The Shaw and Partners Summer of Surf will go international for the first time in history with the Whangamata Classic taking place Saturday 10th of December at one of New Zealand’s most popular East Coast holiday destinations.
The event will form as the 5th event of the Shaw and Partners Summer race schedule and has a $5,000 prize pool to match 5,000 points on the line.
Summer of Surf Partnerships Manager Ben Cochrane welcomes the international expansion.
“Having grown up in New Zealand I can imagine what the 16-year-old me would have thought getting to race in a Summer of Surf event at Whangamata – absolutely stoked. With kiwi athletes like Joe Collins, Cory Taylor, Tom Scott and Olivia Corrin absolutely blowing minds in the sport I think this event will really fuel the fire for that next generation while growing the Summer of Surf internationally.
Tackling the challenge head on is Surfers Paradise ski paddling standout Sam Roy who is fresh off an 8th place finish in the Australia single ski race as well as a podium finish in the Shannon Eckstein Ironman Classic ski.
“The Shaw and Partners Summer of Surf coming to NZ this weekend is super exciting for me, both to showcase our beautiful beaches to the world but also for our young kiwi athletes to experience how epic a Summer of Surf round is!
I’m super proud to be a kiwi over in Aussie racing in the Summer of Surf series for Surfers Paradise, so to be racing back home under a Mount Maunganui Cap in a 5,000 event brings me back to where it all began with Spindles by my side. Can’t wait to put my foot on the line again on kiwi sand after 3 years away!”
Stay tuned to the Summer of Surf social media channels for event updates.
