Maldives crowned second in Asia in junior surf rankings

Maldives has been conferred second place in the junior ranking category of the recently concluded third edition of the ASF Asian Surfing Championships 2024 hosted in Kaafu atoll Thulusdhoo located north of capital Male'.

Maldives secured second place after tallying 1505 points with a total of three surfers. Japan had clinched first place with two surfers who earned 1860 points. South Korea amassed 1450 points to secure third place while India ranked in fourth with a total of 1360 points.

Among young surfers who represented Maldives at this surfing stage, Yoosuf Kayan Hamdhaan Zaki had advanced as far as the semifinals while the Captain, Sayyid Salaahuddeen surfed in the quarterfinal heats. Meanwhike, Yasin Ahmed Nashid had surfed until the third round waves.

Kayan is ranked sixth in the junior ranking alongside Chinese Taipei surfer, Jong Jong Chang. Sayyid secured ninth in the rankings while Yasin was placed in the thirteenth place.

Although results earned by the Men's Junior B team who competed as 'Team Thulusdhoo' is not included in the ranking, they had also procured commendable results. Mohamed Inaan Abdul Hannaan from this team had traveled to the third round waves while Kayan Abdulla Areef battled in the quarter finals. These performances tallied a total of 950 points, drawing with Sri Lanka who had clinched ninth place in the rankings.

Maldives this year had secured fourth place in the Men's Open with eighth in the Women's Open.

With this, Maldives ranked first in the South Asian region and secured both men's and women's slots at the Japan 2026 Asian Games set to be held in Aichi Prefecture's capital city, Nagoya.

The traditional 'Maruhabaa (Welcome) Cup' was also held during the tournament this year with Japan winning first place in the competition. India followed closely in second and Chinese Taipei came in third while China had closed the final heat in fourth place.

Maldives had secured fourth place during the semifinal heat. The local team performing at the Maruhaba Cup consisted of Ahmed Agil (Ammadey), Mariyam Rahil Naseem (Aya), Yasin Ali and one of the nation's most accomplished surfers who served as a coach during this Championship, Hussain Areef (Ibu).

While each surfer was given the chance to surf thrice in the team event, Areef had gathered the most points for Maldives in a single wave, scoring 7.33 points during his second surf.