Billabong Girls Get Out There Summer Tour hits beaches countrywide in December

The Billabong Girls Get Out There Summer Tour hits the beaches of South Africa again this December, bringing its patented formula of fun in the sun, the healthy outdoor lifestyle, plenty of activities and heaps of give-aways and prizes to coastal towns in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern and Western Cape.

The 12-day, eight-stop tour starts in Ballito on 12 December with the Billabong surf team-riders and brand ambassadors traveling the length of the coastline introducing girls of all ages to the fun-loving lifestyle that includes learn-to-surf lessons, creative workshops, Yoga sessions and other energising activities.

Well known TV personality Marius Roberts will be presenting the beach activities as the tour also visits the premier holiday destinations of Umhlanga, Margate, Port Elizabeth, Plett, Mossel Bay, Big Bay and Camps Bay.

“The Girls Get Out There Summer tour is simply about having fun on the beach,” says Billabong Girls marketing manager Tara Hossack. “Billabong Girls is all about getting the girls out of the malls and onto the beaches to experience laughing, playfulness, family and friends … all set against a backdrop of sun, sand and surf!”

The activities on the Billabong Girls Get Out There Summer Tour are all absolutely free and girls countrywide are invited to bring their friends and family to the beach to enjoy the lifestyle, meet and mingle with SA’s surf stars and participate in the action.

The Neutrogena Surf School offers learn-to-surf lessons every hour, on the hour, using fully accredited surf instructors and all the necessary equipment at each stop on the tour. Sign up at the Neutrogena gazebo on a first-come, first-served basis and all participants’ names will be entered into the lucky draws for Neutrogena product hampers.

Bevcan are driving the message that cans are cooler, lighter, stronger and less dangerous than glass on our beaches! Come and have fun on their giant inflatable slide and enter their competition to stand a chance of winning a specially designed surfboard at each event!

Seventeen Magazine is focusing on all the things girls just love and have their portable photo booth where they will make you feel like a cover model! And there will be a creative area set up where girls can express their imaginative, original and artistic talents with paints on canvas or with beading.

Meet our Billabong Girl Surf Team and our Billabong brand ambassadors as they hit the beach to get you on film enjoying yourselves – all the fun and best moments will be uploaded onto Billabong.com, Facebook and YouTube and you may even get to see yourself on Vuzu TV (DSTV Channel 123).

The Billabong Girls Get out There Summer Tour is coordinated by Magnetic Events and proudly supported by Neutrogena, Bevcan, Seventeen, FNB, Vuzu, Sony, Von Zipper, Kustom and Nixon.

Watch out for the customised Billabong Girls Get Out There Summer Tour bus in these towns:

Saturday 12th – Willard Beach, Ballito (10am – 3pm)
Sunday 13th – Main Beach, Umhlanga (10am-3pm)
Monday 14th – Main Beach, Margate (10am-3pm)
Wednesday 16th – Hobie Beach, Port Elizabeth (10am-3pm)
Thursday 17th – Beacon Isle Main Beach, Plettenberg Bay (10am-3pm)
Saturday 19th – Dias Beach, Mossel Bay
Monday 21st – Big Bay, Bloubergstrand, Cape Town (10am-3pm)
Tuesday 22nd – Camps Bay, Cape Town (10am-3pm)

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Girls countrywide are invited to enjoy the natural fun-loving lifestyle when the Billabong Girls Get Out There Summer Tour visits the beaches of SA this December

Issued on behalf of:

Billabong South Africa

Tel:                   042 200 2600
Fax:                  042 293 2478
Email:               tara.hossack@billabong.co.za

Compiled & Issued 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

Thursday 19 November 2009 – South Africans Brandon Jackson, Rudy Palmboom Jnr. and Damien Fahrenfort were eliminated from the 6-Star Prime rated Reef Hawaiian Pro yesterday, leaving only Royden Bryson and Travis Logie still in contention in the penultimate event on the 2009 ASP World Qualifying Series (WQS) and the first event in the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing.

The event got underway last Thursday on the first day of the 12-day waiting period, with former Capetonian Fahrenfort advancing to the Round of 96 when he placed a comfortable second in his opening encounter held in wind affected 1 to 1.5 metre waves at Haleiwa.

Five consecutive days with strong winds, plenty of rain and small waves saw the event remain on hold until yesterday when the balance of the Round of 128 and the first 14 (of 16) heats in the Round of 96 were run in clean one metre surf.

Palmboom, 21, from the Bluff demonstrated the experience he gained from a great run in the corresponding event last year, easily winning his opening heat to join Fahrenfort in the last 96, along with Jackson (Durban North) and Bryson (Cape Town), both of whom were seeded to start in that round.

Fahrenfort was the first to be ousted, placing third in his heat behind Hawaiian standout Bruce Irons and emerging Brazilian star Alejo Muniz. Jackson could not find a second high-scoring ride to add to his best ride of 5.57 out of 10 and placed fourth. Palmboom suffered a similar fate when, needing a score of 6.10 to finish second and advance, he fell just short with a ride of 5.50 points.

The result is a blow to Jackson’s hopes of qualifying for the elite ASP World Tour for 2010. Rated No. 20 on the WQS going into this event, Jackson now needs a minimum of a semi-final finish at the last event of the 2009 season, the 6-Star Prime rated O’Neill World Cup of Surfing which starts 10 Kms away at Sunset Beach next Tuesday, to have any chance of finishing in the top 15 on the yearend ratings.

Bryson will start his campaign in the Haleiwa event in Heat No.15, the first heat to be run when competition resumes, while Logie (Durban), currently ranked No. 10 on the WQS but as yet not assured of a spot in the top 15 at yearend, gets his challenge underway in Heat No. 3 of the Round of 64.

The waiting period for the Reef Hawaiian Pro runs until Monday 23 November and all the action can be followed on the live webcast at www.triplecrownofsurfing.com where there are also videos of every heat already run. Note that Hawaii is 12 hours behind South Africa, e.g. 8am in Hawaii is 8pm in SA.

REEF HAWAIIAN PRO

Day 2 RESULTS:

Round of 128: Results shown in order of 1st place through 4th. 1st & 2nd advance

H12: Rudy Palmboom (ZAF), Hodei Collazo (EUK), Izuki Tanaka (JPN), Kai Barger (HAW)
H13: Sunny Garcia (HAW), Shaun Ward (USA), Christophe Allary (REU), Danny Fuller
H14: Adam Robertson (AUS), Ola Eleogram (HAW), Dane Gudauskas (USA), Bruno Rodrigues (USA)
H15: Ruben Gonzalez (PRT), Jesse Merle-Jones (HAW), Jack Perry (AUS), Ross Williams (HAW)
H16: Yuri Sodre (BRA), Torrey Meister (HAW), Dylan Graves (PRI), Kamalei Alexander (HAW)

Round of 96:
H1: Granger Larsen (HAW), Jarrad Howse (AUS), Nathaniel Curran (USA), Dylan Melamed (HAW)
H2: Bruce Irons (HAW), Alejo Muniz (BRA), Damien Fahrenfort (ZAF), Pablo Paulino (BRA)
H3: Flynn Novak (HAW), Taylor Lincoln (AUS), Brad Ettinger (USA), Drew Courtney (AUS)
H4: Cory Lopez (USA), Jay Thompson (AUS), Dylan Goodale (HAW), Brandon Jackson (ZAF)
H5: James Taipan Wood (AUS), Evan Valiere (AUS), Leonardo Neves (BRA), Luke Munro (AUS)
H6: Joel Centeio (HAW), Nathan Hedge (AUS), Miguel Pupo (BRA), Nic Muscroft (AUS)
H7: Andre Silva (BRA), Marcia Farney (BRA), Jihad Khodr (BRA), Yadin Nicol (BRA)
H8: Tanner Gudauskas (USA), Leigh Sledley (AUS), Luke Campbell (AUS), Raoni Monteiro (BRA)
H9: Nathan Yeomans (USA), Hank Gaskell (USA), Gony Zubrieta (ESP), Heat Joske (AUS)
H10: Alain Riou (PYF), Aritz Aranburu (EUK), Shaun Gossman (AUS), Gavin Gillette (HAW)
H11: Hodei Collazo (EUK), Brian Toth (PRT), Neco Padaratz (BRA), TJ Barron (HAW)
H12: Dion Atkinson (AUS), Marco Polo (BRA), Rudy Palmboom (ZAF), Jason Shibata (HAW)
H13: Sunny Garcia (HAW), Bernardo Miranda (BRA), Ola Eleogram (HAW), Thiago Camaro (BRA)
H14: Clay Marzo (HAW), Tim Reyes (USA), Adam Robertson (AUS), Shaun Ward (USA)

South Africa’s Rosanne Hodge (East London), currently rated No. 9 on the 2009 ASP Women’s World Tour, will also be in action in the event at Haleiwa in the Vans Hawaiian Pro, a specialty event featuring the ASP top 16 ranked females plus four wildcards.

For more information on the ASP Africa members, including profiles and rankings, visit www.aspafrica.com

Ends

Issued on behalf of:

ASP Africa
Contact: Colin Fitch – Operations Manager
Tel: 021 534 5738
Email: aspafrica@mweb.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

About ASP:

The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the governing body of professional surfing. Crowning surfing’s undisputed world champions since 1976, the ASP sanctions the following tours: the ASP World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, the World Qualifying Series (WQS) and the World Longboarding, Junior and Masters Championships. The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America.

South African Junior Surfing Championships
Surfing South Africa’s premier national junior tournament
Nahoon Reef, East London
Wednesday September 29 to Sunday October 4

Durban team successfully defends Freedom Cup at the 2009 South African Junior Surfing Championships in East London

The strong, highly motivated Durban based KZN team successfully defended the Freedom Cup at the South African Junior Championships in perfect surf at Nahoon Reef in East London yesterday (Sunday October 4) when they beat 2007 champions and arch rivals Western Province by a mere 476 points.

Eastern Province came third, hosts Border were fourth, Boland finished fifth, KZN South were sixth, Southern Cape seventh and the South African Development Academy Team were eighth.

The Durban team deservedly won the Team Spirit Trophy for their war cry, team spirit and support of each other throughout the championships.

 Defending U18 champion and WP captain Matthew Bromley was outstanding throughout the event and earned his victory in the premier division final. His 13.5 points were good enough to beat Beyrick de Vries of KZN who scored 12.75 to finish second. Nick Godfrey of Eastern Province was third with 11.4 points and Devin Lane of KZN posted 6.25 to end fourth.

Host province Border had something to celebrate when Alice McGregor beat Kirsty Delport of KZN to take honours in the U18 Girls Final. Holly Armstrong of Western Province was third and Alice’s twin sister Laurie came fourth.

In the Under 16 Boys final David Van Zyl of KZN scored 14 points which meant that 2008 runner up Mikey February had to settle for second spot once again. Jean du Plessis of Border came third and fourth place went to Ruben Lammers of Southern Cape.

With an air ticket to the 2010 Rip Curl Junior International up for grabs, defending U16 Girls champion Bianca Buitendag of Eastern Province powered her way to victory over fellow national junior team member Sarah Baum of KZN. Cara MacDonald of Border was third and Sabrina Scott of Western Province came fourth.

Newly selected SA Junior team member Diran Zakarian of Boland posted the highest score of all the finals, a massive 17.75 in the U14 Boys division to take the title away from 2008 champion Slade Prestwich of KZN. Benji Brand and fellow WP surfer Nic Notten, who was named the Most Improved surfer at the championships, were third and fourth respectively.

In the U14 Girls Division last year’s runner up, Carryn MacNicol of KZN, went one better and took gold while 2008 U12 Girls champion Inge McLaren of Border was second ahead of Nina Woermann of Western Province and Nicole Pallett of KZN.

The U12 Boy’s final was one of the best heats of the contest as the four talented surfers gave it their all in the perfect 3-4 foot Nahoon Reef surf. In the end Matthew McGillivray of Eastern Province, who was fourth in this division last year, edged out Jordy Maree of Western Province to take gold while Steffen Burrows and Boland teammate Adin Masencamp had to settle for third and fourth respectively.

Jordy Maree was named Surfer of the Contest for his outstanding surfing in all of the heats he competed in.

Plucky Chanelle Botha, who was fourth in this final in 2008, gave KZN South a title to take home when she beat Anoush Zakarian of Boland into second place in the Girls U12 division while Teal Hogg of KZN was third here just ahead of Kim van Greunen of Eastern Province.

The Sportsmanship trophy was awarded to Jarred Charlton of KZN South who went to the assistance of a teammate whose leash had broken during a heat.

The five day annual South African Junior championships got under way in tough 6 foot surf on Wednesday and was put under pressure by onshore surf, rain and mist on the final day which forced the event to go on hold for two hours. Overall however, Nahoon Reef lived up to its reputation as one of South Africa’s best reef breaks and the 200 or so surfers who competed in the event will return to their provinces having surfed in some of the most challenging waves of their lives.

The event was first held in 1996 and is the most important contest for junior surfers in South Africa. It not only determines National Champions in the Under 18, Under 16, Under 14 and Under 12 boys and girls age divisions but also determines the winning provincial team each year.

The Final results are available on www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

FULL RESULTS

U18 BOYS
1. MATTHEW BROMLEY (WP)
2. BEYRICK DE VRIES (KZN)
3. NICK GODFREY (EP)
4. DEVIN LANE (KZN)

U18 GIRLS
1. ALICE MACGREGOR (BOR)
2. KIRSTY DELPORT (KZN)
3. HOLLY ARMSTRONG (WP)
4. LAURIE MACGREGOR (BOR)

U16 BOYS
1. DAVID VAN ZYL (KZN)
2. MICHAEL FEBRUARY (WP)
3. JEAN DU PLESSIS (BOR)
4. RUBEN LAMMERS (SCAPE)

U16 GIRLS
1. BIANCA BUITENDAG (S/CAPE)
2. SARAH BAUM (KZN)
3. CARA MACDONALD (BOR)
4. SABRINA SCOTT (WP)

U14 BOYS
1. DIRAN ZAKARIAN (BOL)
2. SLADE PRESTWICH (KZN)
3. BENJI BRAND (WP)
4. NIC NOTTEN (WP)

U14 GIRLS
1. CARRYN MACNICOL (KZN)
2. INGE MCLAREN (BOR)
3. NINA WOERMANN (WP)
4. NICOLE PALLET (KZN)

U12 BOYS
1. MATTHEW MCGILLIVRAY (EP)
2. JORDY MAREE (WP)
3. STEFFEN BURROWS (BOL)
4. ADIN MASENCAMP (BOL)

U12 GIRLS
1. CHANELLE BOTHA (SKZN)
2. ANOUSH ZAKARIAN (BOL)
3. TEAL HOGG (KZN)
4. KIM VAN GREUNEN (EP)

FREEDOM CUP
1. KZN  40,826
2. WESTERN PROVINCE 40,350
3. EASTERN PROVINCE 35,506
4. BORDER 31,662
5. BOLAND  30,482
6. KZN SOUTH 30,312
7. SOUTHERN CAPE 23,740
8. DEVELOPMENT ACADEMY TEAM 19,982

SURFER OF THE CONTEST
JORDY MAREE (WP)

MOST IMPROVED SURFER
NIC NOTTEN (WP)

SPORTSMANSHIP TROPHY
JARRED CHARLTON (KZN SOUTH)

TEAM SPIRIT AWARD
KWAZULU-NATAL

Surfing South Africa is recognised as the governing body for the sport by the SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) and is a member of the International Surfing Association (ISA).

Ends

Compiled by:

Robin de Kock
Surfing South Africa
All media enquiries to surfingsouthafrica@gmail.com

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

Bianca Buitendag (George) on her way to victory in the Pro Junior women's division of the Billabong Junior Series event - Photo: Moonrocket / Billabong

2009 Billabong Junior Series
Event No. 3 of 3 on South Africa’s premier national junior surfing series
Victoria Bay, Southern Cape
September 23-26, 2009

Bianca Buitendag, 15, confirmed her credentials as one of South Africa’s foremost female surfers by defeating Chantelle Rautenbach in the final of Pro Junior women’s event on Day 3 of the Billabong Junior Series. 

The Southern Cape local steadily built her total during the final, starting with a flurry of low scoring rides before posting her title winning total of 15.0 out of 20 by scoring 7.25 and 7.75 on her last two rides. The victory in the Grade 1, ASP rated event earned Buitendag US $1 000 (approx. R7 500) and clinched the coveted 2009 Billabong Junior Series Pro Junior women’s title after her victory in the first event of the year in Scottburgh.

Buitendag started the day’s action by finishing second behind arch-rival and fellow 15-year-old Sarah Baum (Athlone Park) in the four-person quarterfinals but then reversed that result in the one-on-one semis to advance to the final. Rautenbach (Melkbosstrand) followed a similar route, qualifying for the semis in second place behind Tarryn Chudleigh (Kommetjie) before overcoming the WQS campaigner from Kommetjie to set up the finale against Buitendag.

Baum, with her victory in the first ASP Pro Junior women’s event to held in SA in May and her third place here, wrapped up the 2009 ASP Africa Pro Junior women’s title and receives the prestigious invitation to the Billabong ASP World Junior Championships in Sydney, Australia, for the second successive year.

Small waves forced the organisers to move the event from Victoria Bay to the nearby beach-break of Herold’s Bay and it proved an inspired decision when hip to head high predominantly left-breaking waves, sunshine and light winds combined to provide an ideal setting for the country’s best 20-and-under surfers to display their talent as the event moved towards its conclusion.

The Round of 16 in the ASP Grade 2, R75 000 Pro Junior men’s event produced fireworks from the outset when unseeded Shawn Dennis (Durban) and Bertie Stuurman (Jeffreys Bay), both of whom started in Round 1, eliminated No. 4 seed Shaun Joubert (Mossel Bay) and Kyle Beach (Queensburgh).

Heat 2 saw top seed Casey Grant (Scottburgh) and Beyrick de Vries (Umhlanga) lead throughout to dispatch No. 5 seed Kyle Lane (Umhlanga) and Matt Bromley (Kommetjie). The next heat began dramatically when Chris Leppan (Umhlanga) was given an interference penalty on his first ride and then posting an excellent 9.0 points on his next ride. With only half of his second best ride counting, Leppan still held on to win the heat and advance to the man-on-man quarter-finals along with second placed Klee Strachan (Winkelspruit).

Dale Staples (St Francis Bay) and Chad du Toit (Durban) progressed from the fourth heat to set up an exciting final day of competition on Saturday with eight surfers still in contention for the event crown, while the permutations for the 2009 Billabong Junior Series and ASP Africa Pro Junior titles and the top four ranked men who will join Baum in Sydney are still wide open.

The U16 boy’s quarterfinals produced great surfing and a major upset when top seed Michael February (Kommetjie) was dumped out of the event by Dane Staples (St Francis Bay) and fellow Kommetjie ripper Jarred Veldhuis, who snatched second place with a last minute 6.75. Dylan Lightfoot cruised to victory in his encounter and fellow Jeffreys Bay competitor Steven Sawyer opened with a 7.5 and then sat for 18 minutes waiting for a second ride, eventually taking the heat win with a 3.5 with two minutes to go.

The results of the U14 boys went mostly to the top seeds with Benji Brand (Kommetjie), Slade Prestwich (Scottburgh), Josh Smit (Athlone Park) and Diran Zakarian (Melkbosstrand) taking the heat wins. The only upset came when George local Daniel Buitendag, winner of the Billabong Occy Grom Comp in Jeffreys Bay, the second leg of the 2009 series, was pipped by Brandon Benjamin (Retreat) for a spot in the tomorrows semis.

The youngest division, the U12 boys, saw rising star Jordy Maree (Kalk Bay) record the highest heat total of the day when he racked up successive rides of 7.25, 8.0, 8.5 and 9.0, leaving him ‘throwing away’ the lowest two scores which would have won nearly every other heat on the day. Maree will be joined by heat winners Ethan Fletcher (Kommetjie), Shane Sykes (Salt Rock) and Donovan Wichmann (Marina da Gama) and their respective runners-up when the semis take to the surf on Saturday.

With small surf expected tomorrow, organisers will make a decision at first light on where to hold the final day of competition. The program features the quarterfinals of the Pro Junior men followed by the semifinals and finals of all four divisions before the spectacular Von Zipper Air Show completes the action in the surf.

The awards ceremony, where the Billabong Junior Series champions in all divisions will be crowned for the 13^th consecutive year, will be staged at the Ster Kinekor complex in George starting at 5pm. The South African premiere of the award winning surf movie ‘Still Filthy’ will take place immediately after the awards have been announced.

Video footage, images, results and news from the event are available daily at www.billabong.com. The TV documentary produced by Silver Bullet Productions will be broadcast on the DSTV channel Vuzu.

The U16, U14 and U12 events in the Billabong Junior Series form part of the Pro Surf Tour (PST) sanctioned by Surfing South Africa (SSA), the national controlling body for the sport. The internationally rated Pro Junior events are sanctioned by ASP Africa, the regional office for ASP International.

Other prizes will be awarded daily courtesy of Von Zipper, Kustom and Billabong.

Billabong Events & Contest Coordinator Laureen Payne can be contacted for queries at 042 200 2600 / 072 898 1001 / laureen.payne@billabong.co.za

The 2009 Billabong Junior Series started in Scottburgh (8-11 April) and continued with the inaugural Billabong Occy Grom Comp in Jeffreys Bay (9-15 July). The series concludes at Victoria Bay (23-26 September) where the series champions will be crowned for the 13^th time.

\ends

Issued on behalf of:

Billabong South Africa
Tel:    042 200 2600
Fax:    042 293 2478
Email:   laureen.payne@billabong.co.za

Compiled & Issued by:

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

 

Pictured: Pro Junior top seed Casey Grant was on fire Photo: Moonrocket / Billabong

Thursday 24 September 2009 

2009 Billabong Junior Series

Event No. 3 of 3 on South Africa’s premier national junior surfing series

Victoria Bay, Southern Cape

September 23-26, 2009

Casey Grant showed the way as the seeded surfers in the Billabong Juniors Series dominated proceedings on Day 2, producing an outstanding display of new school, innovative surfing in the overhead waves and variable weather conditions at Victoria Bay.

The top seed for the Grade 2, R75 000 Pro Junior men’s division, Grant employed his full repertoire of fins-free manoeuvres to post scores of 7.5 and 8.0 out of 10 to leave his opponents in the four-man heat scrambling for second place and a spot in the last 16. The 20-year-old from Scottburgh, who won the first event of the Billabong Junior Series at his home beach at Easter and also leads the 2009 ASP Africa Pro Junior ratings, remains on track for a slew of honours, including an invitation to the Billabong ASP World Junior Championships in Australia in January, if he can repeat his opening showing.

However, it won’t be easy as the likes of second seed Klee Strachan (Winkelspruit), Mossel Bay local Shaun Joubert, the Kommetjie trio of Matt Bromley, Brendon Gibbens and Michael February along with Chad du Toit (Durban) and Kyle Beach (Queensburgh) all delivered heat-winning performances in the rippable waves.

Bertie Stuurman (Jeffreys Bay) and Shawn Dennis (Durban) were the only two qualifiers from Day 1 to force their way into the next round while wildcard Remi Peterson (JBay) threw sheets of spray on his way to joining them.

The U16 boys division took to the surf as the onshore wind freshened and Josh Smit (Athlone Park) was most impressive, winning his heat and advancing along with second placed Dane Staples (St Francis Bay). Benji Brand (Kommetjie), the 13-year-old who is competing in the Pro Juniors (U20), U16 and U14 divisions, upset Scottburgh winner David van Zyl (Glenashley) by winning their match-up while Mikey Venter (Warner Beach) used a patient strategy to secure victory.

Top seed Michael February (Kommetjie) won his heat as did Daniel Wilson (Tokai), Diran Zakarian (Melkbos) and the Jeffreys Bay duo of Dylan Lightfoot and Steven Sawyer with Sawyer posting a ride of 9.0 in a heat that did not deliver many waves.

As conditions cleaned up, Vic Bay local Bianca Buitendag got the Grade 1, R18 000 Pro Junior women’s event underway in dramatic fashion by catching her first ride as the siren sounded and combining a series of vertical manoeuvres and sweeping cutbacks to earn a near-perfect 9.5 out of 10. Buitendag followed that up with an 8.25 on her next ride just six minutes later to leave her opponents comboed and needing to improve on both their rides throughout the heat.

Sarah Baum (Athlone Park), the top seed, won her encounter to advance to the last eight along with heat runner-up Kirsty Delport (Durban) while Chantelle Rautenbach (Melkbos) and Heidi Palmboom (Bluff) progressed from Heat 3 and multiple SA champion and current WQS campaigner Tarryn Chudleigh (Kommetjie) and Alice McGregor (East London) joined them in the next round.

As the swell dropped the U12 VonZipper Air Show produced explosive aerial action with Matthew McGillivray (Port Elizabeth) earning his berth in Saturday’s final alongside Slade Prestwich (Scottburgh) who won the U14 version yesterday. Two huge whales surfaced during the heat and, after gamboling on the other side of the bay, moved over to the take-off spot giving the youngsters some intimidating close-up views of their power.

Friday’s program sees the next rounds of the Pro Junior men, U16, U14 and U12 boys while the Pro Junior women will complete their Round of 8 and the one-on-one semifinals before the day ends with the women’s final.

Competitors, their families and VIP’s will be treated to the South Africa premiere of the award winning surf movie Still Filthy on Saturday. The performance will be at the Ster Kinekor complex in George on Saturday after the awards presentation where the Vic Bay event winners and the 13^th annual Billabong Junior Series champions in all divisions will be crowned.

Results from the event will also determine the 2009 ASP Africa Pro Junior men and women’s titles and the four men and one woman who will receive the coveted invitations to the Billabong ASP World Junior Championships in Sydney, Australia, in January 2010, the world’s premier annual junior surfing event.

Video footage, images, results and news from the event are available daily at www.billabong.com. The TV documentary produced by Silver Bullet Productions will be broadcast on the DSTV channel Vuzu.

The U16, U14 and U12 events in the Billabong Junior Series form part of the Pro Surf Tour (PST) sanctioned by Surfing South Africa (SSA), the national controlling body for the sport. The internationally rated Pro Junior events are sanctioned by ASP Africa, the regional office for ASP International.

Other prizes will be awarded daily courtesy of Von Zipper, Kustom and Billabong.

Billabong Events & Contest Coordinator Laureen Payne can be contacted for queries at 042 200 2600 / 072 898 1001 / laureen.payne@billabong.co.za

The 2009 Billabong Junior Series started in Scottburgh (8-11 April) and continued with the inaugural Billabong Occy Grom Comp in Jeffreys Bay (9-15 July). The series concludes at Victoria Bay (23-26 September) where the series champions will be crowned for the 13^th time.

\ends

Issued on behalf of:

Billabong South Africa

Tel:                   042 200 2600

Fax:                  042 293 2478

Email:               laureen.payne@billabong.co.za

Compiled & Issued by:

Life’s a Beach Communications

PO Box 48272, Kommetjie, 7976 South Africa

Tel / Fax:     +27 (0) 21 783 4965

Mobile:        +27 (0) 82 423 1964

Email:          lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

Pictured: Benji Brand (Kommetjie) Photo: Moonrocket Billabong

Wednesday 23 September 2009 

2009 Billabong Junior Series

Event No. 3 of 3 on South Africa’s premier national junior surfing series

Victoria Bay, Southern Cape

September 23-26, 2009

The third and final event in the 2009 Billabong Junior Series got underway today in overhead waves and light onshore winds that strengthened during the day at the picturesque venue of Victoria Bay in the Southern Cape.

More than 80 of South Africa’s best surfers aged 20-and-under and their entourages have flocked to the event which has R103 000 in prize-money at stake and will crown the series champions for the 13^th successive year. The results will also determine the ASP Africa Pro Junior (U20) titles for men and women and see prestigious invitations to the Billabong ASP World Junior Championships in Australia in January issued to the highest ranking four men and top ranked woman.

The competitors in Round 1 of the Pro Junior men were the first to take to the surf with Shawn Dennis (Durban) and Jacob Mellish (Somerset West) the standouts of the round, easily winning their respective heats and advancing to match-ups with the top 16 seeds in Round 2.

Others to impress included Slade Prestwich (Scottburgh), 14, who along with Daniel Wilson (Tokai), 16, caused the upset of the round by eliminating highly touted Jaco Steyn (Melkbosstrand) from the event. Heat 8, the final encounter of the round, was a non-stop affair with the lead changing hands after every ride before Justin Grey (Port Elizabeth) and Benji Brand (Kommetjie) secured their berths amongst the last 32.

Brand, 13, who is also competing in the U14and U16 divisions, was the top point scorer of the day, racking up a near perfect 9.0 point ride to go with a 7.0 that gave him a heat tally of 16.0 out of 20 while winning his U14 match-up. The stockily built goofy-foot also won his U16 heat with a 7.25 and a 6.0 to narrowly outpoint Sarah Baum, the top seed in the Pro Junior women’s division and one of three girls who are taking on the boys in the U16 age division.

Vic Bay local Bianca Buitendag (George) won her U16 heat to join Baum in the Round 2 of the U16 boys while Heidi Palmboom (Bluff), who was in the same heat as Brand and Baum, narrowly lost out when she finished third and will have to wait for the women’s event for her next competitive heat.

Standout performances also came from Dylan Lightfoot (Jeffreys Bay) in winning his U16 heat while in the U14’s, Max Armstrong (Scarborough) recorded the second highest heat total of the day’s action as he left all three of his opponents in a combo situation. Daniel Buitendag (George) and Matthew McGillivray (Port Elizabeth), 12, also tore the dropping swell apart with Shane Sykes (Salt Rock) delivering three excellent scores in his U12 heat.

Organisers are expecting offshore conditions but smaller swell for Day 2 of the event which runs until Saturday 26 September. Tomorrow will see the Pro Junior women in action alongside the other four divisions with a daily Von Zipper Air Show being run to determine the finalists who will compete for the R2 000 winner-takes-all prize-purse that goes to best aerial manoeuvre in the final on Saturday.

Video footage, images, results and news from the event will be available daily at www.billabong.com. The TV documentary produced by Silver Bullet Productions will be broadcast on the DSTV channel Vuzu.

The U16, U14 and U12 events in the Billabong Junior Series form part of the Pro Surf Tour (PST) sanctioned by Surfing South Africa (SSA), the national controlling body for the sport. The internationally rated Pro Junior events are sanctioned by ASP Africa, the regional office for ASP International.

Other prizes will be awarded daily courtesy of Von Zipper, Kustom and Billabong.

Billabong Events & Contest Coordinator Laureen Payne can be contacted for queries at 042 200 2600 / 072 898 1001 / laureen.payne@billabong.co.za

The 2009 Billabong Junior Series started in Scottburgh (8-11 April) and continued with the inaugural Billabong Occy Grom Comp in Jeffreys Bay (9-15 July). The series concludes at Victoria Bay (23-26 September) where the series champions will be crowned for the 13^th time.

\ends

Pictured: Benji Brand (Kommetjie), 13, recorded the highest heat total of 16.0 out of 20 on Day 1 of the Billabong Junior Series event at Victoria Bay on Wednesday. Brand is competing in the U14, U16 and Pro Junior (U20) events in the contest and advanced to the next round in all three divisions.

Photo: Theron / Billabong

NB: High resolution images from the event are available daily for MEDIA outlets.

Issued on behalf of:

Billabong South Africa

Tel:                   042 200 2600

Fax:                  042 293 2478

Email:               laureen.payne@billabong.co.za

Compiled & Issued by:

Life’s a Beach Communications

PO Box 48272, Kommetjie, 7976 South Africa

Tel / Fax:     +27 (0) 21 783 4965

Mobile:        +27 (0) 82 423 1964

Email:          lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

Tuesday September 22, 2009

 Piha Beach, New Zealand

January 21-28, 2010

South African Junior Team for the 2010 ISA World Junior Championships in New Zealand is named. 

The Board of Directors of Surfing South Africa has named the surfers who will represent South Africa at the 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Championships in New Zealand from January 21 to January 28, 2010.

The Under 18 Boys team is made up of Beyrick de Vries of KZN, Michael February and David Brand of Western Province and Dane Staples of Eastern Province.  Jacob Mellish of Boland is the non traveling reserve.

February, Brand and Staples will be representing South Africa for the third time while de Vries earns his second cap. All four surfers previously competed in the Under 16 Division with David Brand earning bronze at the World Championships in Ecuador earlier this year. This will be their first year in the highly competitive Under 18 Division.

Representing the U18 Girls for the third time is Bianca Buitendag of Eastern Province, Sarah Baum of KZN and Tanika Hofmann of Western Province while Heidi Palmboom of KZN is the new cap in the Under 18 Girls group. Holly Armstrong of Western Province is the non traveling reserve.

Heidi Palmboom’s inclusion in the team is a milestone for the Bluff based Palmboom family as it means that she joins her father Rudy senior and brother Rudy junior as national team surfers. Rudy senior represented South Africa at the ISA World Masters Championships in Puerto Rico in 2007 and Rudy junior has represented South Africa at the ISA World Junior championships and at the ISA World Surfing Games.

The four surfers who will represent South Africa in the Under 16 Boys division are all new caps and will be making their first trips overseas when they travel to New Zealand in January. They are Steven Sawyer and Dylan Lightfoot of Eastern Province, Jarred Veldhuis of Western Province and Diran Zakarian of Boland. Slade Prestwich of KZN is the non traveling reserve.

The team will be accompanied by SSA Deputy President Pax Nydoo in his capacity as Team Manager. The coaching staff will be made up of the legendary Graham Hynes who is Head Coach, Etienne Venter, the Deputy Coach and Josh Salie, the Assistant Coach.

The 2010 SA Junior Team’s first competitive outing will be in Cape Town on October 10 and 11 when they compete in a Test against surfers from Reunion Island, an Emerging Junior South African side and teams from Western Province and Boland.

The team will also be involved in training camps before departing for Piha Beach, near Auckland in New Zealand, on January 16, 2010.

Prior to the ISA World Junior Championships the SA Juniors will take on 2010 hosts New Zealand in the Lotto SANZ Challenge. This contest sees the teams competing for a unique trophy made from semi precious New Zealand stone and South African yellow wood. The trophy was first presented in Durban in 2003 and is currently held by South Africa.

The 2010 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Championships will be hosted by New Zealand for the first time in the history of the ISA and looks set to attract over 30 countries from five continents. The annual tournament determines the World Junior Team Champions, the World Junior ISA Tag Team Champions and medalists in the Under 18 Boys and Girls and Under 16 Boys divisions.

The 2010 South African Team is supported by 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 representative South African teams are selected by a selection committee appointed by the Board of Directors of Surfing South Africa.

/ends

Compiled and issued by:

Robin de Kock

General Manager

Surfing South Africa
surfingsouthafrica@gmail.co.za
0824541149
www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za

Please direct all enquiries to surfingsouthafrica@gmail.com or to 0824541149 during office hours.

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

“I played that game the whole contest and it really worked for me. I didn’t want to have to wait until the last minute for the best waves but that’s just the way it ended up,” said the father of two children aged 11 and 14.

Although Monk has added several Masters titles to his name today’s win marks his maiden Pro Surf Tour victory which comes years after attempting to win the elusive Open title.

“I’ve competed in the SA Open for the past five years and actually haven’t done too well but this year I wanted to do well and put more practice time in so I’m stoked that it happened,” explained Monk who owns the retail surf store ‘Just Surfing’ in East London.

In the hotly contested under 20 junior division rising star Strachan proved too strong for his contemporaries. Strachan opened up his bid for the title with a massive eight pointer on his first ride and never looked back. The talented teenager secured first place ahead of Nicholas Godfrey (Cape St Frances) and Jaco Steyn (Cape Town).

“After opening up with a good score on my first wave in the junior final all I needed to do was back it up with another good wave, which I did,” said Strachan who stepped onto the podium in both the open and junior division.

“I was hoping to do the same in the open final but things didn’t work out.

either way third in the open division is a good result and I’m happy with the way both events went for me today.”

Teeange prodigy Bianca Buitendag, 15, from Victoria Bay (Southern Cape) was also a clear winner in the womens division. Buitendag signaled her intentions for the title in the quarter finals and continued to build momentum through to the finals where she outclassed former SA Champion Heather Clark (Port Shepstone, KZN) and Chantelle Rautenbach (Melkbos, Cape Town).

“I caught a lucky wave in the first five minutes of the final which boosted my confidence,” explained Buitendag who was referring to a ride which netted her a massive 8.5 score (out of a possible ten) from the judges.

“It’s good to start off well in a heat,” she continued, “it not only boosts your confidence but also takes the pressure off you and puts it on your competitors.”

The Mr Price SA Open enjoyed two perfect days of surf and weather for the competition which was protected with Shark Pod devices placed strategically in the line-up throughout the duration of the two day event.

Ends

Pierre Tostee
Mr Price Sports Marketing
patostee@mrpricegroup.com
Phone: +27 31 310 8582
Mobile: +27 83 447 9448
www.mrprice.co.za

Pictured: Dale Staples shows the form that earned him the Billabong Junior Series Pro Junior title at Victoria Bay Photo: Clinton Theron / Billabong

2009 Billabong Junior Series
South Africa’s premier national junior surfing series
Scottburgh, Jeffreys Bay & Victoria Bay
April – September 2009

The 2009 Billabong Junior Series champions will be crowned at Victoria Bay next month when the third and final event in South Africa’s premier national tour for surfers aged 20-and-under is staged at the picturesque Southern Cape point-break from 23-26 September.

The 13^th annual series champions in the Pro Junior (U20) men and women, U16, U14 and U12 boys’ divisions will join an elite group of surfers such as Jordy Smith, Royden Bryson, Ricky Basnett and David Weare who honed their competitive repertoires on the Billabong Junior Series before going on to qualify for the ASP Dream Tour.

The Vic Bay event will also determine the 2009 ASP Africa Pro Junior champions and features an ASP Grade 2, R80 000 Pro Junior men’s event and an ASP Grade 1, R20 000 Pro Junior women’s event. The top four men and top woman on the yearend ASP Africa ratings receive sought after invitations to the Billabong ASP World Junior Championships in Australia in January, the event that launched the careers of the likes of Joel Parkinson (AUS), Andy Irons (HAW) and Adriano de Souza (BRA).

Casey Grant (Scottburgh), winner of the first Billabong Pro Junior event of 2009 at his home-break in April, leads both the series and ASP Africa rankings going into the most important Pro Junior event of the year. Grant will be hard pressed to retain his lead by the outstanding current crop of local chargers that include local standout Shaun Joubert (Mossel Bay), who took the title at the Pro Junior event at Port Alfred in May and has been winning nationally rated events at Victoria Bay since his days in U12’s.

Others with the talent and form to challenge for honours include former Vic Bay winner Dale Staples (St Francis Bay), who recently finished third in the Billabong Pro Junior Bali against a world-class field, national junior surfing team captain Matthew Bromley and fellow Kommetjie ripper Brendon Gibbens and the likes of Chad du Toit (Durban) and Kyle Lane (Umhlanga).

Vic Bay local Bianca Buitendag, who triumphed in the first series event at Scottburgh, has the talent and local knowledge to clinch the event title and the series crown at her home-break, while ASP Africa ratings leader Sarah Baum (Athlone Park) will be hoping to earn the invitation to Australia for the second successive year.

Both will be eyeing the form of multiple event champion Tarryn Chudleigh (Kommetjie) who campaigned on the ASP Women’s World Qualifying Series (WQS) earlier this year and missed the Pro Junior women’s events in SA. Kirsty Delport (Durban), Heidi Palmboom (Bluff) and Tanika Hoffman (Kommetjie) are all potential event champions.

The highly competitive U16 boys’ division is wide open with the likes of recently crowned King of the Groms champion Davey Brand and fellow Kommetjie rippers Michael February, Jarred Veldhuis and Daniel Wilson strong contenders. They are joined by point-break experts such as Steven Sawyer (Jeffreys Bay) and Dane Staples (St Francis Bay) along with Scottburgh event winner David van Zyl (Glenashley), all of whom are red hot performers.

Benji Brand (Kommetjie), Slade Prestwich (Park Rynie), Diran Zakarian (Melkbosstrand) and Max Armstrong (Scarborough) head a particularly exciting group of U14 boys with Daniel Buitendag, winner of the Billabong Occy Grom Comp at Jeffreys Bay in July, bound to be in the mix at his home break.

The youngest division, the U12 boys, produces incredible surfing from the likes of Jordy Maree (Kalk Bay), Shane Sykes (Salt Rock), Ethan Fletcher (Kommetjie) and the fast improving Donovan Wichmann (Marina da Gama), the winner in J-Bay. Matthew McGillivray (PE), Steffen Burrows (Strand) and Jonah Paarman (Kommetjie) will also make their presence felt at Vic Bay.

The event will also feature the dazzling Von Zipper Air Show where selected contestants are rewarded for their expertise in performing aerial manoeuvres above the lip of the wave with the top performer earning the winner-takes-all R2 000 prize-purse.

Video footage, images, results and news will be available daily during the event at www.billabong.com and a TV documentary produced by Silver Bullet Productions will be broadcast on the channels of SuperSport.

The PST events in the Billabong Junior Series are sanctioned by Surfing South Africa (SSA), the national controlling body for the sport, while the internationally rated Pro Junior events are sanctioned by ASP Africa, the regional office for ASP International.

The series is proudly supported by First National Bank, Von Zipper and Kustom.

Online entries for the PST events can be made at www.billabong.com while the ASP events must be entered via www.aspafrica.com Please note that the closing date for the ASP Africa sanctioned Pro Junior events is next Tuesday, 25 August, while the PST events close two weeks prior to the event dates.

Billabong Events & Contest Coordinator Laureen Payne can be contacted for queries at 042 200 2600 or laureen.payne@billabong.co.za

The 2009 Billabong Junior Series started in Scottburgh (8-11 April) and continued with the inaugural Occy Grom Comp in Jeffreys Bay (9-15 July) before concluding at Victoria Bay (23-26 September) where the series champions will be crowned for the 13^th time.

ends

Issued on behalf of:

Billabong South Africa

Tel:                   042 200 2600
Fax:                  042 293 2478
Email:               laureen.payne@billabong.co.za

Compiled & Issued by:

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

Pictured: Bianca Buitendag shows the form that earned her 4^th place and R2 400 at the Oakley Pro Junior in France on the weekend Photo: Aquashot / ASP Europe

SA girls surf into Pro Junior finals in France and USA

Redman, Palmboom and Bortoletto advance to Round 2 at Lacanau

ASP Africa Pro Junior titles to be decided at Victoria Bay in September

South Africans Bianca Buitendag and Nikita Robb posted stellar performances to reach the finals of ASP Pro Junior girls events in France and the USA respectively on the weekend.

Buitendag, 15, from Victoria Bay was one of the standouts in the Grade 2 Oakley Pro Junior at Lacanau, on the Bay of Biscay coast of France, taking on and defeating the cream of Europe’s 20-and-under female surfers in small 0.6 to one metre waves to reach the final four in the 40-strong field.

A lack of waves in the final, and an amazing last three minute performance that saw ASP World Pro Junior champion Pauline Ado (FRA) vault from fourth to first with two excellent rides, resulted in Buitendag, described as the ‘South African wunderkind’ in event media releases, finishing fourth overall with prize-money of R2 400.

Tanika Hoffman (Kommetjie), the only other SA surfer in the event, eventually lost out in the quarterfinals after starting strongly in the first two rounds, ending equal ninth overall.

Meanwhile in the Pacific Ocean, East London’s Nikita Robb cruised through a talented line-up of American and Hawaiian competitors to finish fourth in the Grade 4 Supergirl Pro Junior at Oceanside in California.

Referred to as the ‘international sensation from South Africa’, Robb, 20, from East London battled to find waves with scoring potential in the tiny 0.3 to 0.6 metre windswept waves for the final and ended behind winner Courtney Conlogue (USA), Malia Manuel (HAW) and Sage Erickson (USA), collecting prize-money of R13 000.

Robb is currently ranked No. 13 on the ASP Women’s World Qualifying Series (WQS), the highest of the SA contingent and narrowly ahead of fellow East Londoner Rosanne Hodge who is No. 14. With just two WQS events remaining on the 2009 schedule for women, a 5-Star in Rio de Janeiro starting on 7 October and a 6-Star at Haleiwa in Hawaii in November (still listed as Tentative), the ratings tallies are extremely close and the pair are still in with a chance of reaching the top six in the yearend rankings and automatically qualifying for the 2010 ASP Women’s World Tour.

ASP Women’s WQS Rankings

(After event No. 7 of 9)

1          Moore,Carissa          HAW   7980
2          Ho,Coco                     HAW   7740
3          Bevilacqua,Claire     AUS    6800
4          Miley-Dyer,Jessi       AUS    6420
5          Woods,Rebecca       AUS    6345

South Africans (Top 5) 

13        Robb,Nikita                ZAF     5650
14        Hodge,Rosanne        ZAF     5620
35        Buitendag,Bianca     ZAF     3520
37        Chudleigh,Tarryn       ZAF     3380
53        Smith,Tammy Lee     ZAF     2430

Redman, Palmboom and Bortoletto advance to Round 2 at Lacanau

Daniel Redman (Durban), Rudy Palmboom Jnr. (Bluff) and Antonio Bortoletto (Durban), all put their small-wave abilities to good use at Lacanau in France to advance to Round 2 of the 6-Star rated, R1.1 million Sooruz Lacanau Pro, Europe’s longest running professional surfing tournament.

The 0.6 to occasional one metre waves and light onshore winds produced conditions that were ideal for aerial manoeuvres with several near-perfect scores recorded as the competitors boosted themselves above the lip.

Chad du Toit (Durban) was SA’s only Round 1 casualty, while Durbanites David Weare, Travis Logie and Brandon Jackson were seeded directly into Round 2. The event runs until Sunday and all the action can followed live on the internet at http://sooruzlacanaupro09.com

ASP Africa Pro Junior titles to be decided at Victoria Bay in September

The 2009 ASP Africa titles for Pro Junior men and women will be decided at the Billabong Junior Series event at Victoria Bay in the Southern Cape from 23-26 September which features a Grade 2, R80 000 event for men and a Grade 1, R20 000 event for women.

The results will also determine the four men and one woman who will receive coveted invitations to represent ASP Africa at the annual Billabong ASP World Junior Championships in Sydney, Australia at the beginning of January 2010.

The men’s ratings after three events are led by Casey Grant (Scottburgh), winner of the first Billabong Pro Junior in his hometown at Easter. He is followed by the consistent Chad du Toit (Durban), Kyle Lane (Umhlanga), winner of the Quiksilver Pro Junior in Durban in April, Brendon Gibbens (Kommetjie) and Shaun Joubert (Mossel Bay), who won the Oakley Pro Junior at Port Alfred in May.

Fifteen-year-old Sarah Baum (Athlone Park) heads the women’s ratings after one event ahead of Kirsty Delport (Durban) with Heidi Palmboom (Bluff) and Tanika Hoffman (Kommetjie) tied third.

Those surfers wanting to compete in the Billabong Pro Junior events at Vic Bay are advised that the closing date for entries is next Tuesday, 25 August, after which seeding privileges will be forfeited and a late entry fee will be charged.

ASP Africa Pro Junior men’s ratings (After event No. 3 of 4)

1          Grant, Casey             Scottburgh                 3190
2          Du Toit, Chad            Durban                       2920
3          Lane, Kyle                  Umhlanga Rocks       2710
4          Gibbons, Brendon     Cape Town                2690
5          Joubert, Shaun          Mossel Bay                2600
6          Bromley, Matthew     Cape Town                2230
6          Strachan, Klee           Warner Beach           2230
8          Staples, Dale             Cape St Francis        2115
9          MacNicol, Haydn       Scottburgh                 2110
10        Leppan, Chris            Umhlanga Rocks       2000

ASP Africa Pro Junior women’s ratings (After event No. 1 of 2)

1          Baum, Sarah             Durban           1000
2          Delport, Kirsty            Durban           850
3          Palmboom, Heidi      Bluff                 730
3          Hoffman, Tanika        Cape Town    730
5          McGregor, Laurie      East London  610
5          Zoetmulder, Faye      East London  610
5          Rautenbach, Chantelle         Melkbosstrand           610
5          McGregor, Alive        East London  610

For further information on the ASP Africa members, including profiles and rankings, visit www.aspafrica.com

ends

Issued on behalf of:

ASP Africa

Contact:            Colin Fitch – Operations Manager
Tel:                   021 534 5738
Email:               aspafrica@mweb.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

About ASP:

The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the governing body of professional surfing. Crowning surfing’s undisputed world champions since 1976, the ASP sanctions the following tours: the ASP World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, the World Qualifying Series (WQS) and the World Longboarding, Junior and Masters Championships. The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America.