Kata Beach Island Crown Event in Phuket
The Quiksilver Thailand Surf Series 2009 finished up yesterday in spectacular but often testing surfing conditions at beautiful Kata Beach in Phuket Thailand, with this final event culminating in both Island Crown event winners and the overall championship winners of the three-event series. Over 100 surfers participated in the Island Crown, locals as well as surfers from Australia, Japan, France, South Africa, Indonesia, Hawaii, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Singapore.
Over the course of the three-day event, the surf at Kata Beach varied from 2-3 foot glassy faces to stormy 5-6 foot non-stop windswell, giving the competitors in each division a challenging test of their endurance and skill. “If I wasn’t in the contest I wouldn’t have paddled out for some of those heats. In all my years of surfing here in Phuket I’ve never surfed in conditions like this. It was really hard work but I’m glad I did it,” said Decha “Day” Sittidej after his heat on Saturday morning. Saturday’s competition was stopped three times when howling winds brought torrents of rain that blasted the beach for several minutes.
On Sunday the weather and the waves made a miraculous turn to produce a sunny and less windy day with more controlled surfing conditions overall. There were still sizeable waves that at low tide made for lots of paddling, but the surfers were up to the challenge and the spectators enjoyed cheering them on from the beach.
On Sunday evening at the end of the three days of competition, everyone gathered by the pool of the Kata Beach Resort for the awards presentation. After enjoying the delicious food and tapping the bountiful supplies of Kingfisher Beer and Jim Beam, as well as other refreshments, the crowd was treated a Quiksilver/Roxy fashion show by the stunning Maxim models.
Island Crown Results
Men’s Open Division
1. Jamie Smith (Thailand)
2. Yudi Andika (Indonesia)
3. Jakkapan Thongnak (Thailand)
4. Ekkarat Sriden (Thailand)
Longboard Division
1. Aaron Wright (USA)
2. Yudi Andika (Indonesia)
3. Sammarat Rattamart (Thailand)
4. Jamie Smith (Thailand)
Women’s Division
1. Tiffany Riggs (Australia)
2. Lulu Skarpa (South Africa)
3. Masako Hasebe (Japan)
4. Yuka Kobayashi (Japan)
Junior Division
1. Oliver Penmit (Thailand)
2. Amnad Chisaman (Thailand)
3. Sittiwat Jabchu (Thailand)
4. Annissa Flynn (Thailand)
Quiksilver Thailand Surf Series 2009 Championship Results
Men’s Open Division Champion – Ekkarat Sriden (Kamala Beach)
Longboard Division Champion – Jamie Smith (Kata Beach)
Women’s Division Champion – Annissa Flynn (Kata Beach)
Junior Division Champion – Annissa Flynn (Kata Beach)
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