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Oceanperf UK 2024 Wrapped

Piran Phillips • 7 January 2025

The year of 2024, guys and gals racing across the UK, Europe and the world making memories and accomplishing dreams.

BRITS didn’t just turn up to compete, we turned up as GREAT Britain and showed how great we could be.


Ellie McCloy kicked off the year in France, jumping off the cliffs in Biarritz at the Red Bull Rescue, the Welsh doctor finished a strong second place.


Bobby ‘Knuckles’ Whitaker created the first piece of history in 2024 down under at the Queensland state championships, finishing 9th in the Ironman…

The best result by a British Ironman at the QLD state champs, EVER.


In Western Australia Drew Howells started his golden run, winning the u19 WA Ski title, adopted Brit Grace Young also struck gold winning the u19 WA Ironwomen title.


The clubbie season in the UK started with the GBR trials once more, in the men’s, Samuel Lawman returned as Captain alongside Thomas Trebilcock, Piran Phillips and Whitaker.

Jack Sadberry and Thomas Leggett rounded out the team making their senior debuts.


For the women, McCloy, Molly Roodhouse, Evie Wong and Millie Wiggins returned, Anya Hocking and Rosie Edwards made their Senior debuts.


In the youth boys, Kiran Gammon, Cai Williams and Terry Miller returned, Tristyn James alongside Iwan Scrivens and Jayden Beaumont made debuts.


For the girls, Farli Abram-Bridges, Maisy Hawkins, Amaia Lopez and Heather Watson maintained their spots, Charlotte Hart and Lillian Roche made their debuts.


At the Welsh Championships Howells asserted ski dominance, McCloy showed her class in the iron and board, Wong was unstoppable on the beach and ski.


In Cornwall youngies Owen Pope won the Iron and Hayden Phillips claimed the board, Euan Dungavel returned to the top on the ski and Lewis Rosewell WON THE SWIM???


The women battled the Cornish swell, Kezia Elliot became the Ironwomen champ, Hawkins jumped up to the open to win the board along with Roche in the swim, Edwards continued her regular scheduled programme of winning the ski race.


Back up to Branksome we went for the age group nationals for A LOT of racing, to sum it up, Gammon dominated the boy’s water and Williams was invincible across sand, in the girls Hawkins and Roche kept standing on top of the podium in fashion.


The Oceanperf Challenge UK followed once more, in the men, wins came in a dominant display, Whitaker taking the swim, board and Iron, Phillips in the ski and Kiwi Daniel Rippon won the flags.


Dash for cash was the story of the women at the OPC UK, and the sprint Queen Wong made sure of that, winning the board, ski and flags, Roche won her first Ironwomen title and Abi Davies cashed in the swim.


Next up was the Oceanperf Challenge France, the glorious French sunshine and waves, but a beach that gave Whitaker nightmares, did he jump or fall off that board? I’m pretty he slewed his ski last year? None of it matters now, because Whitaker finally triumphed winning the OPC FR Ironman title, while becoming the first person to win both UK and French rounds in the same year.


A round of applause must be given to French women Elise Daudignon who won the women’s board, ski, iron and flags, becoming the first to win four events at the Oceanperf Challenge.


Then it was the big one, the WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS AT GOLD COAST AUSTRALIA!!!


An early Wednesday morning kick started the youths medal haul, Lopez, Watson, Gammon and Williams earning a bronze in the SERC.


The youth delivered a historic performance in the ocean, Gammon and Beaumont won a bronze in the board rescue, Williams and Miller joined the pair shortly after to win a silver in the boy’s Taplin, followed by Hart’s silver in the ironwomen which claimed GBR’s only individual youth medal.


On the second day of competition the medal run continued, Hart and Hawkins took a bronze in the board rescue, to round of the ocean Hart was back on the podium alongside Gammon, Miller and Abram-Bridges to bring home a bronze in the mixed Taplin.


Into the pool the youth went, first up Tristyn James earned a bronze in the 200m obstacle, then Lopez and Watson finished the youth’s medal tally with a silver in the girl’s line throw.


Across to the Open, and oh the story lines of the GBR team!!!


The men started in the pool, narrowly missing out on defending their 4x50m Obstacle relay, Trebilcock, Lawman, Leggett and Sadberry claimed an unbelievable bronze but missed gold by 0.5 seconds.


And then…


Trebilcock, we watched, we grimaced, we prayed, but all that was really happening was Treb having a good time on the green whistle.


A slipped radial bone from the elbow meant Trebilcock was out for the rest of the season, but no one let that dam elbow break in vain going onto the ocean.


Legget stepped up to swim the men’s Taplin, he tagged Phillips on the ski, Phillips tagged Whitaker on the board, Whitaker tagged Lawman who strolled across the line for bronze, which claimed GBR’s first World men’s Taplin medal.


The wind picked up and with it a small swell, Whitaker and the World Championship ironman, it’s a thing of beauty, narrowly missing the podium to finish fourth, equalling GBR’s best ever finish in the Ironman since Stuart Snell in 2004.


Has Whitaker made a case for GREATEST OF ALL TIME status across GBR Ironmen? A debate for another time…


Day two and the final day, the girl from Rhoose, the little town in the South of Wales, she loves to talk, she loves to party, she loves to run, but she loves to win ski race’s more, Evie Wong, she lead the women’s World Championship ski race for 99.9%, but Aussie Naomi Scott stole the gold across the line, Wong settled for a super silver.


And then…


Yes, the writer of this 2024 review, me, Piran Phillips, my ski race, I think we all know how this race ended… “That’s Lifesaving and is why we love it”.


To finish of the medal haul for GBR, possibly came with the biggest smile of the trip as McCloy claimed her first ever World Championship medal, herself and partner Hocking wrapped up a third in the board rescue.


Athletes returned home, the sun didn’t return from Aus with the GBR team but they brought the swell for a memorable nationals at Fistral.


Whitaker was once again the main man, retaining the board title for a third time, regaining the iron and winning his first British surf race title.


Chris Parry made the comeback which had been whispered across the sand for nearly five years, easily doing the double in sprints and flags.


Howells then wrapped up his golden 2024, as he obliterated the entire open ski field to become the British champ.


A Welsh lad living his dream, Howells can billionaire strut around the whole ski field throughout 2025, he got more ski titles than any paddler from 2024 and it wasn’t close.


Oliver Brunnock rounded out the individuals by storming to victory in the 2km beach run, as did Hollie Lewis in the women’s.


I can’t remember the last time Wong lost a beach sprint or flags against another British opponent, and it doesn’t look like it’ll happen anytime soon, she yet again won the double.


Plenty of Kiwi’s in the past have turned up to the British nationals, but rarely have they managed to dominate like Lucy Stroud, crushing the ironwomen title and claiming the board across the line.


Edwards retained the women’s ski title in a race of chaos, she kept her ski straight and powered across the finish line, if she doesn’t get hit by a bomb off the start, she is a shout to win any ski race, anywhere in the world.


Perhaps a star in the making, Ella D Jones of Woolacoombe at just age 17 won an unbelievable women’s swim race.


To finish the UK season was the Celtic Cup, on home soil the Welsh dominated, retaining their title by winning the Seniors and Youth.


Back down under the racing went, first up was the Coolangatta Gold, 42km across Australia’s Gold Coast, 23km ski, 1km sand run, 4km swim, 6km board, 8km sand run, Phillips completed the race in 4 hours 29 minutes, the fastest time set by a UK athlete.


Miller travelled across to WA for the Shaw and Partners Race Week and CLEANED UP, and claimed some good cash along the way, winning five from five races in the u18’s, a feat that should not be downplayed and might not be repeatable. #


 The Aussies got beat in their own back yard, then just a few weeks later the Safa’s got a taste of British brilliance as well in theirs.


Edwards paddled to an unbelievable victory at the Cape Point challenge in South Africa.


In the days before Christmas, Phillips travelled to Adelaide in the third major round of the World Ocean Series and spent the rest of 2024 leading the ski rankings after being the only person to top 10 in all Ten- and Seven-thousand-point races so far.

In doing so became the first European to top a World Ocean Series rankings at any point in the season.



So that’s 2024 wrapped up, and wow, what a year, but here we go, lets all go create more history in 2025. 

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