Grom surfers across the UK are spending as much preparation time as is possible in the waves this week in the run up to the Quiksilver King of the Groms contest, organised by the British Surfing Association, at Fistral Beach in Newquay from 30th June – 1st July.
The King of the Groms is the essential global event for international young surfers aged 16 and under, who aspire to a professional career and British youngsters will be waxing their boards in the hope that they can be the one to follow in the footsteps of the surfing pro’s.
Taj Burrow, Miky Picon and Jeremy Flores careers were all launched when they won the contest and Fistral Beach will be a hotbed of grom talent, all looking to make their mark on the international surf scene.
Last year saw Lewis Clinton and Gwen Spurlock take the British crowns and go through to compete in the finals in France. Lewis put on a good show in the early rounds and flew the flag for the UK. This year, Britain’s most promising groms will be aiming to hit the top spot and prove their global surfing potential.
For over 15 years, Quiksilver has been bringing the world’s top young surfers together in Capbreton in South West France to compete in what is internationally recognised as the leading tournament for the under-16s age group. The French final is the culmination of a worldwide tour spanning five continents, with 16 young surfers from all over the world competing for the title.
The overall winner receives an apprentice package that most surfers can only ever dream of: a wildcard enabling him, along with his chaperone, to compete in the trials for two events on the Men’s World Championship Tour: the Quiksilver Pro France 2006 and the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast 2007 (Australia).
Run between May and July 2007, the Quiksilver King of the Groms will identify the best young surfers aged 16 and under on each of the world’s continents. New for 2007, with its age category now expanded to include 16 year-olds, the King of the Groms tour now includes the highly rated Australian national championship.
The British leg will has already seen events that ran in Wales at Porthcawl on the 26th–27th May and in Ireland at Strand Hill on the 23rd-24th June and the final of the UK series in Newquay will see the highest place grom out of the three will getting a wild card into the world King of the Groms finals in Capbreton in France later this year.
Spencer Hargraves of Quiksilver UK says: “It’s always great to bring the King of the Groms to Newquay and see the talent and determination of our young British surfers. This contest opens up opportunities for lots of youngsters and we have a hot pool of British skill at the moment so there’s every chance that we could be discovering one of the next surfing stars over the course of the weekend. For the competitors who make the track to compete in France it really will be a great experience to see the level of surfing worldwide and without a doubt, it will help their surfing improve in leaps and bounds.”
Contestants should contact Jo Hillman at the British Surfing Association on 01637876474 or check in at the beach at 8am on the 30th June.
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