Team England Para Surfers final training day ahead of World Championships

Team England Para had a fantastic final surf session at The Wave in Bristol on Tuesday 22nd October. The team are heading out to USA at the end of this month to take part in the International Surf Association World Para Surfing Championships. The event takes place 3rd – 9th November at the infamous Huntington Beach, California. In 2023 the team had their highest ever placing fourth in the world ahead of many bigger nations. This was the best result of any UK surf team at a world championships.

A big thank you to The Wave for hosting Team England, with six para-surfers taking part. A fantastic team of support crew made the day a huge success.

A group photo of Para Surfers and Coaches at The Wave during the training day

Squad members Zoe Smith, Charlotte Banfield, Mark Hagger, Dave Lewis, Pegleg Bennett and James Price enjoyed two sessions on the advanced setting in glorious autumn sunshine. Following each session in the lake, there was a review session with video analysis. The team also had an informative session from sport psychologist Kat.

Team manager Phil Williams said ‘We worked hard to get as many people as possible to this day. Certainly from the feedback from the surfers and support team alike it was a very productive day. Each of the surfers improved on their morning’s performance after reviewing the video analysis and refining their equipment.

It’s an honour to support the team. Discussions with many of the public surfers and spectators always open a wider understanding of what para surfing is. And the incredible surfers involved. We are so grateful for the support we receive leading up to the games and during the event can be followed via live stream on www.isa.org

It was also an opportunity to continue to raise funds through our GoFundMe prize draw https://gofund.me/ba75838a. All athletes are self-financing and the support team also need to be funded to enable their attendance. The surfers are all well prepared, the support team is ready to go, and we look forward to once again doing our very best for Team England at the World Championships’

A massive thanks for some amazing companies for their support. Including Tregenna Castle, Boardmasters foundation, Moulded earplugs, and dryrobe, as well as all those who have donated to the prize draw. If you would like to add further support with sponsorship or something for the prize draw, please contact Phil parateam@surfingengland.org. The prize draw will be completed on Wednesday 30th October.

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