Three years ago, Coolum Boardriders were the underdogs. Between 2021 and 2023, the club finished no higher than ninth at the Queensland qualifier of the Australian Boardriders Battle. Since then, it hasn’t finished outside the top eight. This year, Coolum surfers made up the majority of the Queensland Opens team at Aussies, and the club qualified for the Australian Boardriders Battle Grand Final for the third year running.
Something has changed at Coolum.
When club president Jimi Wallace was coming through the ranks, team competition wasn’t a major focus. Looking for opportunities beyond the club, Wallace competed on the World Surf League Qualifying Series before joining the Army, where he played football and experienced first-hand what can happen when individuals come together with a shared purpose. This experience opened his eyes to what individuals are capable of in a team setting.
He came back to the club with a changed perspective. He could see where team spirit was lacking and why Coolum hadn’t done so well. Watching the juniors, he noticed gaps in their work ethic and an environment that was too relaxed.
When Wallace put his hand up to be president two years ago, he wanted more structure, a club that took the sport seriously, and an end to the underdog tag. He knew that meant setting a clear direction and sticking to it, rather than trying to please everyone. He wasn’t sure his approach to training would work in surfing, but the results speak for themselves: individual and team performances have lifted, and the club’s talent pool has grown.
The key to his approach is training juniors and opens together, so both divisions learn from and compete against each other. At club rounds, juniors are pushed to surf up in the open division. The payoff shows in the juniors’ confidence and composure in their own heats. And it works both ways: as the juniors rise, the opens are pushed to step up too.
“The biggest thing that’s worked is humbling our juniors,” Wallace said. “We make sure they aren’t winning 24/7, because that’s not what happens in life.”
For the former QS surfer, humility builds confidence, and getting everyone involved, from the kids to the opens, pushes the whole club towards the top.
Win or lose, he says the pride is already there: “Whether our juniors are winning or getting the wooden spoon, they’re carrying the Coolum flag and sticking around, or excelling in the sport.”
The club president also has his sights set on keeping juniors in the club as they move into the opens. He says many surfers drift away once they turn 18, as junior development programs end and they lose the support that kept them going. Junior surfers also traditionally attract more sponsorship and investment than 18–21-year-olds in open divisions, and Wallace sees room to bring the two together under the banner of athlete development.
At Coolum, graduating juniors are encouraged to stay on, train alongside the next generation and help pass the torch to the under-16s and under-14s.
“Surfing is a serious league now, and clubs are starting to treat it that way,” We should push for more sponsors to be putting money into the sport, especially into open development.”
The next stop for Coolum Boardriders is the Australian Boardriders Battle Grand Final at Burleigh Heads in March, and a chance to shed the underdog tag for good.
