31 National teams will parade through the streets of Almada on May 5th
COUNTDOWN TO THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
01 MAY 2007 -- The arrival of the first delegations to Portugal marks the start of the countdown to the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships. 31 countries and 400 athletes are expected for the first ever outing of the competition in the Old World waves. On Saturday - May 5th - surfing will invade the streets of Almada.
Costa de Caparica is about to turn into the surfing capital of the world, due to the organisation - from May 5th to May 13th - of the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships. This will be the premiËre for the most important global surfing competition for youngsters in the waves of the Old World. Portugal thus follows Brazil in organising this event, already being referred to as the “Surf Olympiads”.
Before they venture out on the waves of Praia da Mata, however, the 400 participating athletes will show their colours at the opening parade, scheduled for next Saturday morning. Same as in the Olympic Games, the delegations will make a symbolic walk in full ceremonial attire - the honour of closing the parade will fall to Portugal. The parade will start from the Almada Courthouse [Largo Gabriel Pedro] and will make its way through the city to PraÁa da Liberdade. After the day’s relaxation, the competition will be truly launched on Sunday [May 6th].
The presence of 31 national teams makes it possible for the Portuguese organisers to claim an absolute participation record in the competition’s history. The competing teams will represent Portugal, New Zealand, Japan, France, the United States of America, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Jamaica, Switzerland, Brazil, Chile, Canada, Barbados, South Africa, Ireland, Hawaii, Venezuela, Australia, England, Italy, Guatemala, Spain, Israel, Peru, Germany, Costa Rica, Somalia, Morocco, Ecuador, Argentina and Tahiti.
The home team has great expectations, in the wake of the 9th place obtained at last year’s competition. Team selector JosÈ Braga showed some restraint in announcing a Top-8 finish as his objective. Amongst the tourists are big names such as World Champions Tonino Benson [Hawaii], Pauline Ado [France] and Sally Fitzgibbons [Australia].
A PARTY ATMOSPHERE AT PRAIA DA MATA
For nine days running, in parallel to the competition, there will be a lot of reasons to go to Costa de Caparica. The Surfers Village, installed at Praia da Mata, will host surfing lessons, skateboard demonstrations, yoga classes, campaigns to raise awareness to sea-rescue techniques, diving for beginners, organised by the Navy, and a Shopping Village with Surf Shops, surfboard manufacturers/importers and traditional crafts. In the afternoons, as well as on some nights, reggae and electronic music concerts will take place.
Under the auspices of the International Surfing Association and of the Portuguese Surfing Federation, Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships is an organisation of the Caparica Surfing Club and Natural Factor, sponsored by Quiksilver/Roxy and the Municipality of Almada. Co-sponsors include Plantronics, Sapo and Sagres. Further to be noted is the support given by the Tourist Board of Costa Azul [the Blue Coast is the region’s nickname], the Portuguese Navy and the Costa de Caparica municipal authorities.
The Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships will be broadcast life on the Internet, at www.isasurf.org.
PR3| MAY ’07
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About International Surfing Association (ISA):
The International Surfing Association (ISA) is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the World Governing Authority for surfing, body boarding and surf riding.† It was originally founded as the International Surfing Federation in 1964 and has†been running world championships since 1964 and the Junior World Championships since 1980.†
ISA membership includes the surfing National Governing Bodies (NGBs) of over 50 countries on six continents.† Its†headquarters are located in San Diego, California. It is†presided by Fernando Aguerre, first elected in 1994 in Rio, and re-elected six times since.† The ISA's four Vice Presidents are Alan Atkins (Australia), Robin de Kock (South Africa), Maile Aguerre (Hawaii) and Mike Gerard (USA).
