AUSTRALIAN SURF LIFE SAVING CHAMPIONSHIPS DATES EXTENDED FOR 2011

surf life saving australia 2.jpgAugust 16: Surf Life Saving Australia today announced that dates for the 2011 Australian Surf Life Saving Championships will be extended.  The event will run from Saturday 2 to Sunday 10 April at Kurrawa on the Gold Coast.

The new ‘Aussies' program is as follows:

Saturday 2 - Sunday 3 April:              Masters competition
Monday 4 April:                                Alternative programming day 
Tuesday 5 - Thursday 7 April:            Opens competition
Friday 8 April [morning]:                   Alternative programming day 
Friday 8 April [afternoon]:                 Opens beach competition
Saturday 9 - Sunday 10 April:            Opens competition

As a result of the normal review process conducted after each Championships, the new program has  built-in alternative programming days to allow for more flexibility.

This change comes off the back of increased competitor numbers.  The alternative programming days will provided organisers the opportunity to offer competitors, volunteer officials, the event workforce and all those involved in the event with rest periods throughout the Championships.

Surf Life Saving Australia CEO, Brett Williamson OAM, said:  "Given the growth of the event, the new schedule provides organisers and competitors alike with additional programming flexibility.

"The Australian Surf Life Saving Championships in 2010 saw a significant boost in competitor numbers with a staggering 8,100 competitors.

"As our membership continues to grow so will the Australian Championships and we have decided to the extend the program to cater for further anticipated increases in the number of competitors.  At the same time we want to contain the space required which already stretches over two kilometres of beach at Kurrawa."

The ‘Aussies' is the largest event of its kind in the world and features almost 300 events.

"An event as large as the Australian Championships requires 12 month planning and to ensure our members can plan for the 2011 event, we have a responsibility to give them as much notice as possible to confirm their accommodation and travel arrangements," said Mr Williamson.

The full schedule of events is due to be released soon and will be available on the Surf Life Saving Australia website http://www.slsa.com.au/.

The Australian Surf Life Saving Championships is proudly supported by Queensland Events.

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