Mangaluru: Indian Open Surfing to kickoff at Sasihithlu Beach on May 31

Mangaluru: The fifth edition of the Indian Open Surfing (IOS) will be held at the Sasihithlu Beach here from May 31 to June 2, the sport’s governing body SFI announced on Monday.

The three-day surfing competition will include four categories — Men’s Open, Women’s Open, Groms (U-16) Boys and Groms (U-16) Girls.

”Indian Open Surfing will be the 2nd stop of the National Championship series of the 2024 calendar year, following the International Surfing Festival Kerala 2024, held in March at the beautiful cliff beach of Varkala,” the Surfing Federation of India (SFI), the governing body for the sports of surfing and stand-up paddling in the country, said in a media release.

The IOS will feature intense rivalry between surfers from the east and west coasts, as these championships carry important ranking points that will determine the surfers’ standings at the end of the season.

”Our goal is simple, we want to elevate India to the top in surfing. After a successful start to the National Series in Kerala, we are glad to continue the championships in Mangaluru before the championship tour moves to the East Coast,” SFI president Arun Vasu said.

Ramesh Budihal, Harish M, Srikanth D, and Manikandan M will be the surfers to watch out for in the men’s category, having performed exceptionally well in the last national championship recently held in Kerala.

In the women’s category, Kamali Moorthy, Srishthi Selvam, and Sandhya Arun are among the participants competing for the top honors. Teenage sensation Kishore Kumar will have all eyes on him, having stunned everyone with his recent performances.