In the closest of finals days in recent years, Bay of Plenty have hung on to defend their title at the 2026 National Scholastic Championships presented by Pub Charity by one placing.
The final day of the event, held on Friday 2nd October, took place at Makorori Beach, Gisborne in the fifth day of perfect waves bathed in sunshine. The 1.0m swell remained all day with offshore winds turning variable mid-morning.
The defence of the title came at the expense of Waikato who did everything possible to claim their first title in seven years including one title and three additional podiums. Auckland finished in third place, also within a result or two of victory on the finals day.
The Bay of Plenty clinched their title courtesy of two wins via Sol Fritchley in the Under 16 Boys Division and Louis Macquet in the Under 14 Boys Division amongst their five podium finishes in total.
The win is the thirteenth for the region in the event’s 36 year history as the most winningest of the twelve regions at the event.
Titles in the premier divisions went to the chasing teams with Poppy Arkle (Auckland) taking the Under 18 Girls Division title and Indica Corcoran (Waikato) taking the title in the Under 18 Boys Division.
Arkle looked strong throughout the event and produced her best performance in the final posting a 14.0 point heat total to defeat Poppy Entwisle (Tara) in second place with Indi-Lee Ruddell (North) in third and Bonnie Lynch (Gis) in fourth.
Indica Corcoran sealed his win with a buzzer beater in the Under 18 Boys Division. Sitting in third place with less than a minute to go, Corcoran had one last shot on a long-running right and surfed it to the beach. Surrounded by team mates on the beach, the score didn’t drop until after the final hooter had sounded. Needing a 5.57 to jump to the lead, Corcoran did it with ease posting a 7.33 point ride, the highest of the final.
Alexis Owen (Otago) finished in second in the Under 18 Boys final with Van Camenzind (Waikato) in third and Jack Higgins (Otago) in fourth.
In a similar fashion to Corcoran, Sol Fritchley finished his winning wave after the hooter had sounded to claim the Under 16 Boys Division. In a two-wave exchange, front runner Zeke Pragert (Auckland) could not better his 15.20 heat total leaving Fritchley requiring an 8.8 point ride. Fritchley launched into the best air of the event to sneak past Pragert with an 8.83 point ride, surrounded by his team hooting and hollering at the win before chairing him up.
Pragert finished in second ahead of Haru Marsden (BOP) in third and Cade John Carr (Tara) in fourth.
Alani Morse (Waikato) surfed a clinical final to claim the Under 16 Girls Division with a 12.9 point heat total closing out the final by putting pressure on eventual runner up Lola Groube (Coromandel) who could not find the space to secure the 7.03 point ride required. Isla McKay (North) finished in third ahead of Ella Rebolledo-Withers (Auckland) in fourth.
Wins in the Under 14 Divisions went to Zara Owen (Otago) in the girls and Louis Macquet (BOP) in the boys.
Northland claimed two titles in the longboarding divisions at the event with Hawk Edwards winning the boys division and Lara Lay winning the girls division.
The peer-voted Adam Clegg Breakthrough Performance Award went to Louis Macquet for the boys and Bonnie Lynch for the girls.
The Caltex Good Sports Award went to Auckland with the Bayleys Real Estate All Together Better Award went to Otago and the Nateva Leadership Award went to Hawkes Bay.
Team Points
1. Bay of Plenty, 7,788
2. Waikato, 7,760
3. Auckland, 7,620
4. Northland, 7,265
5. Taranaki, 6,885
6. Otago, 6,595
7. Coromandel, 6,570
8. Gisborne, 6,438
9. Hawkes Bay, 3,688
10. Wellington, 3,468
11. Canterbury, 3,095
12. Southland, 2,843
The webcast of the final two days can be viewed via Maori+. Full results can be viewed via Live Heats.
The National Scholastic Surfing Championships brings together school-aged surfers representing thirteen regions from Northland to Southland. Bay of Plenty is the defending champion following last year’s event in Taranaki. They have traded titles with Auckland since 2022.
The Scholastic Championships feature Under 14 through to Under 18 divisions, along with boys’ and girls’ longboard divisions.
First held in 1989, the National Scholastic Surfing Championships have a long history of showcasing New Zealand’s emerging surfing talent, with many former competitors going on to represent New Zealand internationally.
Event Information
The National Scholastic Championships is sanctioned by School Sport New Zealand and proudly supported by the New Zealand Sports Collective comprising Whakaata Maori, Bayleys Real Estate, Caltex, Nateva, Apollo Projects, Anchor and Pub Charity.
Further Information
For further information on the 2026 Scholastic Championships please contact Surfing New Zealand’s Ben Kennings on 021 2278732 or email benkennings@surfingnz.co.nz.
Imagery
High resolution action images of the surfing will be available to media free of charge upon request.
Social Media
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Surfing New Zealand is proudly partnered by:
Sport NZ
ACC
Sun Bum
Kiwi Holiday Insurance
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