All Eyes Will Be On The Next Generation of Costa Rican Surfers.

Bronzed bodies and adventure junkies will return to the daily Costa Rican headlines starting this weekend with the inauguration of the 2008-2009 Day Star National Surf Circuit (CNS). In this 9th edition of the year-long competition, Costa Rica’s top surfers will face off against each other on some of the country’s best breaks and most challenging waves.

After Costa Rica’s best performance ever in the World Cup of Surfing, it is expected that this will be the most challenging CNS yet that the country has seen. The inaugural 5-star event will take place at La Curva de Playa Hermosa, Jaco, in front of the Casa Club Day Star, a specific point that has not played host to a CNS event in several years. Competition will take place starting today, Nov. 28 through Nov. 30, along one of the longest rides on the Pacific coast with waves between two and four feet..

Several top Costa Rican surfers will return home to compete in this event in between appearances at the ALAS Latin Tour, which will make its way to Jaco, Costa Rica this Dec. 5 to 7 for the final event. New names to look out for will also be on hand this year including Ronald Brown and Billy Johnson, or the more experienced Alvaro Solano and Hernan Hilton.

This year’s competition also comes with a new sponsor, the Jaco Day Star Properties, thanks to a large investment in the competition made by the hotel property. In another update, the Costa Rican Surf Federation will take over the “Metropolitan Surf Circuit”, which represents surfers that live in the Central Valley and can only train on the weekends and holidays. This Circuit will have its own three events in the first quarter of the year.

As a final new addition, the judges for this year’s competition will have the opportunity to receive training in order to receive accreditation as Level 1 judges by the International Surfing Association (ISA). An 8-hour class will be given during the second CNS event for $100, which will allow the judges to work in world championship events.

The confirmed dates so far for the Circuit will include:

Nov. 28 – 30: 5-star Copa Mango, Playa Hermosa

Dec. 12 – 14: 4-star Coca Cola Zero Tournament, Playa Jaco

Jan. 9 – 11: 4-star Witch’s Rock Tournament, Playa Tamarindo

Feb. 6 – 8: 5-star Natural Balance Cup, Playa Nosara

March 6 – 8: 5-star Day & Night Tournament, Playa Santa Teresa

May 1 – 3: 6-star Terrazas Reef Grand Final, Playa Hermosa

This year, surfers must attend all six dates to compete in the overall ranking, although each surfer’s total score will be compiled from their best four performances, allowing them to drop the two lowest scores. This year’s competition will see a much higher difficulty level with events between 4 and 5 stars, with a 6-star final, and a higher turn out is expected thanks to a new category, the Grand Masters, which is designated for competitors over the age of 40.

As always, the Costa Rican Surf Federation (FSC) President emphasized the importance that this competition has on the youth of Costa Rica. This year’s top Junior competitors will become the Costa Rican representatives at the Ecuador Junior World Cup in April of 2009. The competition always hopes to see rising stars joining the ranks, promising a positive future for Costa Rica surfing.

Photo courtesy of Shifi Surf Shots.

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Filed under: Surf on November 28th, 2008