Glen Anil para surfer crowned SA champ
David Williams hopes to make the SA team for the ISA World Para Surfing Championships in Pismo Beach, California, USA later this year.
NEW Pier formed the backdrop of a second successive national title for Glen Anil resident David Williams at this year’s TyreLife Solutions SA Para Surfing Championship.
In a repeat of last year’s championship, Williams was the standout performer in the kneel division.
“My goal was to repeat the feat of last year, but boy was it tough. The competition I was up against, particularly Emihle Sombexe and Tyler Pike, was absolutely phenomenal. If I didn’t have them in the water, I don’t think I would have done as well as I did. I was really stoked with my performance, and I would say the early mornings and hours of training really paid off in the end,” he said.
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The 35-year-old also opened up about the pressures of matching last year’s title wins at the KZN champs and then at the SA champs.
“After winning the KZN title earlier this year, I upped the intensity of training. At the forefront of my mind was this very real pressure of matching last year’s results. I didn’t know how I’d cope if I didn’t pull it off. I tried to keep it all low-key. I think the support of my loved ones really helped lift me in the dark times, and it was fantastic to celebrate that milestone with them on the day,” he said.
Surfing South Africa (SSA) will now choose the South African team to represent them at ISA World Para Surfing Championships in Pismo Beach, California, USA in December, based on the champs, and Williams is hoping to secure his spot.
The organisers and host of the event, local non-profit organisation (NPO), Made for More’s Founder Julia Van Zyl, said it was a privilege to host the country’s best adaptive surfers.
“For us, it’s so much more than just surfing – it’s access, it’s inclusion, it’s opportunity and mostly, it’s belonging – we really are a close-knit community.”
