Te Tai Tokerau hosted Aotearoa’s top Māori surfers this Labour Weekend with a big contingent of surfers from around the country heading north. The Aotearoa Māori Surfing Titles was held at Ahipara with the two-day event commencing on Saturday 22nd October.
The Friday night powhiri set the tone for a good day of surfing on Northland’s famed point breaks on Saturday, October 22, where the country’s top Maori surfers pushed through their preliminary rounds at the Aotearoa Maori Surfing Titles.
The event went mobile around the points of Shipwreck Bay to the Mukerau Point for the day where surfers enjoyed an awesome day at the beach despite the easterly winds creating a side chop across the strong 1.0m waves.
After a delayed start to the day, allowing for the full tide to recede, the rangatahi got the day under way before the Open Men’s Division and senior men’s divisions were contested.
Ngati Awa surfer Levi Stewart’s dream as a twelve year old was finally realised at the competition after winning the 2022 Aotearoa Maori Surfing Titles for the first time and joining defending champion Natasha Gouldsbury (Te Atiawa) as winners of the premier Tane and Wahine Divisions.
Stewart matched up against two of his heroes and young local Northland surfer Te Kauwhata Kauwhata (Nga Puhi) in the final with Chris Malone (Mahaki) placing second, Ricardo Christie (Nga Puhi) in third and Kauwhata in fourth.
“Ric is my biggest hero, I have grown up watching him surf, so to have him in the final and get one over him, I feel very lucky, same with Bugsy (Chris Malone). To surf against all those guys, I’m very lucky,” said Stewart.
Over in the open women’s division Gouldsbury took the win over daughter-mother combo Indi-Lee Ruddell (Te Atiawa) and Renee Ruddell (Te Rarawa) with Kiri Binnersley (Ngai Porou) placing fourth.
In the senior men’s divisions, Chris Malone (Mahaki) made up for his runner-up finish in the Open Tane by winning both the Over 35 and 45 Men’s Divisions.
Natasha Gouldsbury (Te Atiawa) and Navryn Malone (Mahaki) were victorious in the Under 18 Divisions claiming the Surfline scholarships. The scholarships comprise of $500 cash each, a session with The Art of Surfing and becoming a Surfline Ambassador for the year. Malone was a standout all weekend but none more so than in the final where he posted a 19.37 point heat total out of 20 points for two huge lefthanders that he belted big combo’s on.
The full draw and results can be viewed at https://liveheats.com/events/44861.
