Julian Wilson : photo Jake White

Oakley Pro Junior

ASP Australasia Grade 4 Men's Event
North Stradbroke Island Queensland
5 - 10 February 2008

Oakley Pro Junior Set For Start At North  Stradbroke Island

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 4 February, 2008 : - - The coveted ASP Australasian Pro Junior Series continues to gain momentum in 2008 with the next chapter set to rock the island hideaway of North Stradbroke tomorrow. The inaugural Oakley Pro Junior, running from February 5-10 and offering $30,000 prize money, promises to be the most exciting tournament in Queensland junior surfing history.

North Stradbroke Island will provide an ideal battleground for a who’s who of world junior surfing, contestants coming from as far a field as Bali, Europe, Hawaii, Japan, South Africa, Tahiti and the USA to compete for the $7000 winner's cheque. An upgraded 3,500 rating points is also up for grabs for the eventual champion!

The prestigious new tournament is the first of six Oakley pro junior events organised for Brazil, Europe, Japan, USA and South Africa in '08. The champion and runner-up from each event will be taken to a secret location to battle it out for more cash and prizes. Adding to the event’s already high stakes is a stellar line-up of Australia and the world’s hottest 20-years and under surfers, who are eager to strut their stuff at the revered wave haven.

Top seed Stuart Kennedy (Lennox Head) will head into the event as a red-hot favourite after netting a first, second and fifth placing in the opening three events of the series. “I couldn’t have asked for a better start to the year,” said Kennedy, who finished runner-up at the pro junior tournament at Burleigh Heads last week.

“With such a great start, I am looking forward to extending my ratings lead at ‘Straddie’. I’m feeling fit and my boards are working well, so hopefully I can go well.” Kennedy sits on top of the ratings with 8338-points, nearly 2000 clear of Fairlight’s Nick Riley (6420) in second and Tahiti’s Tamaroa McComb (6219) in third. “A win in its inaugural year would be great,” he said. “The forecasts are looking good for waves, so hopefully we’ll be competing in great conditions.”

Sunshine Coast surfing sensation Julian Wilson (Coolum), who has been touted as a future world champion, enters the event as fourth seed and is searching for a big result after a slow start to this year’s circuit.

It has been a whirlwind 12 months for the Coolum teenager which has seen him defeat eight-time world champion Kelly Slater (USA), bag a string of wins on the Australasian Pro Junior circuit and become the youngest-ever recipient of the industry’s coveted Breakthrough Performer of the Year award.

Meanwhile, the Gold Coast’s best hopes lie with Nick Vasicek (Coolangatta), Brendan Leckie (Palm Beach), Blake Ainsworth (Coolangatta) and Michael Levitt (Palm Beach), whilst the Sunshine Coast will be well represented with Chris Friend (Alex Headland), Dean Iezzi (Sunshine Beach), Shaun Stevic (Noosa), Jasper Endersby (Peregian Beach) and Thomas Stubbs (Maroochydore).

'Nth Straddie' has had a long connection with Queensland surfing, acting as a wave magnet for surfers keen on barrelling waves as well as spawning several surfing champions. Born-and-bred world tour ace Bede Durbidge honed his surfing act on the long point break waves of Cylinder along with the punchy beach breaks of Main Beach.

However, top ranked competitors won’t be able to rest on their laurels with a swag of the island’s best junior surfers including Lincoln Taylor, Ash McDonald, Logan Specht, Jack Milliken, Murray Antonieff and Darcy Phillips keen to outdo their more fancied foes on home turf.

What’s more, local Point Lookout Boardriders member Tim McDonald has received a wildcard in the top seeded round of the exclusive tournament courtesy of Oakley.  The Oakley Pro Junior is the 4th of 12 stops on the 2008 ASP Australasian Pro Junior Series and offers a six-day surfing window, from Tuesday 5th February to Sunday 10th February, 2008, for only four days of competition surfing.

The main event site will be at Cylinder Beach, however the tournament has the option of going to the best surf from Adder Rock to Main Beach. The Oakley Pro Junior is proudly supported by Redlands Shire Council, Stradbroke Ferries, Stradroke Island Holidays, Stradbroke Island Beach Hotel, Red Bull, Waves Magazine, Surfing Queensland and ASP Australasia.

About Oakley. 

Decades of Oakley research have achieved performance innovations for the world’s best athletes. In the process, we have raised the bar of durability and protection, and our inventions now serve the industries of health, safety and defense. Categories include eyewear that protect against extreme impact and laser light; fire-resistant gloves utilized by professional race drivers; and footwear developed for combat, motor sports and environmental extremes.

Previous reports:
# 1 : Oakley secures Queensland's richest Pro Junior contest
# 2 : Coming soon
# 3 : Coming soon
# 4 : Coming soon  

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Jake White

Junior Contests - Surfersvillage