Sport

SA second at World Surfing Masters

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8 September 2010

Team South Africa finished second to Australia and picked up six medals – three gold, one silver and two bronze – at the 2010 ISA World Masters Surfing Championship at Santa Catalina in Panama.

Heather Clark, in the women's Masters class, and Chris Knutsen, in the Grand Kahunas, successfully defended their titles, while Masters' competitor Andrew Banks won his first ISA World title. The event took place on the weekend.

Brothers Andre and David Malherbe earned bronze in the Grand Masters and Kahunas respectively. The silver medal came in a very tightly-contested team competition.

Down to the last heat of the event

It went down to the last heat of the event, the Masters final, where despite Banks winning the gold, Australians placed second and third to dash South Africa's hopes of a third consecutive team gold by a mere 260 points – 10 456 to 10 196.

An elated Banks clinched the Masters (over-35) title with an outstanding heat total of 17.57 out of 20. He took the lead in the final with an 8.50 and then grabbed the gold medal with a 9.07 ride that left silver medalist Brett Banister needing 8.98, while fellow Aussie Dean Hall and two-time defending champion Juan Ashton of Puerto Rico were comboed (needing a combination of scores to win).

"I feel extremely happy. This is the reason why I came here," Banks said afterwards.

"This is what I was praying for, and I was not going to be happy with second place. It was a tough final and I gave it my all for my late brother, Robbie - I surf for him."

Victory in every heat

Heather Clark, a former ASP World Championship Tour standout, has won every heat she has entered in her two appearances in the ISA World Masters Surfing Championship.

She completed remarkable recovery from a life-threatening motor accident last October to secure her second consecutive ISA Women's Masters gold medal. In the final she scored an excellent 17.86 (a pair of 8.93 rides) that left Andrea Lopes of Brazil in second, Tahiti's Patricia Rossi in third, and Sandra English of Australia in fourth.

"It was hard because all the surfers in the final are really good and we all got waves over the 6.00 point range," Clark said after being mobbed by her teammates on the beach. "I had support in the water, at the beach and I wanted really bad to get my second world title."

Third gold in all

Durban's Chris Knutsen won his second successive Grand Kahunas (over-50) ISA world title and his third gold medal overall after winning the Kahunas division in the 2007 edition in Puerto Rico.

The 53-year-old displayed smart wave selection and exhibited his customary huge manoeuvres to post the only perfect 10-point ride of the entire event in the final. Backing that up with an 8.5, 'Knutto' left Javier Huarcaya of Peru in second, Kenneth Myers of Panama in third and Javier Gorbea of Puerto Rica in fourth.

"I came here trying to win a third ISA World Title, a hat-trick, and I managed to pull it off," an emotional Knutsen said.

'It was amazing getting a 10'

"I think God gave me the waves as it was amazing to get a 10. I caught the wave and it looked like it was going to be a good one. I just rode it the best I could and luckily it worked out well for me.

"I am so happy. This happens because if you really love what you do - and I love surfing - you can only get better."

Andre Malherbe completed a gutsy run in the event to place third in the Grand Masters (over-40) division behind three-time gold medalist Juan Ashton of Puerto Rica and Glen Pringle of Australia.

It took a gutsy effort just to reach the grand final after he dropped into the repecharge rounds early on, which forced him to have to to battle through six heats of cutthroat competition just to reach the medal round.

Bronze

His brother David Malherbe also earned a bronze medal, one better than his Copper medal in Puerto Rico, when he placed third in the Kahunas (over-45) final, behind Rod Baldwin, Australia's only individual gold medalist, and Brazil's Sergio Penna.

Wayne Monk placed equal 9th overall in the Masters division, Rob Moore-Boyle finished seventh in the Grand Masters and fellow Durbanite and SA team captain Marc Wright just missed out on the final and an opportunity to defend the Kahunas title he won in Peru in 2008, by placing sixth overall.

The Closing Ceremony was attended by the President of the Republic of Panama Ricardo Martinelli as well as the Vice President, Minister of Tourism and Minister of Economy, who assisted ISA President, Fernando Aguerre, in awarding the medals.

Martinelli told the visiting surfers: "Tell everybody about the perfect waves we have and come here, you are more than welcome."

2010 ISA World Masters Surfing Championships
Santa Catalina, Panama

Team Medallists

Gold: Australia – 10 456 points

Silver: South Africa – 10 196 points

Bronze: Brazil – 8 770 points

Copper: Puerto Rico – 8 684 points

Masters

Gold: Andrew Banks (RSA)

Silver: Brett Bannister (Aus)

Bronze: Dean Hall (Aus)

Copper: Juan Ashton (PUR)