YOUNGSTER OUT TO MAKE WAVES
The 14-year-old surfing prodigy took up the sport when he was nine and his talent didn’t go unnoticed.
After returning to action with a rare opportunity at Sun City last week, teenage surfing prodigy Ntokozo “Surprise” Maphumulo is eager to make a competitive comeback soon, as he continues to make steady improvements in a challenging sport which requires patience, practice and a barrel full of skill.
Less than five years after he started surfing, Maphumulo got a chance to ride the waves inland for the first time at Sun City last week, following a refurbishment of the Valley of Waves facility.
“I had a fun weekend in the water. It was one of my best trips of the year...and I was really grateful for the opportunity,” Maphumulo said.
Though it was a unique inland experience, however, the 14-year-old Durbanite is not new to the sport of surfing.
In his youth, his friend’s father, Jason Ribbink at Bilt Surfboards, spotted his talent and he helped launch the youngster’s career.
“He grew up hanging around the shop, and when I saw his skateboarding skills, I realised he would be a good surfer,” Ribbink said.
After learning to swim, Maphumulo took up “Nippers” surf lifesaving at the age of nine, and within a few years he was showcasing his talent in top-flight age group surfing competitions, winning the U-12 Billabong national series.
A member of the SA Surfing Legends High Performance Academy, he has since expanded his abilities under coach Chad du Toit.
“It was really exciting to watch him practice new manoeuvres,” Du Toit said
after joining his charge in the water at Sun City.
“His strengths were really key and it was nice to work on his weaknesses and see improvement.
“He is small in stature, but he has a big heart, and his future is super bright.”
Living across the road from the beach, Maphumulo can be found in the water nearly ever morning and every evening.
In fact, if he’s not in school, the grade eight Durban High School pupil is likely to be found on a surfboard.
He hopes his commitment and hard work will one day carry him to a place in the prestigious Championship Tour campaign in the World Surf League series.
In a sport which requires many years of hard work to master, however, the promising teenager admits he has a long
way to go to reach the level he believes he is capable of achieving.
And while competitive surfing remains sidelined by lockdown regulations, he hopes to be in action again by the end of the year, as he looks to get his fledgling career back on track.
“I only started around four years ago, and it’s still hard, but I have been training with some of the world’s best, so I’m looking forward to a lot more events.”