Big seas were a big challenge again on Friday for lifeguards in the Surf Lifesaving National championships, including this board race. Photo / Jamie Troughton-Dscribe Media
Big seas were a big challenge again on Friday for lifeguards in the Surf Lifesaving National championships, including this board race. Photo / Jamie Troughton-Dscribe Media
A gold-medal performance by Midway’s Under-19 male surf team was among the highlights for the home clubs on day two of the Aon New Zealand Surf Lifesaving Championships in Gisborne on Friday.
It followed a beach sprint golden double for Waikanae’s world champions Oska Smith and Briana Irving on Thursday afternoon.
The swell at city beaches dropped on Friday, but it was still a testing 1.5m to 2m and arenas were again set up at Waikanae because of the bigger waves at the Midway end.
Boat races scheduled for the morning, then midday, were postponed to Saturday because of the tough surf conditions.
Friday’s competition was thrilling, with waves making a difference in many races.
The testing swells evened up the fields in many races, with the lead changing hands as waves made the difference. How's this for a finish? Photo / Jamie Troughton-Dscribe Media
In the hunt for the Allan Gardner Memorial Trophy for top overall club, Omanu from the Bay of Plenty were sitting pretty at the head of the leaderboard at 3.30pm yesterday on 221 points.
East End from Taranaki were on 177 and defending champions Mount Maunganui 157.
Host club Dawson Building Midway had moved up into fourth on 88.
Competition was fierce through the day yesterday as this start in one of the women's races illustrates. The competitors meant business. Photo / Jamie Troughton-Dscribe Media
The Midway team of Tyron Evans, Finn Cameron, Yahni Brown and Jack Lepper won gold in the U19 men’s surf teams' race with a comprehensive accumulated score of 34 points – well ahead of second-placed Omanu.
Midway’s Sophie Petro, Ella Sutton, Jacqueline Kennedy and Emily Petro followed that with another fine effort to collect silver in the U19 women’s teams’ surf race.
Sutton, Petro and Kennedy backed that up, combining with Taylor Newman for bronze in the U17 surf teams' final.
Evans delivered in the run-swim-run as well – earning silver in the U19 men’s final.
Evans and teammates Yahni Brown and Jack Lepper were incredibly unlucky in their U19 board relay final. They led most of the way, only for the last Mairangi Bay paddler to get by on a wave in the fluky conditions, consigning Midway to silver.
The club’s U19 female team of Sophie Petro, Alice Sparks and Emily Petro also earned silver in their board relay final.
To cap off their display of team board skills, Midway’s U17 trio of Sutton, Emily Petro and Kennedy added a bronze medal to the club’s coffers.
Kaiaponi Farms Waikanae’s beach sprinters racked up 30-plus points for their club – two golds, two silver and two bronze – in beach events on Thursday before a big crowd.
The sand track next to Stanley Rd was surrounded by spectators as the beach sprinters did their thing on Thursday. Photo / Jamie Troughton-Dscribe Media
Smith led a Waikanae 1-2-3 in the men’s open beach sprint, while Irving won the open women’s final.
Waikanae’s Seven Mapu was second in the open men’s sprint and David Gray was third.
Georgie Beaufoy claimed silver in the U17 women’s sprint.
Waikanae's Seven Mapu at full noise in the final of the open men's beach sprint, where he finished second to clubmate Oska Smith. Photo / Jamie Troughton-Dscribe Media
Waikanae also got third in the open women’s beach relay.
Riversun Wainui’s best results so far came on Friday afternoon in the board finals, in which brothers Mako and Rori Fukushima made the podium.
Mako was third in the U17 board race and Rori was second in the U15s.
Rori was fourth in the U15 beach sprint final.
Events in the masters competition resumed on Friday and the key results included a win to Wainui’s Sean Hovell in the board final in his age group.
Emily Gillies did the same for Waikanae in her division and Wainui men and women each won a board relay.
At 3pm on Friday, with beach flags to come, Omanu had a commanding lead in the masters overall points on 277, Wainui were second on 137 and Midway third on 132.
