South African Surfing Kicks Into Top Gear With Exciting Contest Season
Matt McGillivray made the quarter-finals at the Quiksilver Pro G-Land. © WSL/Sloane
South African surfers and surf fans are in for a feast of events.
In the world of South African surfing and surfers, it’s all kicking off again as we emerge from the challenges of the pandemic. Currently, South African surfers compete internationally on the World Surf League Championship Tour, the Challenger Series, and the Qualifying Series for both men and women, and we have a range of domestic events coming up.
The Ballito Pro Challenger Series event will run at Willard Beach, Ballito from July 3-10, and the men’s and women’s fields are stacked with former Ballito Pro champions and local favourites.
The Corona Open JBay is the premier Championship Tour surf event in South Africa for men and women. It has a waiting period from 12-21 July and has both Jordy Smith and Matt McGillivray competing. Jordy (DBN) is a two-time event champion and also has the distinction of scoring a perfect 20-point heat in 2017.
20-point heat video here – https://youtu.be/L76Ky5LFgVo
Jordy, JBay. © WSL/Cestari
Matt McGillivray (JBay) was on the cusp of the Championship Tour mid-year cut-offs and surfed a valiant contest in giant surf at Margaret River, Western Australia, to re-qualify. He is comfortable for the back half of the tour this year and has qualified for the 2023 season. The JBay local will be fired up for a big performance in front of his family and the home crowd.
On the domestic front, we have a run of Junior events, including the Plakkie Pro at Victoria Bay, the O’Neill SMTH Shapes Ballito Pro Junior and the Rip Curl GromSearch at Seal Point.
The Rip Curl GromSearch is the second event in a three-event series that kicked off earlier this year in Mossel Bay and Victoria Bay. The Rip Curl GromSearch enjoyed a welcome return to junior surfing with their new series, with their third and final event set for Scottburgh in October. The 2023 series promises to be bigger and better.
The Tiger’s Milk Winter Classic longboarding event set to take place this weekend has been delayed due to tiny surf. It will take place on June 25 and 26th down in Muizenberg, and the Vans Duct Tape International is to be held in Muizenberg in early July. Watch the Tiger’s Milk live heats here – https://www.liveheats.com/events/19517
This weekend also sees a South African crew of hopefuls compete in the Krui Pro QS 5,000 event in Krui, South Sumatra, Indonesia.
Luke Slijpen (CT), Saxton Randall (DBN), Jordy Maree (CT), and Karl Steen (DBN) are all competing in this event in the perfect reeling lefts of Ujung Bocur, Krui. The surfers are experiencing mixed results, with Jordy Maree the most impressive in an event that has a number of former CT surfers in the mix. . Watch it live at www.worldsurfleague.com or on the free WSL App.
Luke Slijpen © WSL/Liquid Barrel
Finally, congratulations to Luke Thompson for winning Bronze at the recent ISA World Juniors in El Salvador. Team South Africa ended a credible 10th at the event.
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