iLembe juniors compete in high spirits at SA Junior Surfing Champs

iLembe’s best junior surfers took on South Africa’s elite in the SA Junior Surfing Championships (SAJSC) last week, bringing home the spirit award.

After a year’s hiatus caused by the coronavirus, the iLembe Surfriders junior team were back where they belong, competing at the top of the local surfing scene.

An 18-strong team descended on Jeffreys Bay for perfect surfing conditions from October 1 to 5, captained by David Edwards and Maya Potgieter.

“The youngsters did an incredible job of navigating their way through the heats. Many of the younger surfers had not surfed in a major competition, let alone outside of Ballito. The juniors rallied together and supported each other through each and every round, cheering each other up and down the beach, no matter what the result,” said team manager, Simon Tayler.

Nathan Tayler was the team’s top performer, delivering impressive performances in the heats before finishing with a bronze in the boys U12 division.

Maxine Kaufmann also performed superbly, surfing all the way through to the semi-finals in the girls U12 division, despite having learnt to surf less than a year ago.

Other notable performances include Catherine Jacobs (Girls U14), Maya Potgieter (Girls U16), Kiera Fletcher (Girls U18), Cooper Smith (Boys U14) and Riley Balfour (Boys U12) who all made it to their respective quarterfinals.

For the first time, the iLembe team also included a group of development surfers in conjunction with Nippers Salt Rock and Small Steps Surfing.

“Small Steps is a program in Salt Rock founded by Jurgen Jacobs and run by Josh Chaplin, where disadvantaged young men and women are trained and coached for surfing and life. The three surfers included in the iLembe team came from this programme,” said development team manager, Wayne Duncan.

The true winners in the event were the team as a whole who supported each other through every triumph and disappointment.

“The enthusiasm was contagious and lead to iLembe Surfriders winning the ‘Loud and Proud’ award at the contest for the team with the best spirit. The future of iLembe Surfriders is looking bright with a new crop of juniors rising through the ranks with enthusiasm and talent to spare!” said Tayler.

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