KENDRICK NAILS NUTRI-GRAIN IRON MAN START
Sydney, November 30: Collaroy's 18-year-old apprentice carpenter Kendrick Louis will fly the flag for the Sydney Northern Beaches men in this year's $200,000 Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Iron Man Series after a nerve-wracking round of qualifying races at Wanda Beach over the weekend.
The brilliant youngster will be the youngest Ironman in the Series and will race alongside the likes of defending Series champion Zane Holmes and reigning world and Australian champion Shannon Eckstein. Ian Hanson reports...
The peninsula has not had an Ironman in the Series since the days of Jeremy Cotter, who went on to finish his career in the 2005 Coolangatta Gold.
Louis will join Manly's Ironwoman Naomi Flood who finished third in last season's Series to gain automatic pre-qualification for the 2009 Series which starts at Kurrawa on January 17 and 18.
Another Sydney Northern Beaches product, Queenscliff's former Australian under 19 Iron Man champion Matt Poole, who now competes for Mooloolaba, topped the pointscore to lead the qualifiers at the conclusion of the three-rounds of Trials.
All three are expected to be named together in the Northern NSW Hammers team when the National selectors meet to finalise the lineups at the end of the week.
Louis, the reigning Australian under 19 champion, made a last ditch effort in the third and final round of qualifying after sitting in 13th place after the first two rounds (14th and a 10th) knowing he had to go top 10 to make the Series.
He produced a blistering final board leg to win the third round ahead of experienced Northcliffe-based South African Luke Nisbet.
The pair paddled onto the same wave after Louis had worked hard to paddle down a rising swell off the last turning buoy.
He and Nisbet were locked together as they hit the beach with Louis winning the run to the finish with Nisbet second and ahead of Mooloolaba trio Jack Hansen, Poole and Dylan Newbiggen.
"I was determined to come here today and give it everything I had - if I made it great and if I didn't then I knew I had given it my best shot," said Louis, who himself is resisting offers to join the Gold Coast's world champion club Northcliffe (who have now signed Cronulla's favourite son Nathan Smith).
"I only made one A final in last year's selection trial series (at Redcliffe, Qld) and I was disqualified so this is certainly a better ending.
"To mix it with the big boys is great, I've really enjoyed the challenge and I'm now looking forward to the Series."
Louis, who is in his third year of his carpentry apprenticeship, said the opportunity to join Northcliffe and to train alongside the best of the best including Eckstein, Holmes and former Australian champion Pierce Leonard was tempting.
"For the moment I am more than happy where I am at Collaroy and I really want to finish my apprenticeship - I want to have something behind me at the end of my Ironman career," said Louis.
"Everything is going really well here and I am looking forward to representing Sydney Northern Beaches at the NSW Interstate Championships (at Catherine Hill B ay, Newcastle) on December 13 and 14."
Freshwater's Australian under 19 champion Alisha Miller also had an encouraging weekend when she joined her sister Brooke and Rachel Crerar for their first dip in the big time.
Miller, who has just concluded her first year in an Occupational Therapy degree, won the B final in Saturday's M-shaped endurance course, qualified alongside Brooke for the round two short course, before winning the B final in the third and final round on Sunday.
Despite a mishap on the ski in round two, Miller showed outstanding surf skills to suggest it won't be long before she is pushing for Nutri-Grain selection.
"I was just stoked to be competing alongside these girls and to make the A final on Saturday, Brooke and I were just so happy...to get to wear a Nutri-Grain singlet was awesome," said Miller.
"This is just the start for us, we have only just started paddling the ski but it is awesome experience and we will be back next year for sure - we can't wait."
The Miller sisters have already committed to each other to train for next year's nib Coolangatta Gold on October 18.
"We had a taste of it (Coolangatta Gold) in the teams event this year when Freshwater finished second and we both want to train in the winter for next year's individual event (over 30km)."