Last August, four generations of surf champions, Alan Stokes, Lee Bartlett, Jed Stone and Tom Good, gathered in Newquay to highlight the fact that not a penny of UK sporting body funding goes into supporting English surfing and stress the importance of mentoring if the country is to produce more world class surf champions. Sport England has since pledged to support any alternative funding bids that the organisation makes but to date no new sources of backing have been realised.
With 42 shops around the country, Freespirit is one of the major players in the surf clothing industry and 2006 will see the brand launching it’s own range of surf kit. To illustrate the company’s commitment to grass roots surfing, Freespirit contacted the ESF following last year’s campaign and as a result, today’s surf school sponsorship has been developed.
The flagship ESF surf school will now become known as the Freespirit English Surfing Federation Surf School and the deal will see the brand supporting the school for the next year. The surf school provides top quality instruction in a fun, supportive atmosphere and Freespirit will provide new signage, uniforms and flags for the school plus all lessons participants will receive 10% discounts and a loyalty card for all Freespirit stores. All profits from the surf school, generated from the lessons sales, are ploughed straight back into supporting promising English surfers and providing the funding for them to attend the European Surf Championships.
The new sponsorship will also enable the development of a number of special pro surfer clinics where those taking lessons get the chance to learn hints and tips and gain invaluable tips from English champions and top UK surfers including Mark Harris, Llewellyn Whittaker and Lee Bartlett.
Freespirit Brand Manager, Adam Smith, said today, “As a top surf brand and retailer, we are concious that we have a role to play in supporting the sport and when we learned about the funding issues faced by the ESF, we decided to see what we could do to help. Today’s sponsorship announcement is a perfect example of how a brand and not-for-profit organisation can work hand-in-hand to help benefit surfing and its participants and we’re extremely excited about the development of our joint initiatives.”
Attending today’s launch, four times English champion Lee Bartlett said, “I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for the ongoing support that I’ve had over the years from the ESF. It’s really encouraging to see a top brand like Freespirit committing to putting something back into the sport and sponsoring the surf school, therefore supporting English grass roots surfing. It’s so important that we all help generate as much support as we can for this key governing body and I’m really pleased to see this key development for the ESF.”
National Director Pauly Jefferys said, “There’s so much that we do at the ESF and so much more that we want to be doing to maximise the potential of all of our young surfers. Our surf school is our key generator of funding to support these efforts and the new Freespirit sponsorship is a very important step forward in allowing us to further develop the surf school and create new initiatives. We are obviously delighted to have such a major brand on board and are really looking forward to working with the Freespirit team throughout the coming year.”
To make it on a domestic and international circuit, young surfers need the funds to be able to travel, pay for accommodation, and cover contest entry fees and equipment costs. Many are subsidised by their parents and the lucky few get sponsorship from commercial companies, but even with this, they often struggle to be able to afford to attend key contests and gain the experience needed to shape them into future champions.
Since its inception in the 1970s, The ESF has provided funding, plus a recognised mentoring structure, for all of England’s promising young surfers and all of today’s key English stars – Russell Winter, Alan Stokes, Robyn Davies and Lee Bartlett – have gratefully received ESF support throughout their careers. In the last year alone, it cost the ESF well over £25K to provide its support network, funding, programmes, contests and events. This backing paid for members of the English team’s entry into international contests and membership to the European Surfing Federation. Further to this, ESF volunteers ran continual surf clinics around the country, created specific workshops for recognised talent, managed a grommet tour and organised and ran the English National Championships.
People wishing to support the efforts of the ESF and book lessons with the Freespirit ESF Surf School can access www.englishsurfschool.com, call 01637 879571 or call into the school at the Cribber Green Rooms, 30 Headland Road, Newquay.
*BSA estimates
Issued on behalf of the English Surfing Federation by Rhona Gardiner. For further information, photography and interviews please contact Rhona on 07740 410052 or rhona@excessenergycomms.com.