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Matt Le Maitre seals a treble win for Plymouth University at Fistral Beach
by Ben Byfield
10/03/2006:// A radical display of new-school surfing from the Guernsey-born rider earned him a narrow victory ahead of Exeter’s James Hick in sunny but windy 3-4ft surf. Hick was on fire throughout the three day contest, but it was Matt Le Maitre who picked up the better of the shifting peaks in the final, laying down a series of powerful snaps and slashing cutbacks to take the title.
After some electrifying surfing from fellow-finalists Christian Boletta and Jake Scott in the earlier rounds, the pair struggled to find the waves they needed to challenge for the top spot. Having each surfed through six rounds to reach the final, in surf ranging from 3ft to 6ft, the four finalists all put in brave performances to entertain a 600-strong crowd on the beach, with the Plymouth man eventually emerging victorious.
It was a double celebration for Matt, as his points helped Plymouth A to the Men’s Team title for the third year running, ensuring a lively trip back to Devon for the team minibus. Plymouth beat a strong Exeter men’s team into second place.
In the ladies division, Ulster University’s Shauna Ward made light work of the head-high conditions to claim the Ladies’ Open title, ripping her waves all the way to the beach. Shauna, the reigning Irish Women’s Champion, showed her class in a hard-fought final to emerge with the title ahead of Esther Lampriere, Tracy Somerville and runner-up Jo Dennison of Swansea Institute.
Plymouth’s domination was completed with Plymouth winning a close-run Ladies Team competition ahead of rivals Marjons, with UWE third.
Despite deteriorating surf, the finals were a fitting climax to a three day feast of surfing and partying in the UK’s surfing capital. Perfect weather and consistent head-high surf – with offshore winds until late on Saturday – gave the students plenty of reasons to be cheerful. An estimated 1900 of them poured into town for this year’s event, providing a welcome boost to the local tourist economy. Thanks to additional sponsorship this year from Headworx and Red Stripe, the students enjoyed a very professionally-run contest which featured an international judging panel, as well as a lively weekend of music and partying laid on by the sponsors.
“It’s been a fabulous weekend” commented contest director Karen Walton. “With over 400 entrants of varied abilities this event can be a huge challenge, particularly if the surf is not so good. But the contest ran like clockwork, the surfing was spectacular and the students all seem to have had a great time.”
A gallery of surfing shots and party photos, plus full event reports, are available to view at www.headworx.com. An edited video-cast of the action will be live on the Headworx site on Tuesday.
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