Mangaluru: Surfers in Mangaluru who have made a name at the national level, now want to surf in international waters before trying for the 2020 Olympics.
Surfing is a popular sport in Mangaluru. The Mantra Surf Club which was started at Mulki near Mangaluru in 2004, has been active in surfing. Several national level surfers are associated with this club.
In 2011, a group of Indian surfers from Mantra Surf Club (Surfing India) formed Surfing Federation of India which is recognized by the International Surfing Association (ISA) as the National Governing Body for surfing in India.
The Association has organised various events in the country, the most recent one being the three-day Indian open surfing event at Sasihithlu beach near Mangaluru. This event has put Mangaluru on the surfing map internationally.
The decision of the International Olympic Committee to add surfing in the 2020 Olympics has been welcomed by surfers. “Surfing Federation of India co-operated with the International Surfing Association to support the campaign for including surfing in the Olympics and other national and international multi-sport events,” Federation president Kishore Kumar said.
He feels that Indian surfers need to get accclimatised with international waters to gear up for the Olympics. “Our surfers should participate in international surfing events. Though we receive invitations, we are unable to make it because of lack of sponsors. In future we want to send our people to international competitions. This will need a substantial number of sponsors,” he said, adding, “participation in such events will help our surfers make it to the Olympics. It would help in the qualifying rounds.”
According to him, entering the 2020 Olympics might be difficult as only the 20 best men and 20 women surfers would be able to gain entry in the event. “Countries like Australia, US, Brazil and Japan which are into surfing since 3-4 decades are well established in surfing. But we are still just getting established. We will try to enter the Olympics, it is not impossible,” he added. Youths such as Sinchana, Aneesha and Druva have made their name in national level surfing events.
