Favourable conditions are expected for the World Pro Adaptive Surfing Titles 2024, to be held at Byron Bay’s Main Beach from today.
The four-day international competition series features more than 90 competitors from some sixteen nations, all with varying physical complexities.
Longtime Byron Bay local surf legend and World Pro Adaptive Surf Champion Mark ‘Mono’ Stewart, so-named in honour of his one-leg status, is this year’s event director.
Mono says the banks still look good in the leadup to this week’s surf spectacular, despite a hazardous surf warning from the Bureau of Meteorology Monday morning.
‘There’s a bit of on-shore wind,’ Mono told The Echo mid-morning, ‘but the warning doesn’t seem to apply to this part of the bay, the surf is still good’.
The banks were’ really good at Clarkes and Tommos,’ Mono said.
‘A celebration of life,’ says international competitor
British competitor Spike Kane uses a wheelchair and says the free event at Byron’s Main Beach will be a life changing spectacle.
‘What you’re gonna see is just purely a celebration of life,’ Mr Kane says, ‘I think if you come down and you watch the competition you will go away a different person’.
More than 40 Australians are competing in this year’s event, including several newcomers, against professional surfers from the US, Canada, Brazil, France and Japan to name a few of the countries represented.
There are more than 20 women featured in the line-up, with competitions to start from around 8am each day, depending on conditions, and ending around 1pm.
Food stalls, beach access matting and several chairs are to be available to the public, with all ages and abilities welcome to attend, Mono says.
Official event facilities including a giant screen featuring a live webcast of the competition and interviews with entrants are to be set up near the Byron Bay Surf Club on the Denning Park foreshore.
The event was launched with a parade through Byron Bay’s CBD on Sunday, culminating in a welcome-to-country smoking ceremony and pouring-of-the-sands ceremony on-site.
Representatives from the different nations featured in this year’s competition poured sands brought from their homelands into a communal jar with the varying colours and textures representing the rich diversity of the sport.
