Newcastle, NSW, Australia, Thursday 13 February 2014.
FOLLOWING on from the huge success of the inaugural 2013 contest for girls aged 16-and-under at Surfest, Newcastle legal firm Dalton Lawyers has again backed young female surfers.
On the back of recent phenomenal competitive success of female Aussie surfers – including five-time world champ Stephanie Gilmore, current world number two Tyler Wright and 2012 Surfest women’s champ Sally Fitzgibbons – the competitive future of female surfing in Australia has never looked stronger.
Keen surfer Chris Dalton – who was once sponsored himself – said Dalton Lawyers were thrilled to again back a young girls’ surfing competition, thereby ensuring Surfest remains at the forefront of Australian surfing competitions with the broadest possible participation base.
“My daughter is really into competitive surfing and it’s pretty apparent there aren’t a lot of competitions for young girls. So to partner with Surfest to increase that competitive opportunity is a great way to expand the pathway from grassroots and club surfing to a new level,” Mr Dalton said.
Mr Dalton said after the success of last year’s inaugural event when the company approached Surfest organiser Warren Smith with a proposal to sponsor and finance the division for girls in conjunction with the Sanbah Cadet Cup, it was an easy decision to come back in 2014.
“Dalton Lawyers have seen this competition as a perfect opportunity to contribute to the continuing competitive development of younger girls who surf in Newcastle.
“Anyone who goes surfing around Newcastle can see a noticeable increase in the number of young girls surfing and this competitive opportunity will help develop their competitive spirit make them feel an important part of Surfest.”
Surfest chief Warren Smith said it is pleasing to see a link between the aspirations of young female surfers and the commitment toward their future come together through the sponsorship of Dalton Lawyers in the Sanbah Cadet Cup.
“It’s awesome to again have a Girls Division in the Sanbah Cadet Cup.
“Chris has a vision to support girls surfing in Newcastle. He is keen to increase the age division in future events too and that’s a terrific confidence boost for the young girls with aspirations to be like Sally and Steph.
“Newcastle has some really good young girl surfers and all they lack is the opportunity to compete at a high level in surfing contests outside their regular monthly contests.
“The ongoing support of Dalton Lawyers will greatly enhance the opportunities for girl surfers to compete at a higher level,” Mr Smith said.
