Quiksilver Pro Junior / King of the Groms 2012

South Africa’s Top Junior Surfers Prepare For Quiksilver Pro Junior

Slade Prestwich (17, Durban) placed second at the 2011 Quiksilver Pro Junior 

and will be hoping for one better this year. Photo Credit: Luke Patterson   

New Pier, Durban – Easter weekend will once again play host to South Africa’s most anticipated junior surfing event, the Quiksilver Pro Junior and King of the Groms. Top junior surfers will be making their way to Durban, the warmest place to be, to do battle for top honours in the four divisions that make up this popular Easter event.

The ASP 1 star Pro Junior division caters for all surfers under the age of twenty while the King of the Groms divisions are sanctioned by Surfing South Africa and cater for youngsters below the age of sixteen. The under sixteen, under fourteen and under twelve divisions provide a great platform for young surfers to be able to compete and gain experience. The winner of the under sixteen division will be flown to France in September to compete in the international Quiksilver King of the Groms finals alongside the Quiksilver Pro France World Championship Tour (WCT) mens event, a prize highly valued by all aspiring young pro surfers.

Beyrick de Vries, the 2011 Quiksilver Pro Junior winner, is excited that the event is back on the calendar and that it is being held at New Pier, “Winning last year's Quiksilver Pro Junior was unbelievable, it was a big win for me and now I am competing on the World Qualifying Series, I am still a junior and cant wait for this years event, I have been away but heard that the waves have been pumping in Durban with all of the cyclone swell. New Pier is always such a good wave for a contest and hope that it turns on again this year,” said an excited de Vries who is currently in Newcastle, Australia surfing in the Burton Toyota Pro. De Vries will have his work cut out for him defending his title with likes of David van Zyl (Durban), Michael February (Cape Town) and Slade Prestwich (Durban) all having entered this year’s event. Prestwich put on an amazing display of surfing at last year’s event falling short to de Vries in the final heat. De Vries was on fine form scoring a massive 15.67 out of a possible 20 in the man-on-man 2011 final.

In the premier under 16 King of the Groms division, favourites include South African junior team members Max Armstrong and Steffen Burrows, both of Cape Town as well as Matthew McGillivray (Port Elizabeth) and Shane Sykes (Salt Rock, KZN). Included in the event is the annual Future Stars division whereby eight surfers from Surfing South Africa’s transformation program are selected, accommodated at the event and compete for a berth as a ‘wildcard’ in the main Pro Junior division. Last year saw Brandon Benjamin of Cape Town claim the title and advance to the round of sixteen. Benjamin has been selected once again to take part in this year’s edition of the event.   
        
The event boasts a total of R65 000 in prize money and is presented by the City of Durban. There will also be a Skullcandy Expression Session where judges will be looking for the two most radical and innovative maneuvers, each will be rewarded with R2 500. Co-sponsors include Independent on Saturday, Skullcandy and Red Bull.

Junior surfers wanting to enter the event can visit:

Quiksilver Pro Junior – www.aspafrica.com
King of the Groms – www.surfingsouthafrica.co.za   
 

Quik Pro Junior entries 2012 - ASP Africa event

ASP Africa
Pro Junior Men 2012					2012 QUIKSILVER PRO JUNIOR
Seeding Information
NAME	From		Membership		Event Seeding		2011		LOS
Number			ASPA				LATE
Born in 1992 or later.					Rat#
De Vries, Beyrick		Umhlanga Rocks		397		1		1
Prestwich, Slade		Durban		2619		2		2
February, Michael		Cape Town		498		3		4
Van Zyl, David		Durban		1912		4		5
Veldhuis, Jarred		Cape Town		2449		5		6
Smit, Rigard		Strand		2609		6		7
Wild Card
Staples, Dane		Cape St Francis		1752		7		8
Sawyer, Steven		Jbay		2535		8		9
Baum, Sarah		Durban		150		9		15
Lefevre, Scott		Durban		1016		10		17
Zakarian, Diran		Cape Town		4175		11		18
Brand, David		Cape Town		220		12		23
Petersen, Remi		Jbay		2555		13		29
Stander, Damien	Durban		4115		14		34		los
Wichmann, Dylan	Cape Town		5583		15		35		los
Gray, Devon	Knysna		6487		16		48		los
Smit, Josh	Durban		4286		17		10		Late
Bennewith, Kane	Durban		2430		18		33		Late
Venter, Michael	Durban		1921		19		12		Late
Simkiss, Wade	Durban		6038		20		40		Late
Harris, Jason	Scottburgh		689		21		20		Late
Open
Open
Open

Quiksilver Goodwave Invitees Announced and Waiting Period Begins

Slade Prestwich (17, Durban) is the youngest competitor selected
to compete in the 2012 Quiksilver Goodwave presented by Zigzag.
Photo Credit: Luke Patterson 




The waiting period for the Quiksilver Goodwave 2012 has officially begun and the thirty two invited surfers and ten alternates have been announced. Event organizers will be searching for the single best day of surf in the allotted six month period to run this unique event. The event has been sorely missed on the Surfing South Africa calendar but has been re-introduced due to popular demand. Ideally event organizers and competitors alike wish to see surf in the four to six foot range with clean offshore winds on offer to be able to run a successful and exciting event.

Thirty two surfers have been selected with the aid of a selection panel made up of experienced industry personalities, pro’s and ex-professional surfers. The 2012 selected surfers include a variety of former winners, young guns, experienced chargers and Durban locals, making the field for the 2012 Quiksilver Goodwave the most diverse to date. Slade Prestwich (Durban), Dylan Lightfoot (Jeffreys Bay) and David van Zyl (Durban) have all been standouts amongst the junior ranks recently and were an obvious choice for the selectors. Shane Thorne (Cape Town), Sean Holmes (Cape Town), Brandon Jackson (Durban) and Dan Redman (Durban) have all excelled in previous Quiksilver Goodwave events and find themselves back on the list as favourites for the 2012 event. One Wave Wonder winners Brendon Gibbens (Cape Town), Grant “Twiggy” Baker (Durban) and Shaun Joubert (Mossel Bay) have all made the cut and will be hoping to claim the R15 000 first place prize purse on offer. Recently voted by Zigzag Surfing Magazine as South Africa’s most underrated surfer, Simon Fish (Cape St. Francis) will also be in the mix and making the trip to Durban when the swell turns on and the event runs. Umhlanga’s Beyrick de Vries has been making a name for himself down under and will be competing in the event for the first time, “I am so excited to be selected in the Goodwave and am so stoked to hear that it is back on, I’ve been trying to get into this event since I was fourteen years old. Surfing good waves at New Pier with only three other guys out is going to be amazing, I cant wait,” said an upbeat de Vries.

Surfers will be assisted back into the line-up by a team of experienced jet-ski operators in order to maximise the amount of waves ridden in the thirty-minute heats. The panel of judges will be looking for a combination of tube rides and solid, power surfing. The events first choice venue is Durban’s New Pier, alternate venues North Beach and The Bay have been selected should New Pier not be able to produce the goods on the day. The Quiksilver Goodwave is presented by Zigzag Surfing Magazine, extensive coverage and interviews can be viewed on their website building up to the event at www.zigzag.co.za. The event is sanctioned by Surfing South Africa and Red Bull will be providing the energy for the surfers.

For more information please visit: www.goodwave.co.za

2012 Quiksilver Goodwave Top 32 Invited Surfers (alphabetical order):

Antonio Bortoletto (Durban)
Beyrick de Vries (Umhlanga)
Brandon Jackson (Durban North)
Brendon Gibbens (Kommetjie, Cape Town)  
Casey Grant (Scottburgh, KZN)
Chad du Toit (Durban)
Chris Leppan (Umhlanga)
Dale Staples (St. Francis, EC)  
Dan Redman (Umdloti, KZN)
Davey van Zyl (Durban)
David Weare (Durban)
Devyn Mattheys (East London, EC)
Dylan Lightfoot (Jeffreys Bay, EC)
Frankie Oberholzer (Warner Beach, SKZN)
Grant Baker (Durban)
Greg Emslie (East London, EC)  
Jason Ribbink (Durban)
Josh Redman (Umdloti, KZN)
Lyle Bottcher (Durban)
Matt Bromley (Kommetjie, Cape Town)
Paul Canning (Durban)
Ricky Basnett (Bluff, KZN)
Royden Bryson (East London, EC)
Rudy Palmboom (Bluff, KZN)  
Ryan Payne (Cape Town)
Sean Holmes (Cape Town)
Shane Thorne (Durban)
Shaun Joubert (Mossel Bay, EC)
Simon Fish (Cape St. Francis, EC)
Simon Nicholson (Durban)
Slade Prestwich (Durban)
Warwick Wright (Durban)

Quiksilver Goodwave presented by Zigzag | News

Quiksilver Goodwave presented by Zigzag | News