| COOLANGATTA/AUSTRALIA (FRIDAY 6TH MAY): AUSTRALIA will be well represented heading into the 2011 Billabong ISA World Surfing Games, with the final squad announcement of a star studded TravelSIM Team Australia.
With the final team now selected, preparations for the upcoming ISA World Surfing Games are underway with the Australian Team well positioned for a gold medal against a quality field of international surfing teams. The 2011 games will be held in the beautiful waves of Playa Venao, Panama from June 25 – July 3 and will play host to over 200 surfers in their respective National Surfing Teams. The four surfers selected who will make up the Open Male category include: These quality Australian surfers will compete alongside Josh Constable (Peregian, Qld) and Dane Pioli (Coolangatta, Qld), who will be competiting in the longboards, as well as Jessi Miley-Dyer (Bronte, NSW) and Dimity Stoyle (Buderim, Qld) – Australia’s two women’s competitors. Surfing Australia’s National Coaching Director Martin Dunn and highly respected Western Australian coach Mike McAuliffe will lead the team in Panama in search of the coveted title of ISA World Champions. Team Australia Head Coach Martin Dunn is extremely pleased with the final Australian squad and is eager to get over to Panama to bring back gold for Australia. “I look forward to travelling to Panama with such an experienced team of Australian surfers,” he said. “Anyone who knows Mick Campbell, Nathan Hedge, Jessi Miley-Dyer, or Josh Constable would know how patriotic they are. This coupled with their great surfing ability, will provide a platform where great results can be achieved. The open team finished 2nd in a close result last year in Peru, and we will be looking for a win for the team this year in Panama.” Mick Campbell’s inclusion in the squad adds incredible experience as Campbell was able to secure the Copper Medal at the 2010 event held in Peru. He has also previously won this event in 1998, with this achievement providing treasured memories for Campbell. “To represent Australia for me is the pinnacle of sporting satisfaction,” he said. “It is an absolute honour to wear the green and gold and I’m really looking forward to going to Panama. I can’t wait to meet up with the team and coaching staff and get things rolling,” added Campbell, who has the nickname – “Ginga Ninja” – which refers to his incredible competitive streak. Josh Constable (Longboards) won a Silver Medal at last year’s event and will also be keen to go one step further to take out the Longboard Title in 2011. Team Australia will have the support of Surfing Australia and the nation as they surf for gold after placing second overall at the 2010 ISA World Surfing Games in which they fell desperately short of the home team Peru. “Surfing Australia is extremely proud of our stature as the number one surfing nation in the world,” said Surfing Australia Chief Executive Officer Andrew Stark. “We have selected a team with a clear and concise goal to come home with gold from the ISA World Championships. Surfing for your nation is a unique and proud moment, and we will be giving it our best shot to win. We are confident that we have a super talented and experienced team.” TravelSIM is once again firmly locked in as the naming rights sponsor of the Australian Team and see great value in supporting our Australian athletes as they compete for gold for themselves and for the whole of Australia. Jamien Zimmermann, CEO of TravelSIM said, “We are very happy to continue our support of Australian surfing and are very much looking forward to seeing the team lift the trophy in July.” “TravelSIM will be supplying the team with our international mobile phone service so they can keep in touch with friends and family while in Panama. We are also setting up an ‘Hero SMS’ webpage so that fans can send their message of support to any of the Team Australia athletes.” The ‘Hero SMS’ webpage will be available to visit from June at www.travelsim.net.au/surfing The Billabong ISA World Surfing Games will see over 30 countries and over 200 surfers competing in the Open Men, Open Women and Longboard divisions. The date and venue are set; now teams must start getting ready for one of the biggest events of our sport. Surfing Australia would like to thank the Australian Government for their continued funding and commitment to our sport in this country. The Australian Sports Commission is the Government body that develops, supports and invests in sport at all levels in Australia. Surfing Australia works closely with the Australian Sports Commission to develop surfing from community participation to high performance level. TravelSIM Team Australia is proudly supported by the Australian Sports Commission and Suncorp. For more information please visit www.surfingaustralia.com or www.surfingaustralia.com/team-aust.php |