Following trials in Cape Town this past weekend, Surfing South Africa has announced the SA Junior team that will be competing at the 2014 Vissla ISA World Junior Surfing Championships in Ecuador, starting 5 April.
There’s a good mix of experienced young rippers and new caps in the team, and it’s lekker to see Nthando Msibi (KZN) and Joshe Faulkner (EP) earning their first SA caps having come through the local development ranks.
Durban’s Nthando Msibi earned his first South African team cap.
Other new caps are KZN’s Teal Hogg (U18 Girls), Ethan Fletcher (WP – U16 Boys); Adin Masencamp (BOR – U16 Boys); Cana Foster (KZN – U16 Girls) and Ruth Armstrong (WP – U16 Girls).
They will be led by team captain, Max Armstrong (WP – 2 caps), Under 18 Boys division rippers, Steff Burrows (Border – 3 caps) and Shane Sykes (KZN – 2 caps), Under 17 Girls competitor, Chanelle Botha (SKZN – 3 caps), plus U16 Boys competitor, Jordan Maree (WP – 2 caps).
Max Armstrong will be leading the team as their captain.
On the management side of things, Isaac February is the team Manager, while ISA Gold medallist, Greg Emslie, will be whipping the boys and girls into shape. Not literally, but he’ll be doing what coaches do and it will be good for the groms to tap into The Foot’s vast experience. Tasha Mentasti and Dave Malherbe will also be travelling with the team as assistant coaches and chaperones.
With Team Gold for the Open team at last year’s ISA World Games, plus a number of medals at the 2013 ISA World Masters, the Junior team have big shoes to fill and they’ll be looking to fly the flag proudly as they produce their best at the quality lefts of La Fae Beach in Salinas, Ecuador.
Check out the official press release below.
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Surfing South Africa name South African Junior team for the 2014 ISA World Junior Surfing championships in Ecuador
Surfing South Africa have selected the 2014 South African Junior team which will compete in the 2014 Vissla ISA World Junior Surfing Championship in Ecuador in two months time. The team was finalised after a three day training Camp held in Cape Town on February 9th to 11th.
The team is made up of eight boys and four girls in the Under 18 and Under 16 age divisions and they will join the 300 athletes from over 30 countries at La Fae Beach in Salinas, Ecuador for the biggest international junior surfing championship in the world in late March.
Six of the team members come from the Western Cape, five are from KwaZulu Natal and one is from the Eastern Cape.
In the Under 18 boys division Max Armstrong of Scarborough earns his second cap and is top seed. Armstrong has been named captain of the side. Steffen Burrows of Stellenbosch earns his third cap and is second seed while Shane Sykes of Salt Rock wins his second cap and is third seed. The fourth member of the Under 18 group is Nthando Msibi of Durban, a 2014 ISA Scholarship recipient, who will represent South Africa for the first time. The non travelling reserve is Richard Kidd of Ballito.
2013 South African U17 champion Teal Hogg of Umhlanga gets her first cap as top seed in the Under 18 girls division and is joined by Chanelle Botha of Warner Beach, who wins her third cap. Anoush Zakarian of Melkbosstrand is the official reserve.
Top seed and new cap in the Under 16 boys group is current South African U15 Champion Ethan Fletcher of Hout Bay and another new cap, Adin Masencamp of Strand is the second seed. It is a second cap for third seed Jordy Maree of Kalk Bay while Joshe Faulkner of Pellsrus near Jeffreys Bay, is seeded fourth in the Under 16 group and will surf for South Africa for the first time. Bevan Willis of Umdloti is the official reserve.
Two new caps, Cana Foster of Umdloti and Ruth Armstong of Scarborough are the Under 16 girls representatives with Michelle Verreynne of Victoria Bay the official reserve. Ruth’s brother Max is the captain of the team.
The 2014 South African Junior Surfing Team is as follows:
Under 18 Boys
Max Armstrong (Western Province) Team Captain
Steffen Burrows (Boland)
Shane Sykes (KZN Central)
Nthando Msibi (KZN Central)
Non travelling reserve: Richard Kidd (KZN Central)
Under 18 Girls
Teal Hogg (KZN Central)
Chanelle Botha (Southern KZN)
Non travelling reserve: Anoush Zakarian (Boland)
Under 16 Boys
Ethan Fletcher (Western Province)
Adin Masencamp (Boland)
Jordan Maree (Western Province)
Joshe Faulkner (Eastern Province)
Non travelling reserve: Bevan Willis (KZN Central)
Under 16 Girls
Cana Foster (KZN Central)
Ruth Armstrong (Western Province)
Non travelling reserve: Michelle Verreynne (Southern Cape)
Team Management:
Manager: Isaac February (Western Province)
Head Coach: Greg Emslie (Border)
Assistant Coach: David Malherbe (Border)
Chaperone/Coach: Tasha Mentasti (Boland)
The ISA World Junior Surfing Championships is an annual event that was first held in Durban 2003. The South African team placed sixth in the 2013 event in Nicaragua.
Prior to the main event the team will meet New Zealand to contest the annually run ‘SANZ’ Trophy held between the two teams. South Africa dominated the head-to-head match-up up until 2013 when New Zealand pulled off a narrow win in Nicaragua. The two teams use this international “friendly” to fine tune their competitive strategies only days out from the main event. The unique trophy that is up for grabs is made out of a solid pounamu base with paua inlay and a surfboard made out of South African yellow wood.
Amateur contests are for wannabees!