Two Jersey surfers who reached the final of a national competition in Scotland were unable to compete after it was postponed while police investigate allegations of abuse from non-competitors towards female semi-finalists.
Nathan Elms, who works for Jersey Coastguard, and RNLI lifeguard Owen Graham had both qualified for the men’s open final of the GB Surfing Cup at Thurso before organisers halted the event.
The alleged incident involved several ‘free’ surfers – people surfing recreationally outside the competition – who paddled into the contest line-up during the women’s semi-final and were reportedly verbally abusive towards competitors. None of the female semi-finalists were from Jersey.
GB Surfing announced the finals were called off yesterday in a statement on social media.
The governing body wrote: “We understand that there is a police investigation proceeding into an alleged incident of abuse towards competitive surfers by ‘free’ surfers, initially directed towards female competitors in the GB Cup.
“The board of GB Surfing is deeply concerned by the news of the incident, which has brought the event to an abrupt end.
“We recognise that surfers in the final will be disappointed by the premature termination of the competition following an incident, but we are grateful to the event delivery team for acting promptly and their cooperation with the Police in this matter.”
The statement was also shared by the Channel Islands Surfing Federation on social media.
GB Surfing director Arlene Maltman, who represents Channel Islands interests on the board, described the situation as “deeply disappointing” and stressed that Jersey’s surf community “does not condone that kind of behaviour from any surfer”.
“Surfing is a welcoming and inclusive sport in the island,” she said.
“We encourage participation and have safeguarding policies in place across our clubs. Jersey promotes inclusivity and accessibility for anyone who wants to take part.”
The former British Surfing Champion also praised the athletes competing in challenging conditions, adding that she “admired their strength and determination during the incident”.
The Channel Islands fielded a nine-strong team of surfers from Jersey, managed by Roley McMichael and captained by Sam George.
The men’s team included Max Bennett, Will Masterman, Nathan Elms, Owen Graham, Sam George and Byron Stolte, while junior surfers Nava Dowse-Harris, Daisy Heddercott and Rebecca Lynam represented the island in the women’s category.
