Nelson Mandela Bay clinched the coveted Freedom Cup for the team accumulating the highest points at the 2016 Billabong SA Junior Champs at the Lower Point in Jeffreys Bay on Sunday.
The team from the host district also claimed two of the six individual national titles at stake and provided five of the 24 finalists, earning a total of 28,440 points.
Kirsty McGillivray (Nelson Mandela Bay) made it back-to-back SA titles when she added the U17 Girls’ crown to the U15 Girls’ title she won last year. Using her local knowledge, the Jeffreys Bay local caught the best of the one metre offshore waves, with Nina Harmse (Eden) coming in second, Sophie Bell (eThekweni) third and Anna Jellema Butler (Cape Town Surfriders) fourth.
Great wave selection and her signature vertical backhand manoeuvres saw Kai Woolf (Nelson Mandela Bay) emerge triumphant in the U15 Girls’ final, where Cape Town Surfriders’ teammates Summer Sutton and Julia Plougmann earned second and third places ahead of Gabi Lailvaux (eThekweni), who was last year’s U13 champ.
The U13 Girls’ division was dominated by Kayla Nogueira (eThekweni), a finalist in 2015, grabbing her first SA title by outscoring Lhea Johnston (Buffalo City), Jessie Powell (Ugu) and Zoe Steyn (Buffalo City) who finished in that order.
In the speciality awards, Kai Woolf received the BOS Highest Heat Score Award for her phenomenal total of 18.63 out of 20.
Cape Town Surfriders repeated their 2015 victory in the Billabong / Bad Billy’s Tag Team Paddle Battle and Nelson Mandela Bay were again judged to be the team displaying the best spirit throughout the event and received their second successive Skull Candy Stay Loud Team Spirit Award.
The 2016 Billabong SA Junior Champs presented by BOS, the 20th edition of the country’s premier surfing contest for competitors aged 17 and younger, will be remembered by all who attended for the five days of epic waves at the Lower Point in Jeffreys Bay and the stellar performances by the country’s top young surfers.
“Phenomenal conditions and, in my humble opinion, this event had the best junior surfing standard I’ve ever seen at an SA Champs,” said experienced contest director Johno Hutchison of Ballito.
Results of the 2016 Billabong SA Junior Champs presented by BOS:
2016 Surfing SA Freedom Cup (Combined District team points):
1. Nelson Mandela Bay 28,440 points
2. Cape Town Surfriders 27,706
3. eThekweni 26,290
4. Buffalo City 22,690
5. Cape Winelands 21,916
6. Eden 16,501
7. Ugu 15,686
8. SA Development Academy 12,588
9. uThungulu 4,920
Girls U17:
1. Kirsty McGillivray (Nelson Mandela Bay)
2. Nina Harmse (Eden)
3. Sophie Bell (eThekweni)
4. Anna Jellema Butler (Cape Town Surfriders)
Girls U15:
1. Kai Woolf (Nelson Mandela Bay)
2. Summer Sutton (Cape Town Surfriders)
3. Julia Plougmann (Cape Town Surfriders)
4. Gabi Lailvaux (eThekweni)
Girls U13:
1. Kayla Nogueira (eThekweni)
2. Lhea Johnston (Buffalo City)
3. Jessie Powell (Ugu)
4. Zoe Steyn (Buffalo City)
Billabong / Bad Billy’s Tag Team Paddle Battle:
Cape Town Surfriders
BOS Highest Heat Score:
Kai Woolf (Nelson Mandela Bay) – 18.63 points
Skull Candy Stay Loud Team Spirit Award:
Nelson Mandela Bay
Photo 1 caption: The U17 girls finalists podium at the 2016 Billabong SA Junior Champs featured (from left) 2016 champion Kirsty McGillivray (Nelson Mandela Bay), silver medalist Nina Harmse (Eden), third-placed Sophie Bell (eThekweni) and Anna Jellema Butler (Cape Town Surfriders) in 4th. The championship including the coveted Freedom Cup was contested in Jeffreys Bay, with the winners announced on Sunday, 9 October, 2016. Photo: Billabong / Van Gysen
Photo 2 caption: Kirsty McGillivray made it back-to-back SA titles when she added the U17 Girls’ crown to the U15 Girls’ title she won last year. Photo: Billabong / Van Gysen
Photo 3 caption: Great wave selection and her signature vertical backhand manoeuvres saw Kai Woolf (Nelson Mandela Bay) emerge triumphant in the U15 Girls’ final. Photo: Billabong / Van Gysen
Photo 4 caption: The U13 Girls’ division was dominated by EThekweni’s Kayla Nogueira – a finalist in 2015 – who grabbed her first SA title this year. Photo: Billabong / Van Gysen
Photo 5 caption: The combined Nelson Mandela Bay team celebrate winning the coveted Freedom Cup, after accumulating the most points across all divisions. Photo: Billabong / Van Gysen
With editing by gsport
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