Ross Kendall
Former surf champion and Kingscliff local, Chelsea Hedges, was a successful recipient of Sport Australia’s 2021 Women Leaders in Sport (WLIS) Program.
Chelsea is among 160 participants who went through the six-week course that aims to support and empower women in the sport workforce.
‘The course really flowed and there was a good amount of information,’ Chelsea said. ‘It was also good to connect to other women coaches and hear their challenges, and to discuss different options and ways to get through barriers’.
Chelsea was chosen for her impressive career background – representing Australia in the World Championship Tour of Surfing for 10 years and holding the World Title in 2005.
She’s now looking to pass on her skills and knowledge to the next generation through coaching, which she does as part of Surfing Australia’s talent identification pathway, based in Casuarina.
‘I’m still passionate about surfing,’ the former champ said. ‘It’s good to be able to give back to surfing, and share some of the experience of being on tour’.
‘Surfing is about to be in the Olympics for the very first time, so its very exciting, to be a coach, and part of the Olympics, would be amazing’.
