Australian Surf Lifesaving Championships wrap, every gold medalist from the final day.
A Paris hopeful has defined the odds on the final day of the 2024 Surf Lifesaving Championships as we shine a light on every gold medalist. See the complete Aussies wrap.
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In the clubs 100th year the female cast from Alexandra Headland were able to etch their name in history completing the winning taplin treble in the U17, U19 and open female taplin.
Paris 2024 Olympic hopeful Lani Pallister, 21, completed a remarkable comeback swim leg to win her third straight Aussies taplin title and help her team of Tayla Halliday and Emma Woods secure gold.
“I really enjoy going in a little bit behind,” she said.
“I spoke to our head coach Jack (Hanson) before the race and thought about every possible scenario but I knew I was in touch when I was running into the water.
“I had that belief in myself and when I got to her feet at the can in my mind I thought ‘game over’.
“I love that last bit of the race and I love it bieng an absolute dog fight so I’m so very proud of the girls.”
Northcliffe’s Mitch Morris defended his U19 ironman crown with a victory over Henry Simpson from Alex Heads and Mitch’s twin brother Jake, also from Northcliffe.
Multi-sport star Jasmine Rayward from Burleigh Heads Mowbray Park turned plenty of heads in the U19 ironwoman to beat India Hulbert from Wanda and Nikita Nijssen-Seran from Northcliffe.
New South Wales and Queensland shared the spoils in the open racing with Dan Collins from Redhead leading home an all NSW podium while Northcliffe’s Lana Rogers beat defending champion and her northcliffe teammate in the open female ironwoman.
Olympic kayaking has a rich stream of talent coming through the ranks with two LA Olympic prospects Natalia Drobot and Maguire Reid racing off with the U19 Australian single ski titles on a wet and wild finals day.
Drobot, from the NSW Central Coast, defended the title she won a year ago in Western Australia despite just three sessions in the surf due to her kayaking commitments.
“I asked my coach if I could do this at the last minute and it was a yes,‘’ said Avoca’s Drobot who will head overseas to race at the U23 world kayaking championships later this year.
“It just really special to be able to do this twice in a row,” she said.
Drobot beat another rising star of paddling, Jasmine Rayward of Burleigh Heads Mowbray Park with Alex Headland gun Mia Cook third.
Reid, racing for the Newport team, said his kayaking training in the lead-up to the ski race had proved invaluable.
“It helped out heaps at the back which was pretty flat,‘’ Reid said.
Reid also won the double ski relay and like Drobet won the U19 ski crown last year.
In the ski final he came home ahead of his old Newport clubmates, Mitch and Jake and Morris, who now race for Northcliffe with fellow kayaker Clues fourth.
Shattered by missing the ironman final, Ben Carberry put his all into the open ski race to beat Northcliffe’s Tom Norton and Tokyo Olympian Murray Stewart from Burleigh.
Another rising star of kayaking, Newport’s Fletcher Armstrong, who had led early, was fourth.
“It’s just so hard to win this, it’s devastating, it was so close,‘’ he said.
One of the most excited winners was 2023 ironwoman champion Naomi Scott who shocked even herself to win the women’s ski crown.
“The ski is something I have had to work hard at and to see where I have got it is really special,‘’ Scott said.
“To be able to be here on a list with the greats of ski padlding for an ironwoman is incredible.‘’
Scott beat clubmate Hannah Sculley with Mooloolaba’s Jordan Mercer third.
Next up was the board and it was defending U19 female champion Lani Waller from Redhead that successfully retained her crown ahead of Northcliffe’s Emma McDonald and Newport’s Kimberley Doyle.
“I’m not used to these conditions, I do a lot of my hard work in the flat and I know I’m better in open water so to come away with gold is definitely special,” Waller said.
An interrupted Aussies preparation wasn’t enough to keep Newport’s Conner Maggs down for long as the rising star overcame glandular fever in recent weeks to beat home Burleigh Heads Mowbray Park pair Ethan Callaghan and Darby Meyer in the U19 male board race final.
“It’s been a really tough year, three weeks of training didn’t help but I worked my way through the pack well and got lucky with that wave so couldn’t be happier,” he said.
In the open female board race it was Brodee Trinca from Southport who beat home Northcliffe’s Harriet Brown and Newport’s Lizzie Welborn while local hope Tiarnee Massie finished in fifth after accidently missing the finishing posts.
“Different conditions again today, it wasn’t the weather that we were all hoping for but we’re here to race and I didn’t take my chances looking around at all because I know how strong the other girls are,” Trinca said.
Zach Morris was able to get his hands on his first ever individual gold in the open male board race in what was also his first ever time past the board race heats.
“I started on the far left but wanted to attack the right side on the way out, it started bucketing rain around cans and the visibility was quite low but I just kept my head down before backing my speed for the sprint home,” he said.
Morris beat home his Northcliffe teammate Auden Parish while Redhead’s Justin McMorland secured third.
In choppy surf conditions Redhead’s Lani Walker ‘spent all her energy’ after winning her second gold medal of the day in the U19 female surf race in front of Newport pair Sarah Locke and Kimberley Doyle.
“I’m definitely not much of a swimmer but I have been working really hard at my swim this year so the win is definitely a shock and a surprise as it’s a massive turnaround from last year,” she said post race.
In the U19s it was the ‘body surf of the day’ from Burleigh Heads Mowbray Park star Ethan Callaghan to snatch the gold from Alexandra Headland’s Henry Simpson and Currumbin’s Riley Brennan.
“The wave in was super hard to hold and I swallowed so much water but it formed nicely where I was so when I got up I had a bit of a look around before realising I was almost home,” Callaghan said.
In the open female event Naomi Scott was able to narrowly finish ahead of her Northcliffe teammate Georgia Miller and Newport’s Sarah Locke.
“I’ve been watching the conditions change everyday and even in the last hour but I managed to find the right line which made the difference,” Scott said.
Home beach hero Cooper Williams of Alexandra Headland took out the open male swim in front of Northcliffe’s Nick Sloman and North Bondi’s Duke Wieland.
“It’s the same stretch of beach so to race and to win for the club in its 100th year is very special and I’m very proud after plenty of hard work,” Williams said.
The female firepower from Alexandra Headland continued to fire in the U17 taplin as Mia Cook, Leah Pilkington and Sophie Wall crossed the line ahead of Northcliffe and Surfers Paradise to claim the gold.
Northcliffe trio Ryley Harland, Jake and Mitch Morris completed an astonishing gold medal blitz in the team events after securing the U19 Taplin ahead of Burleigh Heads Mowbray Park and Newport.
“It’s a lot of rain, a bit of surf and a bit of wind so it’s definitely not great but I just kept my head down, stayed in the zone and proud to finish with another gold,” Harland said.
In the open male division it was Burleigh Heads Mowbray Park who rose from the ashes to secure their clubs first ever open taplin relay victory.
The team of Ben Carberry, Corey Fletcher, Peter Mitchell, James Koch, Sean Rielly and Lachlan Tame beat out the teams of Surfers Paradise and Northcliffe.
Originally published as Australian Surf Lifesaving Championships wrap, every gold medalist from the final day.
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