2018 SunSmart WA Nipper Surf Life Saving Championships

With athletes travelling from as far away as Broome, the 2018 SunSmart WA Nipper Surf Life Saving Championships kicked off in spectacular fashion under lights in front of a packed Scarborough Beach amphitheatre last Friday night as the young athletes took to the sand to battle it out in the Beach Sprints and Flags events.

The weather and conditions across the three days of competition certainly tested the more than 900 U10-U13 Nippers, with Saturday’s big swell and strong winds making for extremely tricky surf conditions resulting in many of the U10, and some U11 events, being cancelled. Congratulations to our older age groups who took to the water and braved the difficult conditions.

The final day of competition, which kicked off with the Beach and Cameron Relay’s, saw improved conditions for the remaining events, also providing the opportunity to reschedule those events cancelled the previous day. While this meant a long program for our youngest athletes, their spirits remained high, with an electric atmosphere for both spectators and athletes all weekend!

There were some standout performances from individual athletes, including Trigg Island’s Mikaela Innocent (U/13) who had an outstanding weekend finishing with 5 gold and 2 silver. Her Trigg Island team mates Sarah Beiers (U/11) and Zachary Mills (U/12) both finished out the weekend with similarly stellar performances earning themselves 4 gold , 1 silver & 1 bronze; and 5 gold, 1 silver & 1 bronze respectively, no doubt playing a hand in Trigg Island’s dominating win on the overall point score.

Other notable performances came from City of Bunbury’s Olivia Doddy (U/10) earning herself 4 gold and 1 silver, helping her club secure the Handicap Trophy for the weekend.

Even more outstanding than the displays of athleticism were the displays of comradery and sportsmanship shown across the weekend as competitors cheered, encouraged and, on occasion, consoled each other.

Congratulations to our 2018 Nipper Age Champions – awarded primarily on performance on individual events across the weekend of competition.

• U/10 Female: Olivia Doddy (City of Bunbury SLSC)
• U/10 Male: Finn Knox (Scarboro SLSC)
• U/11 Female: Sarah Beiers (Trigg Island SLSC)
• U/11 Male: Brodie Lee (Mullaloo SLSC)
• U/12 Female: Megan McCaffrey (North Cottesloe SLSC)
• U/12 Male: Zachary Mills (Trigg Island SLSC)
• U/13 Female: Mikaela Innocent (Trigg Island SLSC)
• U/13 Male: James Kiely (City of Bunbury SLSC)

These events are only successful thanks to the support of many people. A huge shout out to our WA Championships Naming Rights Partner, Healthway, promoting the SunSmart message. Thanks also to the Officials, Water Safety Personnel, Referees, Announcers, Age Managers and volunteers, and our hosting Club Scarboro, who all ensured the weekend was a resounding success.

Full Results are available online.

Overall Point Score: