Australian surf life saving championships: Potential cyclone forces open, U17, U19 water comps relocation

A tough decision to move the entire water-based competition at the Australian surf life saving championships has been vindicated with dangerous conditions closing a Gold Coast beach.

The Australian championships have this year attracted a record 7200 competitors.

A tough decision last Sunday to relocate the water-based competition at the Australian surf life saving titles to North Kirra beach has been vindicated with Kurrawa closed on Friday due to dangerous conditions.

The decision by surf life saving saw officials relocate south in the hope they would be able to keep the competition running - which they have for athlete water sports.

The beach at Kurrawa has been closed.

POTENTIAL CYCLONE FORCES RELOCATION OF AUSSIES 2022

SUNDAY: The open, U17 and U19 water based competitions at the 2022 Australian surf life saving championships are being relocated from Broadbeach to an area further south on the Gold Coast which offers better protection from forecast 3m swells triggered by a potential cyclone over the Coral Sea later this week.

Beach events planned for Wednesday to Sunday will remain at Broadbeach as officials react to news of potential for the late-season cyclone.

The masters, which will be raced Monday and Tuesday, will stay at Broadbeach.

Waves in excess of 3m are currently on the agenda late this week with surf life saving officials making an early call to relocate the water and boat competitions from their planned Broadbeach base to North Kirra from Wednesday to Sunday.

Georgia Miller won a multitude of gold medals at last year’s Aussies, including the ironwoman crown.

“Talking to the BOM and water police - and our modelling says the same - there will be a weather system which could turn into a cyclone, a tropical low potentially moving into a tropical cyclone,’’ said Australian Surf Life Saving Championships Competition Chair, John Brennan.

“Based on that we are being proactive.

“East facing beaches will be hit by 3m surf and they are saying the surf will build from Thursday.

“There is a bit of infrastructure to move and want to give the clubs plenty of notice.

“There are predictions by Wednesday a tropical storm could become a tropical cyclone. They can come near the coast, they can move away. They can be wayward.

“We want to be on the front foot. Water safety is absolutely paramount for us. We’re just making the call early.’’

Olympic hopeful Jackson Collins was the winner of the surf ski Australian crown in 2021.

The mammoth logistic exercise will see around 5000 athletes and officials, along with thousands of spectators, relocate further south to avoid the swell being forecast to hit Friday, Saturday and Sunday and keep competition ticking over.

The youth events are currently being held at this beach with some infrastructure already in place as a backup for the open titles where the best athletes in the country contest blue riband events like the ironman and ironwoman and the surf ski events.

The likes of top ironwomen Lana Rogers, Georgia Miller and Lizzie Welborn will all now be competing at North Kirra.

The 2022 Australian titles have already undergone a venue chance as the original event was scheduled to be held in Perth before tough border restrictions in place due to Covid triggered a rethink and they were moved to the Gold Coast.

The 2022 event has attracted a record 7200 athletes and around 500 officials.

The majority of these competitors are in the open, under 17 and under 19 competitions with the youth component of the championships wrapping up on Sunday and the Masters to be held Monday and Tuesday.

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Originally published as Australian surf life saving championships: Potential cyclone forces open, U17, U19 water comps relocation