All Hands on Deck

More than 200 surfers aged 18 and under will contest each other at Lower Point in Jeffreys Bay from tomorrow. The opening function will be held in the Jeffreys Bay Primary School Hall at 7pm this evening, with the closing ceremony taking place on Sunday. This evening, national colours will be given to the team that will travel to the ISA World Junior Championships in California at the end of October.

At stake in the 23rd edition of the event are national titles for Under 12, Under 14, Under 16 and Under 18 boys and girls. The Freedom Cup, introduced in 2003, goes to the district whose team members collectively accumulate the most points across all divisions. In 2018, the strong Cape Town Surfriders team beat traditional rivals eThekweni Surfriders to win the Cup.

Nelson Mandela Bay Surfriders, who won in 2016, will also fight it out against Buffalo City Surfriders, who are always a threat. The other teams are Cape Winelands Surfriders, Eden Surfriders, UGU Surfriders and Ilembe Surfriders. The SA Development Academy Team, comprising members of Surfing South Africa’s (SSA) Rising Stars programme, will attend to gain experience at SA's premier junior surfing contest.

Many of the 2018 champions will return, while all 12 surfers in the SA junior team will represent their districts. Last years Sea Harvest Surfing Excellence Award winners Zia Hendricks (Nelson Mandela Bay) and Ntokozo Maphumalo (eThekweni) will also attend. A number of specialty awards - including Loud and Proud Team Spirit and male/female Surfer of the Contest - will be announced on Sunday.

A SSA spokesperson said they were "stoked that it is taking place at Lower Point in J-Bay for the sixth year in a row and especially proud to be partnering with Sea Harvest, who have supported junior surfing in South Africa over the last two years. We are also grateful to the Kouga Municipality for their assistance and support, and to the Department of Sport and Recreation for their contribution”.

Live scores will be available here as heats are completed. Heat draws can also be found at the link, while schedules and other info will be at www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za