CHENNAI: Riding the waves towards success surfers from Tamil Nadu emerged victorious across all four categories at Covelong Classic 2024, the fourth and final leg of the National Surfing Championship. Among them was Kamali Moorthy who was crowned the National Surfing Champion based on the cumulative points collected from her impressive finishes across the four legs of the championship that began in March earlier this year.
Belonging to a family of surfers, she was the cynosure of all eyes at the meet. A lot of hard work, passion, and support from The Covelong Arun Vasu Foundation helped Kamali bag the crown. “I feel thrilled about winning the title. This is the first time, so it is a special one for me,” said Kamali from Sri Lanka, who is on her way to Maldives to participate in the Asian Surfing Meet. “I’m happy to have defended my title in the Groms 16 and U-Girl’s category. I am elated and being crowned as the National Champion is very special. My next goal is to win at the Asian Surf Championship,” she added.
Surfing is a taxing and demanding sport. One cannot surf wherever he or she likes. One has to be a part of a club and have the right environment and place to surf. Since all the surfing activities are near Mahabalipuram, not everyone can train there regularly. But the class 10 student of St Mary’s MHSS in Mamallapuram gets to follow her passion without any obstacles.
Coming to the national title, one has to be consistent in the four legs and adapt to different conditions to excel. “I work hard to keep myself fit and tune in to the sport which is demanding. I worked for about nine months for this event and I am glad to have got good results,” she said.
Each of the four legs of the championship threw a different challenge. “At Varkala, the waves broke left and that was my first time surfing on the left, so it was a little hard but I managed to win. At Mangalore, it was messy. The one at Mahabs was special because it is my hometown; I was more focused on this one and got first in both. At Kovalam, I tried my best but some of my mistakes made me come second. Overall it was a good learning experience,” she said, adding that her tough competitor was S Shanti.
Kamali has made steady progress to become one of the most talented surfers in the country. “I started surfing when I was three years old. I was impressed by my uncle (Santhosh Moorthy) who is a surfing instructor. One day I told him that I would like to try and surf. He encouraged me and taught me. From the age of six, I was hooked to the sport and when I was 12 years I started competing in events,” she shared.
She is part of the TT Pro-Surf team and this association has helped her evolve as a surfer. “I’m lucky to be part of the TT Pro Surf Team, which is sponsored by the Covelong Arun Vasu Foundation, and have Samai and Sanjay as coaches. I have been training at Surf Turf Covelong, Mahabs, Mangalore, and Pondicherry. TT Group has also helped me with the opportunity to train in Bali with international coach Ivan,” said Kamali adding that her uncle, brother, and cousins help her improve her craft.
Representing India for the first time at the Asian Meet, Kamali is keen on making a mark.