Exciting New Location for the 2024 Australian Longboard Titles

Major Shakeup to the 2024 Australian Surf Championships

The Australian Longboard Titles will be held as a stand-alone event for the first time, with the Tweed Coast offering a variety of waves suited to the longboarding style of surfing.

Event Dates: September 12th – 17th, 2024
Location: Tweed Coast, NSW

CASUARINA, NSW (June 21, 2024) – Surfing Australia is thrilled to announce a new location for the 2024 Australian Longboard Titles. This year, for the first time, the longboard divisions of the 2024 Australian Surf Championships will run as a stand-alone event on Bundjalung Country on the Tweed Coast in northern New South Wales.

The event will span six days, from Thursday, September 12, 2024, to Tuesday, September 17, 2024. Potential event locations include Cabarita Beach, Hastings Point, Kingscliff Beach, Fingal Beach, and Duranbah Beach.

This announcement follows Surfing Australia’s decision to host the Australian Shortboard Titles, the Australian Para Surfing Titles, and the Australian Bodyboard Titles in Port Macquarie, NSW (July 31st – August 8th), and the Australian SUP Titles on Phillip Island in Victoria (October 22nd – October 26th).

Surfing Australia Event Director Rohan Fell stated, “We’re looking forward to seeing the longboard divisions of the Australian Surf Championships at a new location that is suited to their style of surfing. The Tweed Coast offers a range of point breaks and back beaches that are not only ideal for longboarding but are also close to the Hyundai Surfing Australia High Performance Centre. This centre offers world-class training facilities, function rooms, accommodation, and support services such as coaching and physio that will be available to athletes during the event window.”

Multiple-Australian Champion Landen Smales (Noosa Heads, QLD), who won his first Australian Logger Title at 12 years old when the Australian Titles were held on the Tweed Coast in 2019, expressed his enthusiasm for the event’s return to the region.

“I’m really looking forward to the Aussie Longboard Titles. It’s great to have the event moving to the Tweed Coast, Bundjalung Country this year. There are so many different breaks to choose from. Last year, I won the Junior and Open Men’s Logger, and I’m keen to compete in the new longboard division with the criteria change this year. The changes suit my surfing, and I’ll be trying to lock in a spot in Team Australia to compete at Worlds later in the year,” Smales said.

Australian Longboard Titles – Divisions:

• Under 18 Junior Men
• Under 18 Junior Women
• Open Men
• Open Women
• Grand Masters Women O40
• Grand Masters Men O40
• Kahunas Men O45
• Grand Kahunas Men O50
• Women O50
• Dukes Men O55
• Grand Dukes O60
• O60 Women
• Legends Men O65
• Grand Legends Men O70
• O70 Women

For the most up-to-date longboard criteria, please refer to the 2024 Surfing Australia Rule Book.

Schedule:

Opening Ceremony:
Date: Thursday, September 12, 2024

Competition Windows:
Window 1: Friday, September 13, 2024 – Saturday, September 14, 2024
Divisions: Open Men & Women, U18 Junior Men & Women
Presentation: To be held after competition on Saturday, September 14, 2024

Window 2: Saturday, September 14, 2024 – Tuesday, September 17, 2024
Divisions: Over 40 Men & Women, Over 45 Men & Over 50 Men & Women, Over 55 Men, Over 60 Men & Women, Over 65 Men & Over 70 Men & Women
Presentation: To be held after the competition on Tuesday, September 17, 2024

For more information, please visit Australian Surf Championships.

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Rebels hit rock bottom

By Tim Howard

The South Grafton Rebels have slipped to the bottom of the Group 2 Rugby League table after a disappointing loss to the Coffs Harbour Comets.

The Rebels had fought back to lead the Comets 12-8 at half time, but fell away in the second half to succumb 26-12.

It’s the club’s seventh loss of the season, with the only win coming back in April against the Comets at McKittrick Park.

It was particularly disappointing for the Rebels who just a week earlier had been pipped at the post by competition leaders Nambucca 22-20.

The only good news for the struggling club is they play the rest of the season at their McKittrick Park fortress, beginning with Sunday’s clash against Macksville.

The 2024 season has been a tough one for the club, seemingly perpetually rebuilding even while enjoying success on the field.

Premiers in 2022 and grand finalists last season, each year the club has dealt with an exodus of players but with shrewd recruiting and a steady supply of talented juniors coming through the ranks South Grafton has been able to get results.

While the results have not come so far this season, the team remains competitive, with a number of close losses, by 2, 4, 6 and 8 points the difference between a poor season and a good one.

Club officials privately have said the draw, which has allowed them only two home games so far this season, has not done them any favours.

At half time on Sunday Rebels supporters were waiting for their team to kick away as they did in the game against the Comets in round 2.

Richard Roberts and Nick McGrady had scored tries, which McGrady converted.

Instead the game plan went out the window in attack and defence with dropped passes and missed tackles gifting the Comets points.

They capitalised scoring three converted tries and shut the Rebels out for 40 minutes to run away with the game.

Comets halfback Jett McCarthy had a whale of a game, scoring two tries as well as kicking three goals.

The Rebels face another tough afternoon on Sunday against a tough, uncompromising Macksville outfit who love to get on top through their forward pack.

Macksville came out on top on a bitterly cold and wet afternoon at Macksville in April, but Rebels fans will look to make it hot and uncomfortable for the visitors at home this weekend.

The Grafton Ghost had the bye at the weekend after putting together their best game of the season against Macksville the week before.

On Saturday the Ghosts host Sawtell in a crucial game for both teams.

When they two clubs last met in April the result was a 12-12 draw.

The Panthers have been impressive for most of the season, sitting in second spot on the ladder two points ahead of the Ghosts.

A win on Saturday for the Ghosts could see some changes in the top four, depending on other results.

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Whooping Cough and Pneumonia Cases Surge in NSW, Posing Significant Risk to Children

Whooping cough rates have surged to their highest levels in nearly a decade in New South Wales (NSW), and the number of young children hospitalised with pneumonia has more than doubled compared to the same period last year, according to state health data.

Pertussis Cases Reach Alarming Levels

The latest NSW Health respiratory surveillance report reveals that there have been 103.1 notifications of pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, per 100,000 people in the state so far this year. The last time figures were this high was in 2016, with a rate of 139.6 per 100,000.

Professor Robert Booy, an infectious diseases paediatrician at the University of Sydney, attributes the rise to several viruses and bacteria, including pertussis and mycoplasma, actively spreading, particularly among primary school-aged children.

“Both [pertussis and mycoplasma] are causing pneumonia, leading to hospital admissions, emergency department presentations, and the need for antibiotic treatment,” said Professor Booy.

Public Health Advisory

NSW Health advises individuals to stay home if unwell and to wear a mask if going out is necessary, in an effort to reduce the spread of these respiratory illnesses.

Young People Particularly at Risk

Health data indicates that pneumonia rates among children aged zero to 16 are “unseasonably high” and exceed levels recorded in the past five years. In early June this year, nearly 140 children under the age of four presented to emergency departments with pneumonia, compared to fewer than 60 at the same time last year. For children aged five to 16, the number was 400, up from fewer than 50 last year.

The increase is attributed to a specific strain of pneumonia, commonly referred to as “walking pneumonia.” The report states that Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a frequent cause of pneumonia in school-aged children, with epidemics occurring every three to five years. The last epidemic in NSW occurred before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Expert Insights

Dr. Rebekah Hoffman, chair of the NSW and ACT branch of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, noted that while most individuals contracting Mycoplasma pneumoniae would remain “quite well,” they might suffer from a persistent cough for several weeks or months. “For some kids, especially if they are immunocompromised or have other respiratory problems, they might get really sick and need hospitalization,” Dr. Hoffman said.

Both Dr. Hoffman and Professor Booy highlighted that social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in 2020 and 2021, resulted in children not being exposed to other respiratory illnesses, such as whooping cough and pneumonia. Professor Booy explained that the absence of exposure created a group of susceptible young children who are now developing and spreading whooping cough in school and other settings.

Resurgence Patterns

Whooping cough typically surges every three to six years, but due to the pandemic, this interval has now stretched to six to eight years. Dr. Hoffman noted that the spike in respiratory illnesses reflects young people “catching up” on infections they missed in previous years. She expressed surprise at the significant increase in whooping cough rates.

Professor Booy emphasized the seriousness of whooping cough for certain groups, particularly newborn babies. “The children at most risk are the very young… they need protection from their mother being vaccinated during pregnancy to develop antibodies which pass to the baby before it’s even born,” he said.

The health department data also indicated that COVID-19 cases remain “high” in the state.

Conclusion

The surge in whooping cough and pneumonia cases in NSW is a significant public health concern, particularly for young children. Continued vigilance, vaccination, and adherence to public health guidelines are essential to manage and mitigate the spread of these illnesses.

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