Newhaven surfers win Aussie title
Newhaven College student Nikki Van Dijk.
NEWHAVEN College claimed the Australian top schools surfing champions trophy following outstanding performances by students Nikki Van Dijk and India Payne in the Arnette Australian Junior Titles on the Sunshine Coast last week.
Young surfing dynamos Nikki, 15, and India, 15, won the blue ribbon Under 19 Australian Schools MR (Mark Richards) Shield and placed second in the Under 16 Australian All Stars event.
Nikki now has her sights set on the World Junior under 18 Championships in January following her success, having placed an extremely close second in the final of the Under 18 Arnette Australian Junior Titles.
She now goes into an elite Surfing Australia High Performance Centre training camp and will most likely be selected into TravelSim Team Australia and go to the World Junior Under 18 Championships to be run in New Zealand next year.
Phillip Island’s Newhaven College promotes surfing as part of the school curriculum and has run a very popular program for some 10 years, with Year 7 students competing in the college house competition, the annual Gippsland Independent Schools Surfing Competition, State and Australian titles.
The college enjoyed great success, having taken out the prestigious Australian top schools MR Shield in 2002 and runners-up in 2006.
College principal Michael Brewin said he is very proud of the students’ achievements.
“It is a great thrill for the college and credit goes to the hard work and dedication by our students Nikki and India, their parents and college surf coach Andy Neal,” Mr Brewin said.
The Australian Junior Surfing Titles ran from Saturday, November 28 through to Saturday, December 5 at Coolum Beach, Queensland.
A successful week of dynamic surfing from Australia’s emerging stars of the surf saw 12 Arnette Australian Junior Surfing Titles awarded.
Across individual Under 18 and Under 16 boys and girls through to national schools titles, all winners have joined an awesome history of Australian surfers that includes surfers like Tom Carroll, Damien Hardman, Stephanie Gilmore, Joel Parkinson, Mick Fanning, Cheyne Horan, Wayne Lynch and many many more legends of Australian surfing who have won Arnette Australian Junior Surfing Titles.
Finalists across these individual divisions will also enter the Surfing Australia High Performance Centre for elite training and some will then be added to the team for New Zealand which will be trying to defend Australia as the champion Junior Team.
Next year’s Arnette Australian Junior Surfing Titles will be held in early December at Phillip Island, possibly the most ideal wave location in Australia during summer, with a huge variety of high quality beach and reef breaks – an event that will be much anticipated.
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