Spain became two times Junior European Team Champions at the weekend, beating France by a whisker (35 points), leaving host nation Portugal in third and Italy and England came fifth.
The morning started with the repechages finals, which were especially good for Portugal, that qualified Maria Salgado and Erica Máximo at the under 18 girls surfing final. Other surfers qualifying for the finals were Spain’s Sol Borelli and France’s Naia Monte (under 16 girls), Matias Canhoto (Portugal) and Hans Odriozola (Spain) at the under 18 boys, Arthur Randell (England) and Raony Portillo (France) at the Longboard under 18 boys, Lola Bleakley (England) and Mia Ramakers (Belgium) at the Longboard under 18 girls division and finally Jaime Veselko (Portugal) and Esteban Coucoulis (France) in the under 16 boys.
Then the big finals, and the champions:
Tya Zebrowsky took gold for France on the under 16 girls,
Italian Cami Ginger, 12, surfed a final for the ages in the under 18 longboard, with an incredible total score of 18.17 (9,87 and 8.30). Englands Lola Bleakley finishing third.
Portugal’s Francisco Freitas clinched the gold in a very competitive under 18 Longboard final, Engands Arthur Randall finishing fourth.
Dylan Donegan surfed incredibly and added the European under 16 title to the ISA under 16 World title, beating English phenom Lukas Skinner, in a repeat of the world championship final,
Annette Etxabarri took revenge on Tya Zebrowski and won for Spain over France on the girl’s under 18 and,
Italy’s Leonardo Apreda beat everyone for the under 18 boys title.
Spain’s coaches, Ruben Lopez, celebrated the win: “It’s an historical moment. To win this Eurosurf Junior face to face with such powerful teams like Portugal, France, England, Italy, Netherlands…we must be happy and proud. Years ago, we had logistical problems and such and nowadays we were able to solve them all. Surfing is growing in Spain, we have several Olympics, a world championship title with Dylan [Donegan] and the future is bright.”
Final Team Rankings:
1- Spain 8936 pts
2- France 8901
3- Portugal 8029
4- Italy 7372
5- England 7163
6- Netherlands 6038
7- Israel 5629
8- Germany 5590
9- Ireland 5318
10- Wales 5215
11- Scotland 4785
12- Channel Islands 4670
13- Belgium 4333
14- Poland 3535
15- Denmark 3438
16- Czech Republic 2133
17- Sweden 1713
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Belle shredding
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Skindog and Lila Skinner
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Lila
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Lukas Skinner
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Arthur Randall
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Lola styling
Team England finished in fifth place Lukas Skinner, Lola Bleakley, and Arthur Randell bringing home silver, bronze and copper medals
Team England secures impressive fifth place in tight competition at the European Surfing Junior Championship 2024!!
Lukas Skinner, Lola Bleakley, and Arthur Randell showcase exceptional talent, bringing home silver, bronze and copper medals and contributing to England’s strong performance in a fiercely contested event.
The dryrobe Team England Juniors started solid from day one, with all English surfers demonstrating incredible momentum and determination throughout the competition.
Lukas Skinner put on a spectacular show in the U16 category, dominating throughout most of the event. His exceptional performance included scoring the highest wave (9.00) on day two with a flawless air reverse and achieving a perfect 10 on day three with impressive rail surfing. In a thrilling final, Skinner narrowly missed gold, placing 2nd behind Dylan Donnovan by a mere 0.57 points. This close contest was a continuation of their rivalry from the ISA World Games in El Salvador earlier this year, showcasing Skinner’s growing prowess on the international stage.
Lola Bleakley demonstrated remarkable skill and perseverance, securing a well-deserved bronze medal in her category. Her performance throughout the event, particularly in the longboard division, was nothing short of impressive.
Arthur Randell, who entered the competition aiming to reclaim his victory from two years ago in the U18 Longboard category, fought hard and secured a commendable fourth place in his final heat.
Team England faced challenges throughout days 3, 4, and 5 with long days, persistent fog, and less-than-ideal wave conditions. The final day saw deteriorating waves, testing the surfers’ adaptability and skill. Despite these obstacles, our team showed true English grit and determination.
The exceptional performances of the entire team have placed Team England in a strong fifth place overall in an incredibly tight competition. This achievement, just shy of the podium, is a testament to the dedication, skill, and teamwork displayed by our young surfers, and highlights the increasingly competitive nature of European junior surfing.
A huge credit goes to our coaches and support crew at the Euros: Jamie Wride, Beau Bromham, Ben Goosey, Ben Skinner, Daisy Lambert and Charlotte Mulley. Their hard work and guidance were instrumental in our team’s success. We also extend our gratitude to dryrobe, the junior team’s main partner for years, whose support continues to be crucial in our consistently strong performances.
Thanks to the European Surfing Federation and Ocean Spirit for organizing such a fantastic event, and to our wider coaching team at home for their efforts in preparing the squad.
While English surfers are not present at this year’s Olympic Games, the outstanding performances of Skinner, Bleakley, and Randell against tough European competition reinforce our confidence that our athletes will be strong contenders for the 2028 Olympic Games in LA.
This result demonstrates that Team England is consistently performing at the highest level of European junior surfing. With such a narrow margin separating the top teams, we’re proud of our fifth place finish and excited about the future of English surfing on the international stage.
