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This year’s Rip Curl Grom Search took place at Godrevy Beach, near Hayle, in very testing conditions. The UK’s top grom surfers converged to battle it out in stormy waves for the chance to earn a coveted spot at the Rip Curl European Grom Search Final, to be held at the Rip Curl Pro Portugal world tour event later in October.
Day one got underway in solid overhead conditions, with the remnants of Hurricane Irene pushing in a strong swell, but with it came the wind and rain. The Under 12 categories got the event started, with all the groms giving it a good go to battle through the elements. Throughout the day, all the categories got to surf, with the weather finally breaking late on to give the Under 16 boys some great conditions as the wind swung more offshore and overhead clean lines piling into the bay. Early standouts in the first rounds were Miles Lee Hargreaves (Bournemouth), Angus Scotney (St Mawgen), Keisha Eyre, and Taz Knight (Croyde). All seemed to revel in the larger conditions.
The start of day two was greeted with a British rarity, clear skies and fun waves! Progressing through the semi-finals and into the finals, it was clear that the event favorites were surfing their way into the finals. Liam Murray Strout (Croyde) showed great style to take out the Under 12 Boys, and Harry De Roth (St Ives) held off very close challenge from Angus Scotney to win the Under 14 boys. In the Girls U14s, Peony Knight (Croyde) linked the better waves to outscore her local rival and good friend Flora Lawton (Croyde). She also made a double success, by claiming the Under 16 title and with it a spot at the Euro final in October. Joining her on the trip, in Runner Up spot was Keisha Eyre who had impressed earlier in the event.
The last heat of the event was the Under 16 boys, with local boy Paddy Daniels (St Ives) taking an early lead but Jobe Harriss (Bude) struck back with an excellent 9 point ride that the other contenders struggled to come back from. Miles Lee Hargreaves found it hard to get the right waves and Taz Knight struggled to link his turns in the now blustery conditions. In the end, Jobe took the win from Paddy Daniels, with Taz Knight and Miles Lee Hargreaves coming in 3rd and 4th respectively. Both Jobe and Paddy will now represent the UK at the Euro final in October.
A massive thanks goes out to the Sandsifter Restaurant and Gwithian Acadamy of Surfing for their help and support over the weekend. Also the National Trust were great for allowing the use of the area.
The Rip Curl Grom Search Series is dedicated to finding the best young surfing talent across Europe and the rest of the World. Previous winners of the event have included current World Tour Surfers Owen and Tyler Wright. The Rip Curl Grom Search Series is an established stepping stone for budding young surfers, with the top Under 16 surfers from the UK events earning the opportunity to surf at the European Grom Search final, to be held during Rip Curl Pro Peniche! A great opportunity to surf against the best grommets from across Europe, alongside the ASP Top 34 and a free surf trip to boot!
U12 Girls
1. Sophie Turner
2. Ellie Turner
U14 Girls
1. Peony Knight
2.Flora Lawton
3.Emily Williams
4. Emily Currie
U16 Girls
1. Peony Knight
2. Keisha Eyre
3. Jaide Lowe
4. Flora Lawton
Boys U12
1.Liam Murray Strout
2. Cieran Hughes
3.Gabriel Laey
4. Joseph Harding
Boys U14
1.Harry de Roth
2. Angus Scotney
3. Rhys Barfield
4. Alex Gibson
Boys U16
1. Jobe Harriss
2. Paddy Daniel
3. Taz Knight
4. Miles Lee Hargreaves
Boys U14:
Boys U12:
Girls U16:
Girls U14:
Boys U16:
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