The 2016 ISA World Championship is still a good 8-10 months away, however some of the medals may have already been decided. That’s because Australia, the winningest nation in ISA history, just changed the dates of its National Titles selection event to a weekend where virtually all its best paddlers will be overseas.

Read all about it here NOT GOOD:-
www.supracer.com/2015-aussie-titles-isa-worlds-big-problem/

its a shame dates can't be worked out that allows Aussies best paddlers to compete.

That would be like surf life saving Australia holding the Aussies on a weekend that 10 of the country's best men and women ironmen are overseas for other comitmitnets..
It simply wouldn't ever come to that would it..

Maybee the solution is to have multiple races throughout the year to decide overall champions , posssibly one race in each state.And just dont have state or aus titles on one day.Six or seven races with your top 3 counting to overall placings or something similar.i can understand scheduling would be a nightmare trying to fit in with overseas races.Afterall you can please some of the people some of the time , but not all the people all of the time

Maybe being a little naive here (as I pull the flame suit on) but is it compulsory to go to California?

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teatrea said..
Maybee the solution is to have multiple races throughout the year to decide overall champions , posssibly one race in each state.And just dont have state or aus titles on one day.Six or seven races with your top 3 counting to overall placings or something similar.i can understand scheduling would be a nightmare trying to fit in with overseas races.Afterall you can please some of the people some of the time , but not all the people all of the time

Sounds like a really good suggestion. Do this for both surfing and racing but with separate events in the best conditions and locations for each discipline. If someone is off overseas chasing glory at a big event and misses their local event, they have 5 more chances in other states that they can pick from.

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PTWoody said...

teatrea said..
Maybee the solution is to have multiple races throughout the year to decide overall champions , posssibly one race in each state.And just dont have state or aus titles on one day.Six or seven races with your top 3 counting to overall placings or something similar.i can understand scheduling would be a nightmare trying to fit in with overseas races.Afterall you can please some of the people some of the time , but not all the people all of the time

Sounds like a really good suggestion. Do this for both surfing and racing but with separate events in the best conditions and locations for each discipline. If someone is off overseas chasing glory at a big event and misses their local event, they have 5 more chances in other states that they can pick from.

Yeah thats what i was thinking , surely wouldnt be hard for each state to organize one event and coordinate with other state bodies.

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teatrea said..
Maybee the solution is to have multiple races throughout the year to decide overall champions , posssibly one race in each state.And just dont have state or aus titles on one day.Six or seven races with your top 3 counting to overall placings or something similar.i can understand scheduling would be a nightmare trying to fit in with overseas races.Afterall you can please some of the people some of the time , but not all the people all of the time

It is a good idea. We're experimenting with this model at the local level in VIC, with a series of events across the disciplines that collectively will inform Vic team selection for Nationals. Takes a little bit of work and thought but it's not rocket surgery.

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HumanCartoon said..
Maybe being a little naive here (as I pull the flame suit on) but is it compulsory to go to California?

I would think all of the names listed above by supracer. At the top of their career goals list would be to win the battle of the battle. yeah its changed names this year but we all know its still going to be the biggest most competitive race in the world for many years to come and will always be known as "The BOP".

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AndyR said..

At the top of their career goals list would be to win the battle of the battle.

yep.

there it is.

HAHAHAHA I'll pay that... well played

For those guys and girls at the top of their game the choice is
1) Compare and compete against the best in the world where the SUP worlds media is focused meaning sponsorship exposure and possible $$$
or
2) Compare and compete against the best in your country with the potential to compete for your country at ISA

Just save yourself a lot of bother and use SUPRacer rankings plus a committee to select your racers, where they can consider, in particular, the results of international races, especially those in a similar format to the races at the ISAs (eg. the new BOP).

You already know who are the fastest, most consistent, people. Is there really anyone out there who doubts for instance that on current form that Travis Grant should be on your team? If no-one disagrees, then why are you sweating it?

Then at least all you have to worry about is the surfing side and trad paddleboard.

I'd suspect that selection by committee based on recent results might be a more reliable method of choosing a team than selection from just one or two races, especially where many top people maybe can't attend.

It's an easy choice for those proud to represent their country and apparently just as easy a choice if you're a mercenary.

Being a world champion helps with the fundraising - trust me...

History doesn't record who chose not to turn up to a qualifying event.

Moving on...

I don't think it's fair to regard the ISA event as vested in patriotic pride, and the PPG event as mercenary - it's not as black and white as that. Would there even be a debate if PPG was still called Battle of the Paddle? PPG is potentially the top event on the calendar. The ISA event is kind of lame. It's not a valid comparison.