Saturday, July 5th, Duranbah Beach, Gold Coast, Australia.
Today kicked off the highly anticipated third event for the Men Rising Series juniors on the Gold Coast, Australia. Yesterday, there was a briefing with all the competitors, and everyone was super motivated for the event.
At 7:30 AM local time, the Future Pro’s Junior Men Rising Series got underway.
The event took place on this first day of competition at the beautiful Duranbah Beach. It started with a gorgeous sunny day, small but well-formed waves, and no wind, making the conditions perfect. The young athletes put on an amazing show.
It’s going to be two intense days of competition where these young riders aim for a good result and a spot in the big final, which will be held at Gran Canaria’s Frontón King in October.
The organizers decided to move the competition forward today to include the Quarterfinals.
ROUND 1 (Non-elimination)
Round 1 was non-eliminating, which gave all the competitors a lot of peace of mind. The top two from each heat moved directly to Round 3, while the third and fourth place finishers went to Round 2 repechage.
The standout in this round was Jaxon Cruickshank, who scored the best wave of the day—a clean tube finishing with a roll, rated 9.17 by the judges—and he also had the highest total score of the day with 15.84. Ossian Mackenzie scored a solid 8.67 after riding a good right, doing a tube and three rolls.
Other riders who showed great flow in this round included Cooper Stewart, Chase Thompson, Benji Taviani, and Bodi Hugin. All of them advanced as first-place finishers to Round 3.
ROUND 2 (Repechage)
This was a second chance for those who didn’t make it through Round 1.
The standout here was young Australian Tully Roberts, who scored a total of 12.13 and was really happy to keep competing.
Australian riders Cooper Chippendale and Hardy Fletcher also advanced as winners of their heats. The Japanese rider Kaito Sato, along with Australians Tom Marshall and Fin Smith, also made it through.
Round of 16 (Octavos de Final)
This round is like the round of 16, with the 16 best surfers competing. It was run in heats of four riders, with only the top two moving on to the quarterfinals.
In the first heat, Australian Chase Thompson scored a high total of 14.33, with his fellow Aussie Tully Roberts just behind by less than a point.
The second heat was very close. Kaito Sato from Japan took first place after showing great skills, especially after qualifying through the repechage. Portuguese rider Frederico Castelo was just over a point behind. Cooper Stewart was only 0.20 points away from advancing and was greeted with applause as he was eliminated.
The most dominant rider so far, Jaxon Cruickshank, showed his full potential again, finishing first with the best score of the round—14.90. Benji Taviani also advanced, both of them performing at a high level.
The last heat of this round featured Bodi Hugin, who connected several waves. Ossian Mackenzie secured second place and his spot in the next round.
Quarterfinals
The quarterfinals were head-to-head battles—four intense heats where the athletes gave their best. It was a tough fight to reach the semifinals and secure a spot on the Future Pro’s podium for 2025.
- Chase Thompson (Australia) vs. Frederico Castelo (Portugal): Two surfers known for their smooth style. Chase took the win, and Frederico narrowly missed the podium by less than a point.
- Tully Roberts (Australia) vs. Kaito Sato (Japan): A very close heat. Kaito again proved he’s been improving with each heat. Tully just missed out, finishing 0.60 points behind.
- Ossian Mackenzie (Australia) vs. Jaxon Cruickshank (Australia): A battle of titans. Jaxon, the standout of the day, couldn’t find good waves this time. Ossian performed strongly and secured his spot in the semifinals.
- Bodi Hugin (Australia) vs. Benji Taviani (Australia): The last heat of the day was full of intensity. Bodi Hugin continued his winning streak, advancing as the top scorer in all his heats—showing he’s a serious title contender. Benji Taviani was eliminated, receiving applause from the crowd.
What an amazing day of competition we just had, watching the future Australian champions put on a great show! Tomorrow, the semifinals and finals of the Future Pro’s Junior Men Rising Series will take place.
Besides the Junior Men Rising Series, Future Pro’s also hosts categories like Cadet, Grommets, and Super Grommets. These aren’t part of the IBC World Tour circuit, so the competition continued with these other categories.
We’re expecting to see the rest of the action tomorrow, so stay tuned!
This incredible event wouldn’t be possible without the passionate efforts of promoter Silas Ganciar and the Gold Coast Bodyboard Club, with key support from the City of Gold Coast, Inverted Bodyboard, Dan Leyshon, O’Neill, Sunzapper, Lids Bodyboarding, Surf Lakes, Amazon Power, and Youriding.
Tune in, get inspired, and cheer on the rising stars of bodyboarding! Stay connected through the official channels for live updates and results all day long.
Follow the action on social media:
- Instagram: @gold_coast_bodyboard_club, @future_pros_youth_festival, @ibcworld_tour
- Facebook: Gold Coast Bodyboard Club
Naming Rights:
@cityofgoldcoast
Presenting Rights:
@invertedbb
@dan_leyshon_
Sponsors:
@sunzapper
@pridebodyboards
@lidsbodyboarding
Supporters:
@amazonpower
@gail.oneill.div14
@surf_lakes
@youridinggames
@lauragerbermp
@mantrahotels
Puedes seguir el evento en directo y todo lo relacionado con el IBC World Tour a través de los siguientes canales:
Website: ibcworldtour.com
Instagram: instagram.com/ibcworld_tour
Facebook: facebook.com/ibc.world.tour
TikTok: tiktok.com/@ibcworldtour
Youtube: www.youtube.com/@IBCWorldTour