Ms McKENZIE (Flinders) (13:33): As the member for Flinders, I am incredibly lucky to represent some of the most stunning surf beaches in the country. Our back beaches, stretching from Portsea to St Andrews to Gunnamatta, consistently astound visitors with their beauty and intensity.
It’s therefore no wonder that the Mornington Peninsula makes such a wave in our contribution to competitive surfing on the national level.
This week the Australian Junior Surfing Titles are taking place in Wollongong, and almost 40 per cent of Victoria’s 2024 Australian junior titles team—11 out of the 30-person Victorian contingent—come from my electorate.
Arieh Paterson, from Somers, is in the under-18 boys; Sara Hickson, from Rye, is in the under-18 girls; Tarvi Woods, from Fingal, is in the under-16 boys; Tahli Browne, from St Andrews Beach, is in the under-16 girls; Harry Cleary and Raff Morris, from Sorrento, are in the under-14 boys; and Sophie Day of Rye and Harper Brown of St Andrews Beach are in the under-14 girls. All are competing on the biggest stage for junior surfing in Australia.
Not only that, but Dromana sisters Ava, Mia, and Rose Holland are making their family proud, having all made the Victorian team. The girls are from Dromana Secondary College and are members of the Peninsula Surfriders Club.
As I am ably informed by my surfer mates, there is nothing like it: paddling into the refreshing ocean water, surfboard at the ready, gazing onwards to the impending waves which beckon in the distance.
I wish all the challengers in the title good luck in the competition, which concludes this Sunday, 1 December.