Woorrangalook Victoria Koori Surfing Titles back for the 25th year running

THE Woorrangalook Victoria Koori Surfing will kick off at Urquhart’s Bluff next month, bringing Indigenous Victorians young and old together to connect over surfing, share stories and enjoy the ocean.

The Woorrangalook Victoria Koori Surfing Titles, on Saturday, February 5, have been running annually for more than 20 years and are hosted by Surfing Victoria as part of the Victorian Indigenous Surfing Program and Indigenous Strategic Pillar, one of the longest running Indigenous engagement programs in the country.

Surfing Victoria Indigenous aquatics manager Jordie Campbell said the event was a culmination of Surfing Victoria’s entire indigenous program, with a focus on the community, connecting with the ocean while learning new skills and developing healthy habits.

“Although it is a surf comp, for me it’s more about the gathering of Indigenous people. It’s an amazing opportunity for community from across the state that don’t get to see each other so often,” Campbell said.

“Essentially it’s just an amazing gathering of indigenous members from across the state where we celebrate the ocean, celebrate our culture and have a fun day all together in the ocean.”

Campbell said the level of competition ranged from novice to high-level competition, with prizes to be won and free surfing products given to all participants on the day.

“The way we try to work it is everyone had an awesome weekend and everyone gets to walk away with something as well,” Campbell said.

“For the majority of the younger divisions it’s more about participation, a lot of the people who have travelled from far and wide haven’t spent a lot of time in the water, so we do participation contests where it’s more about getting out and having a go.

“But then as you get more into the higher divisions the level of surfing gets better and better, all the way up to our Open and the winner of the Open gets a spot in the trials for the RipCurl Pro.”

The program also emphasises water safety, strong Aboriginal community leadership and creating a culturally safe environment, which is inclusive and respectful.

From only 20 participants in the first year the titles were held, the event now sees more than 180 participants each year, with Indigenous people coming from across the state for the event. In 2020/21 the event featured 650 Indigenous participants from across Victoria.

For more information and to register, contact Jordie Campbell via email at [email protected] or phone at 0488 935 183.