Nixon is proud to announce that William Aliotti is the newest addition to the Nixon Pro Team. In what has become a long-standing tradition, the 23-year-old freesurfer’s promotion to the Pro ranks was unanimously rubberstamped by the rest of Nixon rider.
“Wow, I couldn’t be happier right now!” said the Saint Martin native. “Nixon has had my back for years, and to get the nod from all these guys whom I have looked up to for so long is a big honour for me. I can’t wait to spend even more time with the crew on the hunt for waves.”
2016 WSL European Champion Jonathan Gonzalez was clearly also delighted with the group decision to welcome William into the fold, saying: “William is a great surfer, and totally deserves to be on the Pro Team. It’s great news for him obviously, but also just as good for the team too – young surfers like William keep things fresh, and every team needs that.”
Always up for an adventure to lesser-known surf spots around the world, William has continued to cement his reputation as one of Europe’s best aerial specialists and most dynamic freesurfers, most recently exploring the likes of Scotland, Ireland, and Cape Verde. Marlon Lipke says: “What I really admire about William is that he made a name for himself during a challenging period for surfing as a whole. He showed everyone he’s a fighter and will do anything to live this freesurfer lifestyle we all love” Aliotti’s arrival in the Pro Team caps an already stellar year for Aliotti following his victory at the Arica Pro Tour in Chile in the summer. Versatile as you like, he’s repeatedly proven he can turn it on when it matters most, as he did in 2014 when he won the Nixon Surf Challenge in Kamchatka, Russia.
No stranger to hammering out banger video parts and jaw-dropping magazine covers, Aliotti’s surfing has evolved enormously since the early days of warm-water Caribbean waves. These days, he’s equally at home in big wave conditions, while still remaining the envy of many peers for his aerial prowess. Nixon veteran Gony Zubizarreta commented: “William was a quiet kid when I first met him, just doing crazy airs the whole time. He’s definitely found his voice since then, and is now tucking into huge, deep barrels all over the world. And of course he’s still flying high, too!”
Franck Corbery, Marketing Director at Nixon Europe, added: “Sometimes decisions are made easy, and this is definitely a case in point – William has been killing it for a good while now. He’s always been a great fit for Nixon, not just in terms of his incredible versatility in the water, but also for his easy-going character out of it. It’s good to have you onboard, William!”
“Barbados is the Mecca of the surfing in the lesser antilles. We headed straight to Bathsheba and found a nice accommodation in front of the famous wave of Soupbowl. The swell was dropping but the Soupbowl was still delivering. We met and surf with local legend Mark Holder and Bruce Mackie.”
Patagonia are running a month-long campaign in East London this November, with a series of events including talks, workshops, film screenings and a Thrift Shop! The first two events, hosted by Surfers Against Sewage Chief Executive Hugo Tagholm with Mihela Hladin Wolfe – Patagonia Environmental/Social initiatives Manager.
Open to general public there will b discussion, presentation of case studies and a Q+A. Seating is limited so you need to apply for tickets here.
Wednesday 9th November
15:00 – 17:00
Student Special: How to be disruptive in your own backyard.
An introduction to Grassroots Activism hosted by Patagonia, with Surfers Against Sewage and other guests.
Mihela Hladin Wolfe – Patagonia Environmental/Social initiatives Manager
Hugo Tagholm – Chief Executive Surfers Against Sewage
Open to Students only – discussion and workshop.
Venue: Village Underground, Great Easter Street, London
Wednesday 9th November
19:00 – 21:00
Why supportive Grassroots Activism is important.
An evening hosted by Patagonia, with Surfers Against Sewage and other guests.
Mihela Hladin Wolfe – Patagonia Environmental/Social initiatives Manager
Hugo Tagholm – Chief Executive Surfers Against Sewage
Open to general public. Discussion, presentation of case studies and a Q+A.
Seating is limited, apply for tickets here. Find us on Facebook here.
Venue: Village Underground, Great Easter Street, London
The event saw Europe’s best and most exciting surfing talents come together for a celebration of surfing on the remote Galician coastline. Yael Pena (SP) and Ellie Turner (UK) were crowned Champions in this final event of the 2016 Rip Curl GromSearch series which covered 13 events all over Europe.
Surfers will now take their place at the World International Rip Curl GromSearch Finals which will be “Somewhere” next spring.
In the tradition of The Search, the contest officials took the mobile event to a set of peaks at a river mouth for the Final heats.
With super clean 3 to 4 feet waves, the girl’s finals were up first. Nadia Erostabe (SP) and Ellie Turner (UK) both won all of their heats from the start of the contest and were hungry for the winner takes all prize. It was a close battle but Ellie’s strong turns and wave selection made the difference. “It’s been an amazing year and now to win this is very special, I m stoked.” Says Ellie. “I’m super excited to be going to the World Finals and challenge myself against the best girls surfers under 16 years old in the World.”
In the boys Yael Pena (SP) and Sean Gunning (SP) went head to head. On the road to the finals Sean locked in a number of crazy air reverses but Yael Pena’s power and multiple maneuvers waves gave him the big win. “Coming from the Canaries and surfing with the guys here in Galicia has been super fun.” Explains Yael. “Everyone was ripping and it was a hard event to win which makes it feels even better.”
About the GromSearch: Since Rip Curl developed the concept for the GromSearch events in 1999, the series has spread throughout the surfing world and culminates with an International final held at a different location each year and revealed shortly before the event. Former GromSearch Champions include current WSL World Tour stars: Gabriel Medina, Owen Wright, Nikki Van Dijk, Tyler Wright and Alana Blanchard, Stephanie Gilmore, Matt Wilkinson, Jordy Smith…The 2016 Rip Curl GromSearch European Tour were supported by Eq, smith, FCS, Gorilla and Citroën.
Finals results of the 2016 Rip Curl GromSearch International Final, Playa de Razo:
Girls: 1st: Ellie Turner (UK), 2nd: Nadia Erostabe (SP), 3rd: Camilla Costa (PT) and Uhaina Joly (FR)
Boys: 1st: Yael Pena (SP), 2nd: Sean gunning (SP), 3rd: Diego Suarez (SP) and Tiago Carrique (FR)
Aritz Aranburu has won the 5th annual Allianz Perfect Chapter powered by Quiksilver in nine foot waves at Praia do Norte, Portugal, honoring the organization’s last-minute invitation with a dominant performance throughout the event. The 31-year-old Basque surfer took the win by defeating Balaram Stack (2nd), Dylan Graves (3rd) and Gabe Kling (4th) in the final.
Aritz, who entered the competition as a last-minute wildcard, was indeed the man of the event. A part from a €10,000 1st place check, he was also rewarded with the Allianz Best Tube (€2,000) and KIA Best Score (€1,500) awards for performing the best tube ride (9,80 pts) and best score (19,05 pts) of the competition in his Round 3 heat, making the best of his debut in this invitees-only tube riding contest taking place in Portugal every year.
The organization’s unprecedented decision to postpone the event to October/November (the original waiting period ended in April) proved to be right as Praia do Norte finally offered the kind of conditions the organizer and contest director were seeking for since the very beginning. 9 feet waves and light offshore winds set the ideal scenario for Bruno Santos, Nic von Rupp, Pedro Scooby, Tiago Pires and others to go head-to-head for the best tube rides, turning impossible barrels into the most exciting moments in the history of the event.
In the end, Aritz came up as the undisputed winner with a jaw-dropping display of the talent that once set him among the world surfing elite, signing up his name on Perfect Chapter’s champions list alongside with Tiago Pires (2012), Nic von Rupp (2013 and 2014) and Bruno Santos (2015).
“This was an incredible day”, Aranburu said. “I’d surfed here before but never got it this good. Right in round 3 I had a very special heat and started building up my confidence. I knew I was going to meet very strong opponents in the final so I kept my feet on the ground. I’m glad I came up on top”.
