NI surfers compete in world games

Shauna Ward is one of three surfers from NI going to the championships

Three surfers from Northern Ireland will be jetting off to the sunny shores of California this month to represent Ireland at the ISA World Surf Championships.

Shauna Ward, 19, who is originally from Bundoran in Donegal, will be joined on the team by Ballymena's John McCurry Jnr and Martin Kelly from Portrush.

Over 30 countries are taking part in the championships which are being held from 14-22 October at Huntington Beach.

Shauna, a design and communication student at Magee College in Londonderry, recently won the British Universities surf title.

"I was lucky enough to be brought up at the coast in a family where surfing was just a normal part of growing up," she said.

"Ireland might well be seen as an emerging surf nation compared to the likes of America and Australia, but there is a genuine feeling that this Irish team might surprise a few people.

"We feel strong in nearly every category, and we will be going all-out to make surfing history in California with our final placings."

Radio Foyle's Mark Patterson, who edits the BBC Northern Ireland surf website, said Shauna could be found catching waves off the North Coast no matter the weather.

"Shauna regularly surfs with the rest of us in Derry and Donegal, and she's one of the very few surfers to brave the frozen beaches right through the Irish winter, where the water temperature falls to just 8 or 9 degrees Celsius," he said.

"Shauna has made it to the very top of the Irish surfing scene. To say that we are thrilled with her selection for the Irish International team is an understatement."