SUNSHINE COAST, QUEENSLAND (14 December 2022) – The third day of the 2022 Rip Curl GromSearch Series saw a giant day of surfing with things heating up ahead of finals day tomorrow. With similar conditions to yesterday, the competitors reveled in the small but fun shore breaks Coolum provided the young surfers.
The morning saw the Under 16 Girls Division hit the water for the first time. 2022 Under 16 Australian Junior Champion, Milla Brown (Newport, NSW), secured her position for finals day, as well as Queenslanders, Isla Huppatz (Bilinga, QLD), Jordy Halford (Currumbin, QLD), and Stella Green (Buddina, QLD).
Sunshine Beach local grommet, Eliza Richardson, continued her consistency and locked her spot in the semi-final of the Under 14 Girls. On the opposite side of the draw, Meika Locke (Palm Beach, QLD), posted excellent scores to secure the highest heat total of the division and also booking a spot in the semi-final.
Jimmi Hill (Anna Bay, NSW) and Landen Smales (Noosa Heads, QLD) were standout performers of the day, blowing their competitors out of the water in the Under 16 Boys division. Mitchell Peterson (Noosaville) and Rico Haybittle (Palm Beach, QLD) were also looking fierce leading into the pointy end of the competition.
NSW Under 12 Boys State Champion, Locana Cullen (Avalon, NSW), posted the highest heat total of the day with a two-wave combination of 16.17 (out of a possible 20).
Tomorrow will be the final day of action of the 2022 Rip Curl GromSearch at Coolum Beach.
The GromSearch Series runs in more than 10 countries, with over 3,000 competitors worldwide.
The worldwide series of events is designed for grommets and features Under 12 Boys, Under 12 Girls, Under 14 Boys, Under 14 Girls, Under 16 Boys and Under 16 Girls divisions.
Stay tuned for day two of the Rip Curl GromSearch and make sure to follow @surfingqueensland on Instagram for updates.
Surfing Queensland would also like to thank the Sunshine Coast Council, The Point Coolum, QMS Media, We Are Feel Good Inc and Queensland Government for their ongoing support.
RIP CURL GROMSEARCH SERIES – 2022/23
EVENT 1 – Jan Juc, Vic – Sept 17-19, 2022
EVENT 2 – Newcastle, NSW – Sept 29- Oct 2, 2022
EVENT 3 – Coolum, Qld – Dec 12-15, 2022
National Final – URBNSURF Melbourne, March 2023
(Note – all dates and locations are subject to the relevant local, state and federal Covid-19 restrictions and regulations).
An inclusion for the 2022 season is the adoption of the National age division for the GromSearch series, with Rip Curl Event Manager, Mark Flanagan, adding “After consultation with surfers, parents, Surfing Australia and surfing state bodies we decided to align with the national age divisions for the benefit of all participants. It wasn’t an easy decision, but we thought we’d make the change to help unify development pathways for surfers in this region”.
Overview
The Rip Curl GromSearch series began as a single day event in 1999 and has developed into a world-wide series providing groms with the opportunity to surf with friends and test their skills against the best junior talent in their country. The impressive list of previous GromSearch competitors currently competing on the elite WSL world tour is testament to the quality of the series.
Former GromSearch finalists competing on the 2022 WSL World Tour include:
Tyler Wright*, Steph Gilmore*, Carissa Moore*, Molly Picklum, Sally Fitzgibbons, Malia Manuel, Tatiana Weston-Webb, Bronte McCaulay, Caroline Marks, Macy Callaghan, Brisa Hennessy & Isabella Nichols. (Note: GromSearch competitors have won the last 14 WSL women’s World Titles).
Former GromSearch finalists competing on the 2022 WSL World Tour include: Gabriel Medina*, Morgan Cibilic*, Filipe Toledo*, Italo Ferreira*, Jordy Smith, Kolohe Andino, Kanoa Igarashi, Ryan Callinan, Leonardo Fioravanti, Connor O’Leary, Seth Moniz, Griffin Colapinto, Owen Wright & Sammy pupo. (*Note: 4 of the 5 surfers in the 2021 WSL Finals series were former GromSearch finalists).
