the beach.  The score came in at 8.5 points and that was enough to catapult him from third to first with a 13.0 point heat total.

Placing second in the final was Adam Grimson (Gis) who opted to surf up the beach by himself.  The tactical move paid off for 20 minutes of the final after catching some long lefthanders but he couldn’t match the power of Lightfoot and had to settle for second.  Dual finalist Dune Kennings (WGM) finished third while Sandy Bay surfer Patxi Scott-Arrieta finished the final in fourth place.

The New Zealand media reported the victory under the headlines ‘South African Stomps Opponents Into Submission’ and went to report ‘South African surfer Dylan Lightfoot came and conquered at the first event of the Billabong Grom Series presented by Oceanbridge …..  The lone South African contesting the event won the premier Under 16 Boys Division.’

Lightfoot, along with his family, has been in New Zealand for four weeks surfing breaks around New Zealand and also competing at the ISA World Junior Championships where he placed 19^th overall, the highest of the four SA boys in the U16 division 

He added Billabong Grom series contest to his travels and from day one of the event became the favourite and one to beat. Lightfoot will also participate in the second leg of the series which takes place at Whangamata next weekend (12-14 February).

/ends

Issued on behalf of:

Robin de Kock
General Manager
Surfing South Africa
surfingsouthafrica@gmail.co.za
0824541149
www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

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Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
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Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

 
The South African Junior Surfing team secured fourth place overall along with a haul of four medals – two bronze and two copper – at the 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships which ended in good one metre conditions at Piha Beach in New Zealand today.

The podium finish and copper medal was South Africa’s best team result since the ISA World Junior Championships became a stand-alone event in 2003, having finished fifth three times, seventh twice and sixth at last year’s event in Ecuador.

The other South African medals were earned by Sarah Baum (Athlone Park) who placed third overall for bronze in the U18 girls; team captain Beyrick de Vries (Umhlanga) who pocketed the copper medal for fourth place in the U18 boys and the Tag-Team who clinched the bronze when they placed third overall in the Aloha Cup event yesterday.

De Vries stormed through the six rounds of theU18 boys qualifying stream, convincingly winning the Round 6 heat over Jordin Watson (AUS) to advance to the Grand Final as the favourite. But Gabriel Medina (BRA) and Tamaroa McComb (TAH) emerged from the cutthroat repecharge rounds and dominated the final match-up.

Medina was simply unbeatable, posting a perfect 10 point ride along with a 9.90 for a heat tally of 19.90 and the gold medal. Watson grabbed the silver, just 0.02 of a point ahead of McComb with de Vries in fourth place.

Baum also progressed straight through the five rounds of the U18 girls, advancing to the Grand Final in second place behind eventual gold medalist Tyler Wright (AUS). Alessa Quizon (HAW) and Lakey Peterson (USA) survived the repecharge final and the Hawaiian went on to claim the silver with Baum taking bronze and Peterson the copper.

Matt Banting (AUS) won the U16 boys from Jake Halstead (USA), Koa Smith (HAW) and Hiroti Arai (JAP) to give Australia their second individual gold and helped them secure their fifth consecutive team title at the event, and sixth triumph in the eight year history of the tournament.

Baum and de Vries’ finals results were sufficient to boost South Africa’s team total past France and into a medal-winning fourth place behind Australia, Hawaii and the USA. France finished fifth, Tahiti sixth and hosts New Zealand seventh.

Video highlights, images and full results of all the heats in the 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships are available at www.isaworldjuniors.com

The 2010 South African Junior Surfing Team is supported by the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF) and clothed by Quiksilver with additional support from Skullcandy and Power Balance.

See Surfing South Africa’s daily Press Release, photos and video footage focusing on the progress of the South Africans at www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships

Results

GIRLS UNDER 18

1          TYLER WRIGHT                  AUSTRALIA
2          ALESSA QUIZON                HAWAII
3          SARAH BAUM                     SOUTH AFRICA (Athlone Park)
4          LAKEY PETERSON            USA

=13     Bianca Buitendag                George
=29     Tanika Hoffman                   Kommetjie
=41     Heidi Palmboom                  Bluff

BOYS UNDER 18

1          GABRIEL MEDINA              BRAZIL
2          JORDIN WATSON               AUSTRALIA
3          TAMAROA MCCOMB         TAHITI
4          BEYRICK DE VRIES          SOUTH AFRICA (Umhlanga)

=19     Michael February                 Kommetjie
=25     Davey Brand                         Kommetjie
=31     Dane Staples                        St Francis Bay

BOYS UNDER 16

1          MATT BANTING                   AUSTRALIA
2          JAKE HALSTEAD               USA
3          KOA SMITH                          HAWAII
4          HIROTI ARAI                        JAPAN

=19     Dylan Lightfoot                     Jeffreys Bay
=22     Steven Sawyer                     Jeffreys Bay
=22     Jarred Veldhuis                    Kommetjie
=37     Diran Zakarian                     Melkbosstrand

ALOHA CUP

1          AUSTRALIA 
2          FRANCE      
3          SOUTH AFRICA     
4          HAWAII         

TEAM

1          AUSTRALIA 
2          HAWAII         
3          USA   
4          SOUTH AFRICA
5          FRANCE
6          TAHITI
7          NEW ZEALAND      

Ends

Distributed on behalf of:

Surfing South Africa

Contact:            Robin de Kock: General Manager (in New Zealand)
Email:               surfingsouthafrica@gmail.com 
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Compiled & Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
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Team South Africa clinched the first of what they hope will be four medals at the 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships in New Zealand when the five-person tag-team squad clinched the bronze in the Aloha Cup event on Wednesday.

After convincingly winning their semifinal match-up on Tuesday and advancing to today’s final with runners-up Australia and alongside France and Hawaii from the second semi, Team SA went into the finale with high hopes. But with just 20 minutes remaining in the one hour decider, they trailed in last place and it was thanks to an inspired effort by Steven Sawyer and outstanding time management by Bianca Buitendag that they managed to overtake Hawaii and secure third place.

Sawyer, the U16 boys’ representative in the squad, surfed the fourth leg and completed his two scoring rides quickly, giving Buitendag just seven minutes to complete her two rides and get back into the team enclosure. The 16 year-old from George caught two small waves and then sprinted back up the beach, getting home three seconds before the siren sounded to avoid the 5 point penalty that would have seen SA finish in fourth spot.

The gold medal in the Aloha Cup went to Australia who fought a see-saw battle against France until their female representative, Tyler Wright, eventually sealed the deal in the final minutes and consigned the Europeans to the silver medal.

South Africa still have two team members in contention for individual medals and will be hoping that Beyrick de Vries in the U18 boys and Sarah Baum in the U18 girls reach their respective Grand Finals. Not only will this guarantee the two surfers medals, it will also boost the team tally and possibly qualify Team SA for a fourth medal in the team standings.

De Vries, the Umhlanga based team captain, delivered yet another strong display today, posting a pair of six point rides to finish second behind Tahitian Tamaroa McComb and move to within one heat of the Grand Final. A first or second place in the Round 6 qualifying stream heat tomorrow will see de Vries directly into the medals while a third or fourth place sees him drop into the repecharge rounds where he will have another chance to reach the medal heat.

Baum (Athlone Park) finds herself in the identical position, having progressed to the final heat of the girls qualifying stream two days back.

The Jeffreys Bay pair of Dylan Lightfoot and Steven Sawyer had their campaigns ended in the same heat today when they finished third and fourth respectively in Round 6 of the U16 boys’ repecharge stream and were eliminated in 13^th and 16^th place overall in their division.

The entire SA contingent will be cheering for de Vries and Baum’s every manoeuvre during tomorrow’s final day. Surfing commences at 9.00am (10pm today SA time) with video, commentary and scoring webcast LIVE at www.isaworldjuniors.com

The 2010 South African Junior Surfing Team is supported by the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF) and clothed by Quiksilver with additional support from Skullcandy and Power Balance.

See Surfing South Africa’s daily Press Release, photos and video footage focusing on the progress of the South Africans at www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

Ends

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Surfing South Africa

Contact:            Robin de Kock: General Manager (in New Zealand)
Email:               surfingsouthafrica@gmail.com
Web:                www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

Compiled & Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
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Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

Four South African surfers remain in contention for medals at the 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships in New Zealand after a day of exceptional waves and high quality surfing at Piha Beach on Tuesday.

Excellent two metre hollow waves fanned by a strong offshore wind resulted in performance levels soaring as the world’s best 18-and-under surfers utilised their full repertoire of manoeuvres to impress the judges.

Birthday girl Sarah Baum moved another step closer to the Grand Final of the U18 girls’ division, squeaking through to the last four in the qualifying stream by earning 7.0 points out of 10 for her second ride and then posting 4.50 points for a ride that ended just 6 seconds before the final siren to snatch second place from Alessa Quizon (HAW).

Baum (Athlone Park), who turns 16 today, will be up against heat winner Tyler Wright (AUS), along with Malia Manuel (HAW) and Felicity Palmateer (AUS) from the first qualifying semifinal, in Round 5 where the top two advance directly into the Grand Final and are guaranteed a gold, silver, bronze or copper medal.

Team SA captain Beyrick de Vries charged into the last six in the U18 boys’ qualifying stream, delivering the second highest heat score of Round 4 – 15.0 points out of 20 – and finishing ahead of Portugal’s Fredericko Morais and the Brazilian pairing of Gabriel Medina and Jesse Mendes.

Both Brazilians incurred interference penalties and were relegated to the repecharge rounds as de Vries progressed to within two heats of the Grand Final in his division.

“It’s always nice to get through a heat,” said de Vries. “Especially to win gives my confidence levels a little boost. I’m feeling good.”

Commenting on the interference penalties, De Vries said he steered clear of his fellow competitors in the action-packed affair.

“At this point of an event everyone wants it so bad,” he said. “It’s so close; you can just smell the finals. People are willing to do anything to win. I just stayed away from my fellow competitors and tried to do my own thing.”

The Jeffreys Bay duo of Steven Sawyer and Dylan Lightfoot kept alive their challenge in the U16 boys’ division. Sawyer’s inspired run in the qualifiers came to an end in Round 4. He finished fourth in that heat and dropped to repecharge Round 6 where he comes up against Lightfoot, who has already progressed through two repo heats, along with a Tahitian and a Hawaiian.

Such is the grueling nature of the repecharge rounds that the pair will need to finish first or second in five consecutive heats to reach the Grand Final and qualify for a medal.

Team SA slipped one position to fifth place on the provisional overall team standings after a further four team members eliminated on Tuesday. The USA tops the rankings ahead of Australia, Hawaii and France. Tahiti and hosts New Zealand are in sixth and seventh spots with two days of competition remaining.

Team SA casualties on Day 6 included Jarred Veldhuis (Kommetjie) who finally succumbed in his fifth U16 boys’ repo heat to end equal 22^nd overall, contributing 375 points to the team total.

Bianca Buitendag dropped to the repos after Round 3 in the U18 girls. Although she won her Round 4 repo heat, the 16 year-old from George slipped to third place in her Round 5 heat and was ousted in equal 13^th spot with 450 team points.

The Kommetjie pair of Davey Brand and Michael February were also sidelined, Brand placing =25^th overall with 360 points while February ended equal 19^th with a haul of 390 points.

Team SA bounced back convincingly in the semifinals of the Aloha Cup where five person squads from the top eight countries at the previous year’s ISA World Junior Championships compete in a tag-team format.

South Africa came up trumps in semi one beating Australia, New Zealand and Portugal. Team SA accrued a 52.40 point total to progress alongside Australia (50.35) into the final.

Semi two was a tight affair, with Hawaii finishing in the lead with a 46.3 total. In second was France (40.60), with Tahiti just .45 of a point behind on 40.15 and Peru in fourth on 36.55.

The schedule for Wednesday’s action, which will all be held on the main podium, sees Round 5 of qualifying stream action for the U18 and U16 boys along with repecharge rounds 6,7 &8 for both boys’ divisions and Round 6 for the girls.

The day’s action will be completed by the final of the Aloha Cup.

Surfing commences at 8.00am daily (9pm today SA time) on both podiums with live action video, commentary and scoring webcast from podium one and live scoring from podium two at www.isaworldjuniors.com

The 2010 South African Junior Surfing Team is supported by the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF) and clothed by Quiksilver with additional support from Skullcandy and Power Balance.

See Surfing South Africa’s daily Press Release, photos and video footage focusing on the progress of the South Africans at www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

Ends

Distributed on behalf of:

Surfing South Africa

Contact:            Robin de Kock: General Manager (in New Zealand)
Email:               surfingsouthafrica@gmail.com
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PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
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Sarah Baum charged into the semifinals of the qualifying stream on Day 5 of the 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships in New Zealand as Team South Africa maintained a top four position in the team standings at the half way point of the world’s biggest annual event for surfers 18 and under.

Baum reveled in the clean one metre waves today, posting one of the top 10 heat totals of the Under 18 girls’ division to date – 13.0 points out of 20 – in winning her Round 3 heat to move into the last eight in the qualifying stream and she is now just two heats away from a place in the Grand Final.

After a slow start that saw her record just two short rides in first 10 minutes, the Athlone Park teenager who turns 16 tomorrow grabbed a narrow lead thanks to a solid 6.0 point ride at the halfway mark. She then cemented the victory with a manoeuvre packed ride that earned 7.0 with two minutes remaining.

Team SA captain Beyrick de Vries (Umhlanga) and Steven Sawyer (Jeffreys Bay) moved a step closer to higher honours by advancing to the last 12 in the qualifying stream of the U18 and U16 boys’ divisions respectively.

De Vries placed second behind good friend and former Kommetjie surfer Thomas Woods, now representing Australia, while Sawyer enhanced his already impressive credentials at the event by delivering the highest heat total of Round 3 in the U16 boys – 14.40 out of 20.

With three rounds of repecharge heats completed in each of the three divisions at the event, four members of Team SA have been eliminated from the event, leaving South Africa in fourth position in the standings. Hawaii, who still have their entire team in contention, USA with one out and reigning team champions Australia with two casualties, are in joint first position as the best three results from each division count.

Team SA is marginally ahead of hosts New Zealand (five out), France (four out) and Tahiti (six out).

Heidi Palmboom (Bluff) was the first South African eliminated, finishing fourth in her Round 2 repecharge heat for equal 41^st position overall in the U18 girls. Tanika Hoffman (Kommetjie) advanced to repo Round 3 where she too placed fourth for equal 29^th overall and contributed  340 points to the team total.

Dane Staples (St Francis Bay) is the only U18 boy on the sidelines, eliminated in third place in repo Round 3, while Diran Zakarian (Melkbosstrand) was ousted in U16 boys’ repo Round 2.

The Kommetjie duo of Davey Brand and Michael February have both advanced through two repecharge rounds to remain in contention in the U18 boys division. In the U16 boys, Jarred Veldhuis has been on fire since being relegated to the repecharge stream in Round 1. The 15 year-old from Kommetjie has won three successive heats to reach Round 4 where he is joined by Dylan Lightfoot (Jeffreys Bay) who also has posted victories in his two heats in the cutthroat repos.

The schedule for Tuesday’s action sees Rounds 3 qualifying stream action for all three divisions along with repecharge Rounds 4 & 5 for all. The day will be completed with the semifinals of the Aloha Cup where the top eight national teams from last year’s Quiksilver ISA World Junior Championships in Ecuador will compete in two heats of four in this form of relay surfing.

Surfing commences at 8.00am daily (9pm today SA time) on both podiums with live action video, commentary and scoring webcast from podium one and live scoring from podium two at www.isaworldjuniors.com

The 2010 South African Junior Surfing Team is supported by the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF) and clothed by Quiksilver with additional support from Skullcandy and Power Balance.

See Surfing South Africa’s daily Press Release, photos and video footage focusing on the progress of the South Africans at www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

Ends

Distributed on behalf of:

Surfing South Africa

Contact:            Robin de Kock: General Manager (in New Zealand)
Email:               surfingsouthafrica@gmail.com
Web:                www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

Compiled & Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Fax:             +27 (0) 86 684 6250
Mobile:         +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

Steven Sawyer was the star for Team South Africa on Day 3 of the 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships in New Zealand, winning his Round 2 heat to become the sole SA team member remaining in the qualifying stream of U16 boys’ division at the world’s biggest event for surfers 18 and under.

As somewhat calmer but still wild weather and unruly two metre waves continued to plague the event, organisers opted to use only the main podium for competition today and completed the U18 boys repecharge Round 1 after the U16’s wrapped up.

Sawyer completed a come-from-behind victory to advance to Round 3 of the qualifying stream along with heat runner-up Braye Mihimana of Tahiti, while Isaiah Moniz (HAW) and Martin Jeri (PER), in third and fourth places respectively, dropped into the sudden-death repecharge rounds.

After briefly taking the lead with a 5.25 point ride at the 15 minute mark in the 25 minute encounter, Sawyer was overtaken by Moniz who posted the heat-high score of 7.50. The Jeffreys Bay teenager bounced back with a solid 4.90 with six minutes to go and held on for the heat win.

Diran Zakarian (Melkbosstrand) and Dylan Lightfoot (Jeffreys Bay) were relegated to the repecharge stream when they finished outside the top two in their respective U16 boys’ heats. Zakarian took to the surf in the first heat of the day and only managed to ride one wave for 2.50 points and fourth place.

In the last heat of the round, Lightfoot posted scores of 5.0 and 3.25 but was overshadowed by heat winner and already established international star Kolohe Andino (USA) and highly touted Australian Creed McTaggart, to finish third.

Team USA dominated proceedings today with all four U16 boys winning their heats and Andino posting both the highest single ride score of 9.0 out of 10 and heat tally of 15.75 out of 20.

Repecharge Round 1 for the U18 boys saw the first competitors eliminated from the 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships. After three days of competition, 11 of the 21 nations competing, including South African, still have all their team members in contention for the gold, silver, bronze and copper medals at stake for U16 & U18 boys, U18 girls and the team titles.

The schedule for Sunday’s action sees Rounds 1 & 2 of the U18 girls being run at the main podium. The second podium will be the venue for U16 boys’ repecharge R1 (featuring SA’s Jarred Veldhuis), U18 boys’ repecharge R2 (Dane Staples, Michael February & Davey Brand) and the U16 boys’ repecharge R2 (Diran Zakarian & Dylan Lightfoot, and Jarred Veldhuis if he progresses from R1).

Surfing commences at 8.00am daily (9pm today SA time) on both podiums with live action video, commentary and scoring webcast from podium one and live scoring from podium two at www.isaworldjuniors.com

The 2010 South African Junior Surfing Team is supported by the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF) and clothed by Quiksilver with additional support from Skullcandy and Power Balance.

See Surfing South Africa’s daily Press Release, photos and video footage focusing on the progress of the South Africans at www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

Ends

Distributed on behalf of:

Surfing South Africa

Contact:            Robin de Kock: General Manager (in New Zealand)
Email:               surfingsouthafrica@gmail.com
Web:                www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

Compiled & Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Fax:             +27 (0) 86 684 6250
Mobile:         +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za