Dylan Lightfoot and Matthew McGillivray won their respective Round 1 heats at the Ericeira World Junior Championships in Portugal to advance directly to Round 3.
Dylan Lightfoot (right) won his Round 1 heat to advance directly to Round 3.
Conditions weren’t great at Praia dos Pescadores – the back-up venue for the event. “Worst waves I have ever seen,” said experienced Qualifying Series campaigner Beyrick de Vries to fellow KZN north coast local, Shane Sykes, following his Round 1 heat. Shane finished second behind last year’s Vans US Open winner Hiroto Ohhara (JPN), which means he’ll have to find victory in Round 2 in order to join J-Bay locals Dylan and Matt in Round 3.
SA’s other representatives in Portugal didn’t fare well in the tricky conditions either; Cape Town’s Jordan Maree finished third in Heat 5, which was won by Dylan Lightfoot; Boland local Adin Masencamp then finished third in Heat 7 to join Shane and Jordan in Round 2; before Bevan Willis from KZN finished second to Kanoa Igarashi (USA), who has just qualified for the Dream Tour, in Heat 10.
Lucas Silveira (BRA) earned Day 2’s highest score (9.17) for this well-ridden, windy left.
Matt McGillivray looked sharp despite the poor surf in the final heat of the day, and recorded one of the day’s highest combined totals (15,60pts) to ensure SA had another representative in Round 3.
J-Bay local, Gina Smith is in Round 2 of the Junior Women’s division, and will be looking to defeat Camilla Kemp (PRT) in order to take a step closer to the prestigious world title when competition resumes. Nicole Pallet, who enjoyed an excellent season locally in 2015, will face former ISA World Junior champ, Dax McGill (HAW), in Heat 5 for a spot in Round 3.
Nicole Pallet will be aiming for a win in Round 2 against Dax McGill (HAW).
Go to worldsurfleague.com for all the highlights and results from the Ericeira World Junior Championships.
