Source: iguanamar.com

Sergio Navarro: 2008 Colombian Champion
Almost every June, the finals of the Colombian tour are celebrated in El Bolsillo.

This year, however, the waves in El Bolsillo were not like previous years. Normally in June the sandbars align and excellent, quality waves settle in.

There are many different theories about the waves in El Bolsillo. Some say that it is the little pier and others say it is the direction of the swell. But as is tradition and, in my opinion, so as not to upset the locals, El Bolsillo revived two days before the final.

Large, barreling waves began to surge forth in this famous spot of the Caribbean of Colombia. The sets started on June 29th, on a long holiday weekend.
The first morning heats were a bit difficult because the wave was not in its best form. But after half the morning passed, El Bolsillo began to do its magic.

All the competitors were very anxious to see who would be crowned champion of the 2008 OP Tour. The fight was between Hunein Oke, the representative of Cartagena who had a magnificent year, and Sergio Navarro from Barranquilla, the four-time champion up until the championship finals. These two battled fiercely against one another.

The scenario was: if Hunein had remained in the third round, Sergio would have been forced to make it to the finals and would have been crowned champion. If Hunein passed to the quarter finals he would be champion, but if Sergio won the championship, he would have won the crown for the fifth time. The championship began with athletes from all over Colombia. There was a lot of good energy and optimism because the waves were rolling in.

The usual faces were present in the top rankings as Gonzalo de Luque snagged the highest score with a 9.0, alongside Eric Porto, Sergio Navarro, Juan Garantón and Oke. The Junior category competition also kicked off as the younger athletes displayed that the future of Colombian surf is to be taken seriously.

The Junior Finals placed Nabil Yidios against Simon Salazar. The round was very competitive but in the end Simon, with her local experience, triumphed.

At the same time in the Open category, Hunein Oke stayed in the 4th round where he was faced with the local Junior champion Simon Salazar. For this reason, Sergio saw the light at the end of the tunnel. But Juan Garanton was the surprise of the event, placing second and competing alongside local and high-level athletes such as Alex Indignares, Simon and Sergio Navarro.

In the end, Sergio Navarro won the title by a slight margin, as he proved to be the best for the fifth consecutive year. He congratulated all of the winners of the event and thanked the sponsor OP for having helped with the competitions and the Colombian athletes. We look forward to next year’s action-packed tour. ‘Viva El Surf’ in Colombia!

About International Surfing Association
The International Surfing Association (ISA) is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the World Governing Authority for surfing, bodyboarding and surfriding. 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).

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