The 2021 South Island Surf Rescue Championships (Saturday 27th March) and the Otago Surf Rescue Championships (Saturday 7th March) took place recently and Columba was represented well by both present and past students.

What a fantastic day of racing at Waikouaiti Beach over the weekend for the 2021 BP Surf Rescue South Island Championships.  

Congratulations to current Columba students Madi Loudon (Year 13), Olivia Pearce (Year 13), Amelia Loudon (Year 10), and past Columba student Emily Peacock, who all competed in the Otago Champs and South Island Surf Rescue (IRB) Championships with great success! Congratulations also to the St Kilda Surf Life Saving Club (Dunedin) on taking out the coveted prize of top overall club. Madi, Amelia, and Emily are all members of the St. Kilda Club. 

IRB events involve a series of races in which a crew member (Madi) and a driver (Emily) drag the boat off the beach, race out to pick up a patient (Amelia) and race back. There are a number of different races during the championships that include tube rescues, IRB assembly and patient rescues, and team events where two teams combine to race out and back rescuing two patients in the water. What an exciting sport to be involved in, with the extremely important bonus of learning and perfecting life-saving techniques at the same time!  

Across the Otago and South Island Championships, Madi and Emily ended up winning an impressive 5 gold medals (winning all their races). Competing for her St. Clair Club, Olivia Pearce placed third in her event. Amelia won gold in tube rescue at the South Island Champs and won a silver and gold at the Otago Championships. What an extraordinary achievement by all girls. Well done!