Port Alfred – The road to the Rip Curl GromSearch International Final runs straight through Port Alfred this year. The Rip Curl GromSearch presented by The Royal St Andrews Hotel and supported by Sea Harvest will decide which two South African surfers secure the country’s berths at the Rip Curl GromSearch International Final.
The Port Alfred contest serves as the sole South African qualifier, with the U16 Boys and U16 Girls champions earning berths at the international final and receiving a R20,000 travel voucher each towards their trip.
The Rip Curl GromSearch features U12, U14, U16 and U18 divisions for boys and girls, but the U16 division remains the premier category and the focus of the international pathway.
In previous seasons, the South African GromSearch ran as a multi-event series, with overall champions qualifying for the international finals. Over the past two years, South African winners have travelled to Canggu in Bali and Hossegor in France to compete against the world’s best junior surfers. The location of the upcoming Rip Curl GromSearch International Final has not yet been announced, though it traditionally takes place at one of Rip Curl’s premier surf destinations.
The Rip Curl GromSearch International Final brings together young surfers from across the global GromSearch network. Qualifiers come from regions including Australia, North America, Brazil, Europe, Indonesia, Argentina, and South Africa, as well as winners of the #GromSearch online video competition, creating a truly international lineup of emerging surfers competing against peers from around the world.
Once at the international final, surfers are hosted by Rip Curl throughout the event and mentored by elite athletes from the brand’s global team. Previous mentors have included Molly Picklum, Stephanie Gilmore and Crosby Colapinto.
The pathway has produced many of the sport’s biggest names. More than 60 per cent of current Championship Tour surfers are former GromSearch winners, including Caity Simmers, Caroline Marks, Gabriel Medina, Erin Brooks, Leonardo Fioravanti and Samuel Pupo.
South African surfers who have travelled to the international finals in recent years include Rory Dace, Louise Lepront, Kai Stubbs and Emily Jenkinson.
The Rip Curl GromSearch is run under the banner of Surfing South Africa and forms one of the anchor surfing events of the Port Alfred Easter Festival. The festival brings together sport, music and community events across the town each Easter.
At East Beach, some of the country’s best young surfers will compete for the chance to take their surfing from a South African contest jersey to the lineup at the Rip Curl GromSearch International Final. For many of them, the next step after the junior competition will be the Royal St Andrews Hotel Rip Curl Cup QS, also held at East Beach during the festival.
Rip Curl South Africa
Port Alfred Easter Festival
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Alan Straton
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