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     The Rip Curl Clean & Clear Women's Pro is a big event on the national surfing calendar with $5,000 in prizemoney up for grabs

Meet three surfer girls, sponsored by Rip Curl who will be out there taking on the big guns...

  


Ella Williams, 12
Whangamata Area School 

Achievements:

For the second time, Ella won the Girl’s Primary Schools Surfing Championship in 2007 and has held the national championship position for her age for the past two years.

She also took out first place in the Under 12 Girl’s Grand Final at the 2007 Rip Curl Clean & Clear Women’s Pro.
    
How did you get started?
 
“Mum and Dad pushed me into the waves when I was four, and I have loved it ever since.” (Ella’s parents both surf.)

“My life now revolves around surfing!

“I first learnt to surf at Raglan starting at the beach, and then The Point as I progressed.”
When she was seven Ella’s family moved to Whangamata. 

Favourite memory:

“One of the best things is being able to “She’s so much fun and I don’t think many other girls surf against their mum.

“We have ended up in the same heats, which I think is pretty cool!” 

Goals:

Ella says that she is beginning to feel more confident surfing all divisions and has achieved some results that she never thought possible.

"Some day i want to be number one in the world, having my family there with me every step of the way."


  
Alexis Poulter, 15
Raglan Area School Surfing Academy


Achievements:

She won numerous school awards in 2007 including Most Improved Surfer, Excellence in Sport, Under 14 Girls Cross-Country Champion, Swimming Champion,Athletics Champion, Open Girls 1500m Champion, as well as Sportsperson of the Year.
 
The highlight was winning the Under 14’s and 16’s as well as placing fourth in the Under 18’s at the 2007 Rip Curl Clean & Clear Women’s Pro Surfing Competition.

Alexis’ other surfi ng highlights for 2007 were; fourth in the Under 14’s at the Rusty Gromfest in Lennox Head, Australia; third in the Under 16’s at the Rip Curl Gromsearch in Victoria, Australia; second at the Rip Curl Gromsearch in Sydney.

Alexis was also a part of the 11 strong members of theNew Zealand Junior Team,representing the Under 18 girls, who finished a credible fourth out of 32 countries
at the ISA World Junior Surfing Championships in Costa de Caparica, Portugal.

   
How did you get started?

“I first started when I was 10 years old. I saw my dad surfing at Waihi Beach – a
great learning place – and I wanted to give surfing a go! After a while I was hooked!”

Alexis now lives in Raglan where she is able to develop her talent.

“No matter what the conditions are like there’s always somewhere you can go surfing.

“If it’s 10ft, Half Moon Bay will usually have a sick bank that’s about two foot.”
 
 
  


Rosa Thompson, 14
Diocesan School for Girls, Auckland
 
Achievements:

Winning the Raglan Under 18 Secondary Schools competition and winning the Under 14 and Under 16 divisions in the Rip Curl GromSearch in Wellington.

Overall winner of the Billabong Grom Series in 2007 – won a ticket to Australia to compete in the Billabong Occy Grom Competition.

In 2007 she also entered the Rip Curl Clean & Clear Women’s Pro Surfing Competition for the first time and came second in the Under 16 division. 

How did you get started?

“I first learnt to surf when I was six and started competing at 11.

“My brother Tim was travelling around NZ doing all the Rip Curl GromSearches so I decided to give it a try.”

Rosa ended up coming fourth in the Under 12 divisionof her first ever competition in Taranaki and surfing soon became her new obsession.
 
“During the week the family would drive the 45 minutes out to Piha from our home in Auckland. Hobbies such as horseriding and netball were forgotten to accommodate my new passion.”

“Surfing has become my lifestyle and it is so much fun.”