Cardiff Met surfers battle tough conditions at BUCS Surfing Championships

Cardiff Met Surf produced a strong showing at the BUCS Surfing Championships, with Archers competing across the men’s and women’s competitions in challenging conditions at Fistral Beach.

Cian Ridgard in action. Photos from Charlie Sharples (@csharp_j) and BUCSsport.

The opening day brought testing surf, with large 5-7ft swells and onshore winds making conditions difficult from the first heats. Ben Kiernan was first in the water for Cardiff Met and secured progression from his opening heat, finishing second behind Cardiff University. Jamie Ware also made an impressive start, winning his first heat after catching one of the larger set waves of the morning.

Cian Ridgard faced a tough opening heat against one of Cardiff University’s strongest surfers, finishing second to progress, while Alex Lavronics and Max Street narrowly missed out on advancing to the second round.

As the wind picked up and conditions worsened, Cardiff Met continued to battle well. Ware won his second heat with a strong score, while Ridgard produced one of the standout moments of the competition, knocking out Cardiff University’s Freddie after finishing his best wave with a layback fin release turn.

Ware continued to put scores on the board in round three but finished third, bringing his competition to a close. Ridgard, however, delivered a dominant third-round performance, doubling the score of the surfer in second place to secure his place on finals day.

His best wave of the competition came on a long right-hander, where he linked three drawn-out cutbacks before attempting a final manoeuvre. Although he was unable to ride out cleanly, the heat win confirmed his progression and set up a tough finals-day draw against three strong competitors, including the 2024/25 BUCS champion.

Conditions improved on day two, with offshore winds and a 4-6ft swell providing a more manageable test. Ridgard put in another determined performance, scoring 7.77, but narrowly missed out on progressing after needing an additional 1.9 points to advance from the heat.

In the women’s championship, Martha Ord and Gaja took on the tough North Fistral conditions. Ord placed second in her opening heat and was just 1.59 points away from taking first place, while Gaja faced a difficult draw against two strong competitors and was unable to progress.

Ord continued to push hard in her second heat, catching eight waves as she looked to improve her score and move into the next round. With scores tightly grouped across the heat, she finished third by a margin of just 0.30.

It was a strong weekend for Cardiff Met Surf, with the team showing real resilience across difficult heats and demanding conditions. Ware finished joint 13th in the men’s competition, while Ridgard capped an excellent BUCS debut by finishing inside the top ten. In the women’s competition, Ord also secured a joint 13th-place finish overall.

Ridgard’s performance was a particular highlight, with his first BUCS surfing competition offering a clear sign of the talent and potential within Cardiff Met Surf.