Rip Curl International GromSearch, covered by SunBum, powered by Citroën, crowns Australians Ocean Lancaster and Eliza Richardson
- Australians Ocean Lancaster and Eliza Richardson win the Rip Curl GromSearch International Finals at Le Santocha, Capbreton, France
- Best wave of the event: Brazilian Arthur Vilar scored a 9.33
- All conditions came together in Capbreton with 6-foot offshore waves
- Rip Curl GromSearch International Final week continues until Saturday!
All roads led to Hossegor, and it was definitely worth the travel! Today, Wednesday, November 5th, two Australians claimed victory at the Rip Curl GromSearch International Finals: Ocean Lancaster (16) and Eliza Richardson (15), after two half-days of amazing and intense competition at Le Santocha surf spot in Capbreton, France.
The morning started with challenging conditions, yet still offered some super fun 5- to 6-foot waves. After a one-hour break, the spot delivered incredible finals in exciting conditions, with clean 6-foot offshore waves.
In the men’s final, Ocean Lancaster faced Brazilian Arthur Vilar (14) in an intense heat, where the young Brazilian certainly put the Australian under pressure and thrilled the crowd by riding two impressive barrels.
“I’m so tired from the non-stop paddling, I couldn’t hear any sound from the beach. I surfed as well as I could and I feel relieved,” Lancaster said after his final heat. “This is the win of my life for sure. I was actually competing in the international final a few years ago at Bells, that’s when Lukas (Skinner) won his first one, and I thought, oh my God, I wanna do that one day. So it was magical to come here. The rush of emotions was the best thing ever.”
About his opponent Arthur Vilar, he said: “That kid is crazy, his air game is ridiculous. I was looking, and there was like one minute to go, and he got that one, that closeout one, and yeah, he definitely had me on the ropes. What a final!”
During the women’s final, South African Emily Jenkinson (16) couldn’t find the barrels she usually rides to push herself into first place against the Australian, who had been super consistent throughout the competition.
Eliza Richardson said: “I’m so stoked! I was here at the Rip Curl GromSearch International Final in Indonesia last year because my sister was competing, but I had a broken ankle. It’s such a sick competition. One of my goals was to win it this year, so I’m super stoked to have done that.”
She added: “It got a bit tricky, a bit slow and hard to find waves, but I actually managed to get a couple. It’s massive! I’m so stoked. It’s my first international comp and I’m just beyond words! I was trying to find some closeouts so I could do just one big turn, and I managed to get a couple. It’s been absolutely pumping and I’m so happy. Emily is such a good surfer, and all the girls are!”
Other highlights of the day: Arthur Vilar posted the best score of the competition with a 9.33, landing an incredible air (a “Kerrupt Flip”) and pulling off a buzzer-beater to defeat Portuguese Jaime Veselko in the semi-final. He had already done another buzzer-beater the day before in the quarter-final, with an amazing air reverse at the last minute against Australian Locana Cullen.
During the one-hour break between the two girls’ semi-finals, the crowd enjoyed watching Rip Curl dream team Molly Picklum, Crosby Colapinto, Tom Curren, Tya Zebrowski, Lukas Skinner, Kyllian Guerin, and Justin Becret score fantastic waves right in front of them.
Over the two-day event, 2025 World Champion Molly Picklum took over commentary on the live webcast and interviewed the groms after their heats, alongside CT rider Crosby Colapinto, Lukas Skinner (2024 International Rip Curl GromSearch winner), legend Tom Curren, and French surfers Tya Zebrowski (who just qualified for the CT at only 14), Kyllian Guerin, and Justin Becret. The webcast was hosted by well-known WLS commentator Paul Evans.
Rip Curl International GromSearch is so much more than just a competition. Since 1999, the GromSearch series has been a launching pad for over 40,000 surfers aged 16 and under.
Past winners include WSL World Champions Caitlin Simmers, Caroline Marks, and Gabriel Medina. Other notable winners include Championship Tour surfers Erin Brooks, Brisa Hennessy, Samuel Pupo, Leonardo Fioravanti, Tatiana Weston-Webb, Owen Wright, and one of the most stylish free surfers on the planet, Mason Ho, among many other greats of the sport.
France saw the future of surfing today!
Rip Curl International GromSearch, presented by SunBum and Citroën, crowns Australians Ocean Lancaster and Eliza Richardson, and the GromSearch week continues in Hossegor with in-town activations and team surfer appearances until the end of the week.
Thank you to our sponsors: SunBum, Citroën, and FCS, and to our media partner Europe 2.
And it’s not over yet! The Rip Curl GromSearch week continues in Hossegor until Saturday, with in-town activations and meet-and-greets with Rip Curl team surfers.
FINALS RESULTS
U16 Boys
- Ocean Lancaster (16 points)
- Arthur Vilar (12.83 points)
U16 Girls
- Eliza Richardson (12.57 points)
- Emily Jenkinson (7.4 points)
