The Triggerfish Animation South African Adaptive Surfing Championship
The Triggerfish Animation South African Adaptive Surfing Championship’s, hosted and organized by Durban Based Non Profit Company, Made for More and Surfing South Africa took place at New Pier in Durban on Sunday, the 5th of August.
The waves were super fun and contestable, with two to three foot set waves rolling through the iconic New Pier.
The vibe on the beach was absolutely electric. We had a total of 27 competitors, 22 South Africans and 5 Internationals showcasing their skill in the water. The wheelchair access mats were out and the accessible water chairs were ready to rock to make the competition and the day fully inclusive for all surfers and spectators.
This event was truly something special, and all who had the privilege of experiencing it, were deeply humbled and encouraged. Spectators were inspired and contestants were admired, respected and honoured for their bravery and surfing abilities.
This event would not be possible without the love and support of Triggerfish Animation Studios, Surfing South Africa and Sports and recreation South Africa.
Thank you to Anne Wright (contest director), Bongani Xulu (head judge and his panel) and Mike Frew (commentator) for the outstanding running of the contest.
We had the most incredible medals and prizes thanks to Surfing South Africa, Hurricane Surf, Zigzag and Hurley to name a few.
We were absolutely blown away by the volunteers and the way in which they served with such joy and grace. We couldn’t have done the event without you, and we are super grateful for your support.
Contestants, You guys are the real heroes! Watching you shred and experience the stoke and the freedom of the ocean is why we do what we do. Well done to everyone and especially to all our newly crowned South African Adaptive Surfing Champions.
From this event, the South African Adaptive Surfing Team will be chosen to compete in the ISA World Adaptive Surfing Champs in La Jolla in San Diego, California from the 12th to 16th of December 2018.
In Adaptive Surfing, there are different categories to make it fair for all the surfers competing.
The results were as follows;
AS-1 men (Surfers who ride waves in a standing or kneeling position and/or have upper limb or below the knee amputation)
1. J.P Veandry (East London)
2. Adi Klang (Israel)
3. Antony Smyth (Cape Town)
4. David Feldman (Israel)
AS-1 women (Surfers who ride waves in a standing or kneeling position and/or have upper limb or below the knee amputation)
1. Grace Anderson (Cape Town)
2. Darian Bailey Haynes (Hawaii)
AS-2 men (Surfers who ride waves in a standing or kneeling position and have above the knee amputations)
1. Caleb Swanepoel (Cape Town)
2. Llywelyn Williams (Wales)
3. Tyler Pike (Cape Town)
4. Donovan Kanes (Cape Town)
AS-4 Men (Surfers who ride waves in a prone position)
1. Bruno Hansen (Denmark)
2. Daniel Nel (Cape Town)
3. Dries Millard (Cape Town)
AS-5 Men (Surfers who ride waves in any non-standing position, need assistance catching waves but must be independent on the wave)
1. Albert Rust (Cape Town)
2. Ashtan Davids (Cape Town)
AS-VI (Surfers who have a visual impairment or are blind)
1. Danito Mondlane (Durban)
2. Erynn Geddie (Durban)
For new surfers, or surfers not quite yet ready to surf in competition, we had a fun expression session.
The results were as follows;
Longest ride: Derrick Mboyisa (Cape Town)
Best Wave: Grant Oosthuyzen (Durban)
Most stoked: Amuri Mwanza (Durban)
Happiest Surfer: Lulu Tshoba (Durban)
Most dedicated Surfer: Nelisiwe Sibiya (Pietermaritzburg)
Biggest wipeout: Peter Glass (Amamzimtoti)
Bravest Surfer: Zonke Nyandeni (Durban)
Most committed Surfer: Deryck Du Einbein (Harding)
Blow up award: Dean Hart (Durban)
The AS-1 men’s final was heavily stacked with one past and one current world champion competing as well as a national champion. In the dying minutes of the heat, JP Veandry (from East London) managed to get the wave of the heat with an 8.5, to beat current World Champion, Adi Klang (Isreal) who managed to get second. Antony Smyth, although surfing the best throughout the early rounds, got third and David Feldman (Israel) got fourth.
