Speed and sheer power were on display at East London’s surfing hotspot, Nahoon Reef, as local and international surfers competed on the opening day of the Buffalo City Surf Pro yesterday morning.
The muddy-coloured surf added to the fear and respect shown to the renowned wave, often compared to Hawaii’s famous Sunset Beach, as 63 surfers impressed the large crowd of spectators as they styled for points and cash in the three-day tournament, scheduled to end tomorrow.
Unsurprisingly, seasoned local surfing star and former World Surf League campaigner Greg Emslie sailed through his heat to qualify for the round of 16.
Emslie lost in last year’s competition and hopes this year’s home advantage will favour him.
“It was a nice strong start for me.
“I know the waves very well and so far everything is going according to plan,” he said.
He was expecting a tough time from tournament favourite and shortboard champion, Jeffreys Bay-born Steven Sawyer, who also easily won his heat to qualify for the last 16.
Emslie’s champion nephew, Daniel Emslie, also from East London, is a hopeful in the junior men’s division. East London sensation and last year’s junior women’s division runner-up, 14-year-old Zoe Stevens, said she was geared up for this year’s event.
“I have learnt a lot since then. Nahoon Reef is quite a tough one. I’m hoping it all goes well,” said Stevens.
International surfers such as Mauritanian Jean Patrice Fucy and Japanese youngster Kenta Ishikawa, to name a few, took part to try and push up their international qualifying series (QS) rankings.
Edward Gregory, CEO of Accelerate Sport, who are the competition’s organisers, applauded Nahoon Reef’s waves and the tournament’s lineup of riders.
“When you come here, you are guaranteed to get excellent surfing conditions – you will always get waves,” said Gregory.
He said the presence of international surfers would “improve the standards of surfers locally”.
The men’s first prize winner will go home with R12000, while the woman’s division first winner will pocket R8000 in cash.
Junior division winners will go home with R4000 and some surfers will look to gain points for international rankings. — mandilakhek@
dispatch.co.za
Nahoon serves Surf Pro well, as top guns shine
The muddy-coloured surf added to the fear and respect shown to the renowned wave, often compared to Hawaii’s famous Sunset Beach, as 63 surfers impressed the large crowd of spectators as they styled for points and cash in the three-day tournament, scheduled to end tomorrow.
Unsurprisingly, seasoned local surfing star and former World Surf League campaigner Greg Emslie sailed through his heat to qualify for the round of 16.
Emslie lost in last year’s competition and hopes this year’s home advantage will favour him.
“It was a nice strong start for me.
“I know the waves very well and so far everything is going according to plan,” he said.
He was expecting a tough time from tournament favourite and shortboard champion, Jeffreys Bay-born Steven Sawyer, who also easily won his heat to qualify for the last 16.
Emslie’s champion nephew, Daniel Emslie, also from East London, is a hopeful in the junior men’s division. East London sensation and last year’s junior women’s division runner-up, 14-year-old Zoe Stevens, said she was geared up for this year’s event.
“I have learnt a lot since then. Nahoon Reef is quite a tough one. I’m hoping it all goes well,” said Stevens.
International surfers such as Mauritanian Jean Patrice Fucy and Japanese youngster Kenta Ishikawa, to name a few, took part to try and push up their international qualifying series (QS) rankings.
Edward Gregory, CEO of Accelerate Sport, who are the competition’s organisers, applauded Nahoon Reef’s waves and the tournament’s lineup of riders.
“When you come here, you are guaranteed to get excellent surfing conditions – you will always get waves,” said Gregory.
He said the presence of international surfers would “improve the standards of surfers locally”.
The men’s first prize winner will go home with R12000, while the woman’s division first winner will pocket R8000 in cash.
Junior division winners will go home with R4000 and some surfers will look to gain points for international rankings. — mandilakhek@
dispatch.co.za
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending Now
Latest Videos