Westbrook surfer Andrew Banks claims SA gold for iLembe
A lifelong surfer, Banks has tasted national gold on three previous occasions, winning a junior title in 1987 and two masters titles in 2005 and 2010.
Westbrook’s Andrew Banks earned a fourth national title when he dominated the men’s over-50 category at last week’s South African surfing championships.
His gold medal, alongside six other iLembe Surf Riders bronze medallists, also helped to propel the team into fourth place in the overall competition.
Originally from the Eastern Cape, Banks spent most of his adult life on the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) South Coast after moving there in 1987.
This proved to be a massive advantage given the location of this year’s Tidy Towns South African Surfing Championships at St Mike’s beach on the South Coast.
“I have done a lot of my surfing at St Mike’s and it holds a very special place for me. It was there that I paddled out the ashes of my late mother and brother too, so it is hugely significant in my life,” said Banks.
Photo: Justin Klusener Photography.
A lifelong surfer, Banks has tasted national gold on three previous occasions, winning a junior title in 1987 and two masters titles in 2005 and 2010.
His biggest surfing achievement also came in 2010 where he claimed the world masters title in Panama.
Since moving to Westbrook in the same year, Banks has been in search of the next victory and had circled this year’s event as a major opportunity.
“I’ve been training quite hard for this one, also qualifying for the men’s open category which I used as a sort of warm-up,” said Banks.
The training paid off as Banks cruised through the opening heats, comfortably winning his heat and quarter-final matchups with scores of 17.13 and 9.88.
He was pushed closer in the semi-final, but ultimately qualified in second position, almost three full points ahead of the next best finisher.
Photo: Justin Klusener Photography.
“The conditions were fantastic the whole week. We were surfing in honour of legendary Barry Wolins who unfortunately passed away, and it felt like he was shining down on the event.”
Although the waves on finals day on Sunday were reasonably small, Banks took it in stride when it mattered most and went wire-to-wire, leading from the first wave.
His opening salvo of 7.88 and 4.63 waves would be too much for the chasing pack to make up as he beat out eThekwini’s Warren Dixon (11.58) and Ryan Ribbink (11.53).
Although Banks scored iLembe’s only gold, the team delivered strong surfing in almost every category.
Karl Steen (open men), Olivia Brand (open women), Tamarys de Maroussem (over-30 women), Lyle Botcher (over-45 men), Chris Baum (over-55 men) and Fred le Roux (over-60 men) all earned bronze medals amid tough competition.
This allowed iLembe to match their overall efforts in last year’s event, finishing fourth overall behind Buffalo City, eThekwini and Ugu.
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