Competition heats up at U14 Surf Life Saving Championship

The second day of the annual four-day Under 14 New Zealand Surf Life Saving Championships held at Mt Maunganui in the Bay of Plenty, saw junior athletes compete in four challenging events both in and out of the water.

Competitors were put straight into the chilly water at 8am this morning before switching to events on the sand which was "a little warmer".

Event manager Scott Bicknell says: "Today was another hugely successful day at Oceans 16. The weather has been absolutely perfect all day, even though the wind picked up towards the end.

"Our athletes did an awesome job again, and so did all of our volunteers and race officials who stood out in the hot sun all day. Oceans 16 is shaping up to be another closely contested event so the action is only going to get better."

Today's events included a beach relay, a beach sprint (approximately 70 meters in length), a diamond race and a board rescue race. The diamond race sees the athletes use all three disciplines of surf living saving; swim, board and run.

The team board rescue race, made up of two competitors, mimics a real-life rescue with the assistance of a paddle board. The first competitor swims out to a buoy approximately 120 meters off-shore, before getting rescued by the second competitor, with both team members paddling back together and running up the beach to the finish.

Rivalry between surf clubs from around New Zealand also increased today, with the overall club title up for grabs. Last year's winners, a local crew from Omanu Surf Club, are keen to hold onto their title though are facing tough competition from other clubs like Papamoa, Mt Maunganui, Waikanae [Gisborne], Red Beach [Auckland] and Mairangi Bay [Auckland].

For many athletes, this is their one chance this year to show off their skills and improve their techniques as teams, coaches and officials travel from all around New Zealand; from as far North as Waipu Cove to as far South as Dunedin.

Oceans 16 starts again tomorrow [Saturday March 5] from 8am at the Mt Maunganui Surf Life Saving Club. Entry to the event is free.

Beach Sprint Results

U11 Women's
1. Riley Wood (Whangamata, Waikato)
2. Lucy Bartlett (Omanu, Bay of Plenty)
3. Emma Shotter (East End, New Plymouth)

U11 Men's
1. Jakob Currin (Red Beach, Auckland)
2. Logan Jenner (Waihi Beach, Waikato)
3. Akira Gardiner (Red Beach, Auckland)

U12 Women's
1. Scarlett Glover (Omanu, Bay of Plenty)
2. Lucy Elliott (East End, New Plymouth)
3. Caitlin Pringle (Mt Maunganui, Bay of Plenty)

U12 Men's
1. Ethan Anderson (Red Beach, Auckland)
2. Caithness Faulkner (Waihi Beach, Waikato)
3. Oliver Howarth (Red Beach, Auckland)

U13 Women's
1. Briana Irving (Waikanae, Gisborne)
2. Taika Davis (Maranui, Wellington)
3. Eden Kelly (Papamoa, Bay of Plenty)

U13 Men's
1. Sam Mason-Green (Wainui, Gisborne)
2 Zach Goldsmith (Taylors Mistake, Canterbury)
3. Ben Clarke (Muriwai, Auckland)

U14 Women's
1. Lily Roper (Mt Maunganui, Bay of Plenty)
2. Kaitlin Cotter (Westshore, Hawkes Bay)
3. Saffi Vette (Wainui, Gisborne)

U14 Men's
1. Lewis Farr (Papamoa, Bay of Plenty)
2. Wesley Akeripa (Ocean Beach Kiwi, Hawkes Bay)
3. Jacob McLachlan-Landon (Fitzroy, New Plymouth)

Beach Relay Results

U11 Mixed
1. Zoe Crawford, Myara Flint, Charlie Dalton and Matthew Reshef (Mairangi Bay, Auckland)
2. Logan Jenner, Luke Spurr, Zeta Schuler and Saoirse Reynolds (Waihi Beach, Waikato)
3. Jai Knight, Flynn Cowdrey, Maya Carr-Manoit and Mia Thompson (Mt Maunganui, Bay of Pelnty)

U12 Women's
1. Blake West, Grady Forbes, Kayleigh Belt and Ashlyn Koce (Papamoa, Bay of Plenty)
2. Scarlett Glover, Grace Scott, Jye Reid and Gus Shivnan (Omanu, Bay of Plenty)
3. Josh Goble, Brayden Meuli, Rocki Robinson, Lucy Elliot (East End, New Plymouth)

U13 Women's
1. Briana Irving, Holly Irving, Clayden Hope and Nicolas Proffitt (Waikanae, Gisborne)
2. Kian Grey, Eden Kelly, Caitlin Harris and Jack Hitchfield (Papamoa, Bay of Plenty)
3. Sam Mason-Green, Harry Holdsworth, Ava Smith and Hannah-Jayne King (Wainui, Gisborne)

U14 Women's
1. Benjamin Gregory, Joseph Vujcich, Sophia Clark and Molly Brittenden (Piha, Auckland)
2. Charlie Dods, Michael Pickett, Brooke Willock and Christy Tate (Waikanae, Gisborne)
3. Mea Batchelor, Hattie Fraser, Colby Brennan and Mitchell Irwin (Omanu, Bay of Plenty)

Board Rescue Results

U14 Women's
1. Brooke Willock and Georgie Pitkethley (Waikanae, Gisborne)
2. Sasha Reid and Alex Fraser (Fitzroy, New Plymouth)
3. Tayla Dalton and Star Te Aukura (Mairangi Bay, Auckland)

U14 Men's
1. Patrick Makgill and Blake Readman (Red Beach, Auckland)
2. Michael Pickett and Tom van Kregten (Waikanae, Gisborne)
3. Daniel Shanahan and Hector Munro (Mt Maunganui, Bay of Plenty)