Robinson wins her spot in the 2022 CT

JAN Juc surfer India Robinson will be elevated into the big time next year after finishing in the top four of a season-ending competition in Hawaii last week.

The 21-year-old’s semi-final win in the Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold Haleiwa Challenger – the final stop on the World Surf League’s (WSL) Challenger Tour – gave her enough points to secure her place in the top-flight Championship Tour (CT).

A dominant showcase of her forehand attack at Haleiwa led her to a massive quarter-final victory before another win in the semi-finals.

“I was in shock, I was really excited, it was a dream come true for me,” Robinson said.

“So when I got to the beach, I only had a quick five-minute turnaround and I had to go back out for the final, but I kept asking everyone around me ‘have I done enough yet, have I qualified, can you tell me if I’ve qualified?’ and they were saying ‘just focus on the final, you have to go out there and go again’ but I’m like ‘no, you need to tell me if I’ve qualified’, and they told me.

“So I paddled back out for the final and I was like ‘holy s**t, I’ve done it!’.”

Despite finishing last in the final, Robinson’s placing solidified her inside the top six in the Women’s Challenger Series rankings in 2021 and thus the lineup among the WSL’s best in 2022.

“There was definitely a lot of pressure going into that event and I didn’t have the best lead-up – I had another knock to the head, which is the second concussion I’ve had this year – so I’ve had quite a few injuries and setbacks along the way, but as I soon as I got in the water and put that rashie on (at Haleiwa), I fell into a zone where I felt I couldn’t fall off, it felt like I was almost unstoppable.”

Robinson will spend Christmas and NYE in Jan Juc with her family, who she hasn’t seen in 10 months, before heading back to Hawaii to prepare for the CT season opener, the Billabong Pro Pipeline at Hawaii’s Banzai Pipeline from January 29 to February 10.

She said she was especially excited to be close to home in April at the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach.

“It’s been so many years of trying to get to that event, that’s the one event I’m most excited about.

“I’m going to be surrounded by my family and friends, I just can’t wait.”