Yorke Peninsula Rip Curl GromSearch Goes Off In Pumping Waves
07/11/2019

Yorke Peninsula Rip Curl GromSearch Goes Off In Pumping Waves

Eighty-four grommets and some of Australia’s best waves… this is Stop 3 of the Rip Curl GromSearch Series!

Eighty-four of Australia’s top grommets got a taste of what the Yorke Peninsula has to offer with two days of pumping surf at the famous Chinaman’s surf break. The weather and surf played their parts, delivering two days of solid and sometimes challenging surf conditions.

Maia Taite (SA) continued her amazing run for the year taking out the 14 and Under Girls and placing second in the 12 and Under Girls. With this event win she has proven that she can surf against and consistently get results against girls a lot older than her.

Another South Aussie stand out was King Cairns (SA) who placed second in the 12 and Under Boys. The 10-year-old, who loves big surf was all smiles when he heard the comp was being run at Chinaman’s.

The 16 and Under title went to Byron Stapleton (NSW) with a heat score total of 18.06 out of a possible 20 leaving the rest of the field needing a combination of scores to take the lead. Byron’s display in the final heat of the event was a fantastic way to finish off a great weekend of competition. Lily Macdonald (NSW) clinched the 16 and Under Girls in the dying minutes of an exciting heat.

The 14 and Under Boys went to Fletcher Kellher (NSW) who dominated his heat, dropping a 16 point heat score total. Fletcher also took the 12 and Under Boys title making it a double for the day. The 12 and Under Girls Title went to Ruby Berry (WA) who showed she is no slouch in big waves, taking off on every bomb set that came through in her heat.

The list of previous GromSearch winners illustrates the significant history of the series, with World Surf League (WSL) competitors Gabriel Medina (Brazil), Tyler Wright (Australia), Owen Wright (Australia), Matt Wilkinson (Australia), Jordy Smith (South Africa), Kolohe Andino (USA) and Sally Fitzgibbons (Australia) among the list of former competitors and GromSearch International Final Champions.

The Australian series allows surfers from around the country to compete against their contemporaries in a fun and engaging environment. Each result in the four-event series is awarded points that count towards a surfer’s GromSearch National ranking, giving participants across the country the opportunity to compare their performances against their peers.

After the last event in Queensland, the top-ranked surfers qualify for the Rip Curl GromSearch National Final (in their respective divisions), where they then compete for the chance to become the Australian GromSearch Champion.

The National Champion then represents Australia at the Rip Curl GromSearch International Final, held at a new location around the globe each year, against the best junior surfers from each participating country.

Dates and locations for the 2019 Rip Curl GromSearch Series are:
RCGS - EVENT 1 - Jan Juc, VIC - Sept 21-23, 2019
RCGS - EVENT 2 - Newcastle, NSW - Oct 5-8, 2019
RCGS - EVENT 3 - Yorke Peninsula, SA - Nov 2-3, 2019
RCGS - EVENT 4 - Sunshine Coast, QLD - Dec 16-19, 2019
National Final – Woonona, NSW – Jan 14-16, 2020

The 2019 Rip Curl GromSearch series is supported by managing partners Surfing Australia and Surfing South Australia.