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Surf’s up for Newcastle WSL hosting gig

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Newcastle is home to world surfing legends Mark Richards, Matt Hoy, Luke Egan, Ryan Callinan and Philippa Anderson, to name just a few.

So, it’s apt the region will host 52 of the best boardriders from across the globe in less than two months’ time.

City of Newcastle, in partnership with Destination NSW, has secured a new event, which kicks off at Merewether Beach from the start of April as the first Australian stop on the World Surf League’s (WSL) revamped 2021 Championship Tour (CT).

Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said the WSL competition was a massive coup for Newcastle, providing a major boost to the tourism sector by promoting the city and the coastline on the international stage.

“It’s been wonderful to work collaboratively with the NSW Government, Deputy Premier John Barilaro and Tourism Minister Stuart Ayres to attract the premier international world surfing league event back to NSW and Newcastle,” she stated.

“Their support and advocacy were vital as we worked alongside the great team at Destination NSW to secure what is a huge accomplishment for our state and our city.

“We thank them for their expertise and assistance.

“The WSL event will be fantastic, not only for the region’s sports lovers, but for its potential flow-on effects for our visitor economy.

“It’ll bring a major influx of competitors, media representatives, event officials and fans to our city throughout April, delivering an estimated benefit of more than $15 million to Newcastle’s economy.

“It will also provide invaluable promotion for future tourism by showcasing Newcastle to a global audience of more than 10 million viewers, with the event to be live-streamed across various platforms.”

Jackson Baker, Philippa Anderson, Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes, NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro, Ryan Callinan and World Surfing League general manager Andrew Stark at Merewether Beach.

Cr Nelmes said City of Newcastle had a long and proud history of supporting top level international contests, having been heavily involved in the establishment of Surfest in 1985 (then known as the BHP Steel International), which was the world’s richest professional surfing event at the time.

In the past decade, Newcastle has cemented its reputation for hosting a variety of prominent Australian and international sporting extravaganzas.

“We’ve become a destination of choice for major events, including Surfest, the recent SAANZAR Rugby Championship, Supercars Newcastle 500, the 2015 Asian Cup Football tournament, the A-League grand final and various union and league Test matches,” Cr Nelmes said.

“Newcastle is highly-regarded in international surf circles as the home of Surfest, the largest surfing festival in the southern hemisphere, which includes WSL qualifying series events.

“With a prize pool of more than $1 million across the men’s and women’s divisions, this new championship will elevate Mereweather’s popular break even further, joining an international pro touring schedule stacked with the top surfing destinations across the globe in a sport that is new addition to the Olympics.

“We’re pleased the WSL event will tap into the local expertise of Surfest organiser Warren Smith.

“We look forward to welcoming athletes and surfing fans from across Australia to Newcastle for this COVIDSafe event in April.”

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