Billabong SA Junior Champs with South African Junior Surfing Titles and the Freedom Cup at Stake
The Billabong SA Junior Champs presented by BOS, the country’s most prestigious surfing event for competitors aged 17-and-under, gets underway in the fabled high performance waves of the Lower Point in Jeffreys Bay on Wednesday and runs until Sunday 9 October. The 20th edition of the five-day event will showcase the top young surfers from every corner of the coastline who have qualified for the SA Champs via gruelling trials conducted by their respective district associations. At stake are individual national titles for Under 13, Under 15 and Under 17 boys and girls along with the coveted Freedom Cup, which was introduced in 2003 and goes to the district whose team members accumulate the highest points tally across all age divisions. “We’re really proud to be the sponsors of the Billabong SA Junior Champs presented by BOS,” said Billabong South Africa Marketing Manager Chad D’Arcy. “This is the premier junior event on the Surfing South Africa calendar and to host it in our home town of Jeffreys Bay makes it even more special. Good luck to the country’s best young surfers in their quest for national titles.” The event also offers number of lucrative specialty awards totalling more than R15 000 for both surfers and their teams. These include the Billabong / Bad Billy’s Tag Team Paddle Battle, BOS Highest Heat Score, VonZipper Airshow and the Skull Candy Stay Loud Team Spirit awards. The Cape Town Surfriders team will be determined to retain the Freedom Cup while Nelson Mandela Bay, the 2014 and 2015 runners-up, will be hoping that local wave knowledge will tip the balance of power for them this year. The eThekweni team from Durban will present a strong challenge again and Cape Winelands, Buffalo City, Ugu, Eden, uThungulu and the team from the SA Development Academy will be going all out to improve on their final placing in the team standings. “The Billabong South Africa Junior Championships is the most significant annual tournament for South Africa’s U17, U15 and U13 surfers,” said Surfing South Africa General Manager, Robin de Kock. “Surfing South Africa is stoked that it is taking place at Lower Point in J-Bay for the fourth year in a row and to be partnering with Billabong once again is just the cherry on top. I hope the waves are epic. Good luck to all” Max Elkington (Cape Town) and Brayden Bergset (eThekweni) will be defending their U15 and U13 boys’ titles respectively while the other four divisions will all crown new champions. Last year’s champions Gabi Lailvaux (eThekweni) in U13 girls and Kirsty McGillivray (Nelson Mandela Bay) in U15 girls have moved up one division.
Kirsty McGillivray (Nelson Mandela Bay), the 2015 Under 15 girls’ SA champion, will be going for gold in the U17 girls’ division at the Billabong SA Junior Champs presented by BOS at Jeffreys Bay this week – Photo: Ian Thurtell
The 2016 Billabong SA Junior Champs presented by BOS will be the first time the newly introduced ISA Priority Rules will be used. These will be explained at the Managers Meeting at 6pm at the Billabong Offices in Jeffreys Bay today by contest director Johno Hutchison and head judge Bongani Xulu. That will be followed by the Opening Function, which will be presided over by SSA President Johnny Bakker, with recently elected Deputy Mayor Brenton Williams the guest of honour As part of Surfing South Africa’s commitment to transformation, the South African Development Academy team is participating thanks to a grant from Sport and Recreation South Africa. The Heats and provisional format are posted on www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za and all the action from the Billabong SA Junior Champs presented by BOS can be followed daily via: Results and the updated format will be posted daily on www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za The Billabong SA Junior Champs presented by BOS is proudly supported by DaKine, VonZipper, Skull Candy, Neff and Zigzag Surfing Magazine. Surfing South Africa is the recognised governing body for surfing in South Africa. SSA is a member of the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) and the International Surfing Association (ISA
Recent Comments