A huge weekend for Surf Sports!

It was a monster weekend for surf sports with Sorrento doing an outstanding job of hosting three of our Championship events; the SunSmart WA Masters Surf Life Saving Championships, SunSmart Country Championships and our inaugural Little Nippers Championships.

SunSmart WA Masters Surf Life Saving Championships

Kicking off the weekend, on Saturday 3 March, was the first in our SunSmart WA Surf Life Saving Championships series, with nearly 500 masters’ competitors from 20 clubs taking to the beach in calm conditions.

With results from the Pool Rescue and Board Riding Championships, held earlier in the year, being counted towards club totals, North Cottesloe entered the day with a huge lead over the rest of the field, which proved too much to overcome, claiming the overall win for the second year running on 702 points. Trigg Island finished not too far behind in 2nd on 640 points, with Sorrento claiming the 3rd on 589 points.

Congratulations to all athletes, many who finished the day with multiple podium finishes to their name, putting them in good stead to contest the coming 2018 Aussies Masters events at Scarborough Beach next month.

SunSmart Country Championships

The SunSmart Country Championships ran on Sunday, 4 March and saw 440 athletes from 14 of our country clubs competing.

For the 22nd consecutive year, Bunbury came away victorious taking the overall win on 718.25 points, followed by Secret Harbour on 489 points and Albany on 432.5 points.

PHOTO COURTESY OF PHOTOGRAPHER: TONY BOWERS

While all clubs put up some tough competition, particularly in the Nipper and Youth arenas, Bunbury maintained their dominance in the Open category, which pushed them through for the win! Full results are available here.

Our handicap trophy winners on the day, for the most improved club, was Albany who, finishing on 432.5 points, nearly doubled their point score from the previous year with a total handicap of 1202.1 points. Full handicap point scores can be found here.

Little Nippers Championship

Almost 400 eager Little Nippers from 23 clubs competed at the first ever Little Nippers Championships, also held on the Sunday.

There were great conditions on the day for our youngest competitors (U8 & U9) who travelled from as far north as Broome and south as Esperance Goldfields, to experience their first taste of competitive surf sports!

All four arenas were in close proximity and with a day of non-stop action, the atmosphere was electric.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ANDREW MAYBERRY – PHOTOGRAPHER FACEBOOK PAGE

Final point scores weren’t tallied, with the focus being about fun and participation! A special well done goes to athletes from Sorrento SLSC who did exceptionally well on their home beach. Athletes from our country clubs also had a great day, with Little Nippers from Albany, Broome, Geraldton, Denmark and Port Bouvard clubs all taking home medals. Individual results can be found here.

A special thank you to our surf sports and naming rights partner, Healthway, promoting the SunSmart message, without whose support this calendar of events would not be possible.

Shout out also to Sorrento SLSC for doing an amazing job of hosting these events across the weekend, and thank you to all our officials who ensured everyone enjoyed the weekend of competition!