Covelong Point Classic Surf Contest – 2014
Chennai, TN – TT Logistics and EarthSync in association with the Surfing Federation of India is organizing the second annual Covelong Point Surf Festival this September 12th - 14th, 2014 in Covelong village near Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The festival will feature a national level surf competition, surf workshops, a music festival, various beachside activities and celebrity guest appearances by Jonty Rhodes and Milind Soman amongst others.
Surfing The Southern Coast
Following the success of the Covelong Point social project – an EarthSync documentary on the rise of surf culture in Covelong and the use of surfing as a catalyst for positive change in the tsunami afflicted South Indian village – TT Logistics and EarthSync tied up with the Surfing Federation of India - the national governing body for surfing in India, created by a group of passionate surfers from the Mantra Surf Club - and together, they created the Covelong Point Surf Festival. Various celebrities have supported the cause over the years – the last edition of the festival saw cricketing legend Jonty Rhodes making an appearance, and also hitting the waves to surf with the competitors. This year Rhodes will be making another appearance at the festival press conference on September 8th, and will also go surfing in the village.
Surfing For Change
As India’s first surfing village, the district of Covelong (Chennai) has fast become a mecca for surfers from all around the world. The village has produced over 40 talented surfers within a short span of time and is developing a unique surf culture that continues to flourish amidst the colorful splendor of coastal South India.
The festival runs over three days – September 12th – 14th - and will feature a national level surf contest with surfers from all around India, reputed surfers from Maldives, and from all around the world competing in various categories – which will include Grooms (under 16), Juniors (17 – 22), Seniors (23 – 28), Masters (over 28), Women, (all ages), and the Open Category (Foreigners). 150 contestants are expected for the competition. The entire festival is recognized and supported by the International Surfing Association.
The surf documentary Beyond The Surface about Ishita Malaviya – India’s first female surfer – will also be screened, and a series of surf workshops will be conducted. Ten days prior to the event, Australian based NGO Boards for Billions will be conducting workshops on Board Shaping, Surf Tourism, Business Skills, Recycling, Beach Care, and a Filming/Editing workshop.
The festival has partnered with the Surfing Federation of India, The Times of India, Taj Vivanta, The Outdoor Journal, and The Park Chennai, and sponsors and other partners include TT Logistics & Cargo (TTL), MRF Ltd, Indo National Ltd (NIPPO), LMW, Radiance Realty, MIOT Hospitals, Eva Deo, Skore Condoms, Woodland, Parry Agro, Sundaram Finance, Toyota Landon, City Union Bank Ltd., Chennai Live 104.8 FM, Kingfisher, Dusk to Dawn, and TTK. The ultimate aim of the festival is to use surfing as a catalyst for rehabilitation and community development in Covelong and also as a means to spread awareness of the issues faced by the village.
Highlights:
*September 8th – Press Conference, featuring surfing ambassador for India from Surfing Federation of India, the cricketing legend Jonty Rhodes.
*September 10th – a beach clean up to raise awareness on beach sanitation in Covelong village
*September 11th - MIOT Hospital will conduct free health check-ups for the children of the village
*September 12th – Celebrity run starting at 5:30 am with Milind Soman to kick start the event
*September XX - TTK Hospital will conduct educational camps on drug and alcohol abuse and awareness.
Music With A Mission
In addition to the surf competition, the event will also feature performances by renowned musicians from different corners of India and around the world. The musical line up spans a wide variety of genres, with a focus also being placed on promoting local folk musicians of Tamil Nadu and different parts of India. The musical line up includes mandolin maestros Padmashri U. Srinivas and U. Rajesh (Chennai), Carnatic musician TM Krishna (Chennai), folk-rock act The Raghu Dixit Project (Bangalore), reggae artists Delhi Sultanate & Begum X (Delhi), singer-songwriter Nischay Parekh and percussionist Jivraj Singh (Kolkatta), Mauritian blues troupe Tritonik (Mauritius), folk master The Kutle Khan Project (Rajasthan), downtempo electronica duo Klypp (Bangalore), fusion duo Filter Coffee (Mumbai), and Australian DJ Astro Black.
Beach Side Festivities
In addition to the competition and the music, there will also be beachside activities happening throughout the day - including yoga and meditation classes, a skateboard ramp, food and drink stalls, and volleyball matches happening each day between 3 pm – 5:30 pm with 8 teams participating (including two teams from Covelong). There will also be a catamaran race, with cash prizes for the winners including
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About TT Logistics
TT logistics has represented British Airways World Cargo in India for 30 years. The company also handles Bonded Trucking and Cold Chain Solutions. TTL sponsors the Covelong Point Social Surf School and is one of the main sponsors for the Covelong Point Surf Festival. The TT Vasu foundation was started to promote Classical music in rural parts of India and will be presenting Mandolin Srinivas/ U.Rajesh and TM Krishna at the Covelong Point Surf Festival this year.
About EarthSync
EarthSync is an independent music label and award-winning film producer, that brings its vast global and cross-cultural music and film industry strengths to contribute to the growth of India’s music and film scene, by building global supporting platform and infrastructures that nurture India’s diversity, artists and filmmakers. EarthSync has been filming a documentary on Murthy Megavan and the rise of this surf culture in Covelong village – titled Covelong Point.
Venue: Kovalam aka (Covelong Point), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Schedule: Friday, 12 September 2014 to Sunday, 14 September 2014.
Final Wrap Up Of The Covelong Point Classic Surf Contest 2014
September 15th, 2014
Chennai, TN – TT Logistics and EarthSync in association with the Surf Federation of India and The Times Of India just hosted the Covelong Point Surf and Music Festival on Covelong beach this past weekend – Sept 12th – 14th - with over 8000 people in attendance over the course of three days. The surf competition saw a drastic rise in skill levels of the nation’s most talented surfers, as well as a sea of international talent showcasing their skills. The competition also featured a volleyball tournament and catamaran races with cash prizes for the winners. Music performances by the likes of Kutle Khan, The Raghu Dixit Project, Tritonik, Nischay Parekh & Jivraj Singh, Delhi Sultanate & Begum X packed out the beach.
Dharani from Covelong Point Social Surf School scored a 6 point wave - the highest wave score in the competition for the national category, while Ismail Miglal of the Maldives scored a 9 point wave – the highest wave score in the competition for the OPEN category. Ismail did a few great snaps at a very critical part of the wave, along with one or two cutbacks – and was one of the best floaters of the competition. The GROMS Category upped their skill level this year with surfers like Appas Ali & Raghul focusing more on technique and finishing the wave, instead of fancier maneuvers like 360s.
The JUNIORS Category was dominated by Dharani of Covelong Point Social Surf School – who is a great skateboarder, which helps his surfing. During his 6 point wave, Dharani did 3 snaps, a very nice cutback, and ended on a good floater. The SENIORS Category semi-finals were highly competitive – while everyone expected Appu of Covelong Point Social Surf School to lead the category, it ended up being Sekar from Covelong Point Social Surf School who proved himself and had been working hard on his maneuvers.
The WOMEN’s category saw rising talents Sinchana and Aneesha – who are only 12 and 13 – beating out many of the more experienced female surfers, though it was Suhasini who won the title. According to the judges, Suhasini read the waves better compared to the other girls who were more experienced – her skills of reading and riding waves was stronger. Young surfer Surya P. from the Covelong Point Social Surf School amazed judges with his grit and determination by placing third in the OPEN category, beating out much more experienced surfers from around the world.
“What’s truly amazing to see is how drastically the level of surfing in India has increased, and at such a fast pace! And what’s incredible, is how connected these surfers are to the ocean – especially the ones who come from fishing communities like Covelong village. They naturally understand the sea, its rhythm, they can intuitively anticipate a wave even before it breaks - that beautiful connection to the ocean is what makes for a true surfer. We want to continue to support and nurture these talented young surfers, and empower the community with initiatives surrounding their passion for surfing”. – Yotam Agam, Co-Founder, EarthSync – Founder of Covelong Point Surf & Music Festival
“It was a great feeling to see such an increase in the number of participants and level of the surfers in the competition – and also an increase in the number of spectators and level of public interest! We’ve been using surfing as a way draw awareness to social issues Covelong village faces, and are positioning the festival as a way to also encourage economic growth in the village and provide business opportunities for local vendors. We want to see these initiatives grow for future editions – and will do our best to continue to support the rise of surfing in India.” -Arun Vasu, TT Logistics. Founder of Covelong Point Surf & Music Festival
I’m excited to be a part of the Covelong Point Surf Festival. You see the young guys here from the Covelong Point Social Surf School, they’re very fit, very lean. You’ll see why – if you come down and you see these guys in action in the ocean, well it’s a powerful force!”. -Jonty Rhodes, Cricketer, Surfing Ambassador to India & Surfing Federation of India
"The primary objective of SFI is to promote and develop the sport of surfing in India through National & International surfing events and by implementation of various ISA developmental programs." -Kishore Kumar, Founder of Surfing Federation of India