Crystal Cylinders
Lennox Head’s Nyxie Ryan has won the 16-and-under girls division at the 2018 Rip Curl GromSearch on the Sunshine Coast.
Competitors faced windy and tricky conditions and 1.5m waves at Coolum Beach.
Ryan managed the washy conditions to push through and take first place ahead of Ellia Smith (Coolum Beach, QLD), Shaye Leeuwendal (Currumbin, QLD) and Angela Ball (Torquay, VIC) respectively.
Ryan was the 14-and-under girls champion at the 2017 event, and was clearly ecstatic with her win. ‘It feels good. I only just bounced back from a broken elbow a couple of days ago,’ said Ryan. ‘I won the 14s twice in a row, so I feel great after going up a division and winning the 16s.’
Ryan trailed competing at the QS and Pro Junior level during 2018 with great success by winning a Pro Junior and finishing in the top ten on the ratings ladder; she also finished ninth in her first try at a QS event. Ryan is back to top form after time out recovering from her injury and her rating on both tours should skyrocket throughout 2019.
2019
It’s awesome to have Soli Bailey qualify for the WCT and our other local pro surfers are hoping 2019 brings them a slice of success too.
Lennox Head’s Stu Kennedy finished in 47th position on the WSL Qualifying Series ratings ladder for 2018. Kennedy is assured of a seed into the QS 10,000 and 6,000 events based on his ranking inside the top 100 as is Byron Bay’s Kyuss King, who finished in 86th place.
No doubt Soli Bailey will also compete in these events to give him a ‘plan B’ for requalification.
Lennox Head’s Adam Melling has officially retired from major competition in 2018 after a stellar career that spanned seven years on the WCT. Highlights include his runner-up finish at Jefferies Bay and a win at the Vans World Cup at Sunset Beach.
Melling will still represent his club at team events.
Lennox Head local Mikey McDonagh will be hitting the road and chasing QS points along with Pro Junior events. He surfed his first CT event after winning the trials at the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach where he surfed against two world champions.
