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Just one more day to go!
Preparations are well under way,
twenty-four hours before the start of the 2008 Quiksilver ISA World Junior
Surfing Championship in Hossegor and Seignosse.
Despite flight disruptions, the delegations from the 28 competing countries
have arrived safely in France. For some nations, the journey was long and
tiring - up to 40 hours for the Australians - and plenty of teams are still
waiting for their boards, which went missing en route...
Altogether, some 290 surfers under the age of 18 – a record - have come
together on the coast of south-west France, and this weekend will see battle
commence in this major event on the international surfing scene.
All the continents will be represented in France this year, with the great
surfing nations, including Australia, Brazil, the United States, South
Africa and Hawaii., Rubbing shoulders with them are a number of emerging
surfing countries, such as Israel, Barbados, Canada and Germany, which is
sending a full team for the first time, and even Senegal, making its debut
in the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championship.
« This United Nations of junior surfing will be one of the highlights of
surfing year. I love to attend the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing
Championships. It’s our surfing way of showing the world that peaceful
coexistence is a very reachable goal” said exhausted but excited
International Surfing Association President, Fernando Aguerre.
The Parade of Nations in Hossegor – Saturday 24 May
Tomorrow, on Saturday 24 May, the 28 nations will process through the town
of Hossegor, as is traditional at the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing
Championship. From 2pm, all the delegations will gather in front of Hossegor
town hall (post office car park), bearing their flags and colours, and will
walk to the Casino, where the time-honoured Sands of the World ceremony will
take place and the teams will be presented. The “fraternal and universal"
character of this gathering, inspired by Olympic vibes is a key value of the
event.
It is the "major event of the year for the sport" according to Fernando
Aguerre, President of the International Surfing Association.
Note: In case of rain, the ceremony will be held at the Jai Alai next door
to the Casino.
The terrace of the Mercedes hotel, on the parade route, will provide a great
vantage point for spectators.
Start of the competition at Penon, Seignosse - Sunday 25 May
With 290 competitors involved, the schedule promises to be packed.
The competitions will open at 8am on Sunday morning, at the main venue, the
Plage du Penon beach in Seignosse. A second competition site, 300 yards to
the south, will simultaneously host another series and the repechage heats.
The French team is complete
After a final round of internal selections for the girls, Justine Dupont
will complete the French Team for this World Championship, which looks like
this:
Marc Lacomare, Charlie Martin, Pierre-Valentin Laborde and Mehdi Veminardi,
in the Boys U18 category.
Maxime Huscenot, Dimitri Ouvré, Kieran Bulard and Ian Fontaine in the Boys
U16 category.
Pauline Ado, Alizée Arnaud, Marie Dejean and Justine Dupont in the Girls U18
category.
Cannelle Bulard and Johanne Defaye will be the replacements on stand-by.
Marc Lacomare was named Captain of the French Team following the warm-up
match between France and Costa Rica, which took place last Wednesday at the
Grande Plage beach in Biarritz and was won by the home team.
The 2008 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championship
Championship is organised by the French Surfing Federation (FFS) with the
support of the French Ministry of Sport, Youth and Health and sanctioned by
the International Surfing Association (ISA). This major meeting on the
surfing calendar is returning to France for the first time since 1992 (when
it was held in Lacanau, and won by Chad Edser).
The ISA World Junior Surfing Championships is uniquely imbued with the
Olympic spirit, as it is officially recognised by the IOC.
290 competitors, grouped into national teams, will surf in official
representation of their countries. In addition to the individual World
Junior Champions titles, they will also be competing together for the title
Junior Team World Champion. The winners will be awarded the ISA World Junior
Team Champion. The current World Team champion is Australia, who won it last
year in Costa de Caparica, Portugal.
28 countries in the 2008 ISA World Junior Surfing Championship !
Argentina
Australia
Barbados
Brazil
Canada
Chile
Costa Rica
Ecuador
France
Germany
Hawaii
Ireland
Israël
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Mexico
Morocco
New-Zealand
Peru
Portugal
Senegal
South Africa
Spain
Tahiti
UK
USA
Venezuela
CONCERTS
At the end of the ISA World Junior Surfing Championship, all the competitors
will come together at a concert featuring Mick Hart and Rogerthat, to take
place at 8pm on June 1st at La Salle des Bourdaines, Seignosse.
With a style somewhere between Jack Johnson and Ben Harper, Mick Hart has
already played support to some massive names including Coldplay, Sting, Bob
Dylan and The Pretenders. More recently, he played alongside Van Morrison at
the Olympia in Paris, and took to the stage with the John Butler Trio on
their French tour in 2007. www.mickhart.com
Rogerthat is an Australian group who have performed at festival gigs
alongside Rage Against the Machine or Björk. Rob Sawyer band will complete
this 100% aussie stage.
MEDIA
PHOTOS:
www.quiksilver-press.com
login: pressroom / password: quiksilverpress
Free images of 2007 edition available.
During the event, daily free of charges selection will be available on the
website.
VIDEO:
High resolution video sequences (3 minutes) will be available daily on a
dedicated ftp server. More details soon.
WEBSITE:
All information, images, results of the 2008 Quiksilver ISA World Junior
Surfing Championship are available on: http://isaworldchamp.com/
PRESS TRIP:
Press trip and free accommodation for media. Depending on bookings.
● ISA 2008 World Junior Surfing Championship Press officer:
Cathy Lallement / Agence Olivia Payerne
Ph. +33 (0) 6 14 04 17 16 – Email : contact@agence-op.fr
● Communication Director Quiksilver/Roxy Europe: Sophie Rougerie
Ph. +33 (0) 5 59 51 57 57 – Email : sophie.rougerie@quiksilver-europe.com
● Communication French Surfing Federation:
Alexandre Griveau
Ph. +33 (0) 5 58 43 55 88 – Email : alex.griveau@surfingfrance.com
● International Surfing Association Media Manager: Pablo Zanocchi
Ph. +33 (0) 6 20 56 04 68
Email: pablo@isasurf.org
About the ISA
The International Surfing Association (ISA) is recognized by the
International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the World Governing Authority for
surfing, bodyboarding and surfriding. It was originally founded as the
International Surfing Federation in 1964 and has been running world
championships since 1964 and the Junior World Championships since 1980.
ISA membership includes the surfing National Governing Bodies (NGBs) of over
50 countries on six continents. Its headquarters are located in San Diego,
California. It is presided by Fernando Aguerre, first elected in 1994 in
Rio, and re-elected six times since. The ISA's four Vice Presidents are Alan
Atkins (Australia), Robin de Kock (South Africa), Maile Aguerre (Hawaii) and
Mike Gerard (USA).
Key Dates:
1964: Foundation of the International Surfing Federation which becomes
International Surfing Association in 1976.
1982 : The ISA is recognized by the GAISF, l’Association Générale des
Fédérations Internationales de Sports.
1995: The IOC officially recognizes the ISA surfing into the Olympic
movement.
