Nicaragua hosts the ISA World Masters Surfing Championship

Aug. 7, 2012 - PRLog -- Nicaragua recently hosted the ISA World Masters Surfing Championship, which brought together some of the world’s best surfers from 26 countries that participated in this international competition.

According to former world champion Sunny Garcia, who has competed on the best waves in the world, the championship in Nicaragua is “a breath of fresh air.”

“The country is beautiful, the water is warm, the waves are good, the people are nice, the food is good—you can’t ask for a better place to come,” commented the six-time winner of the Triple Crown of Surfing.

Garcia has surfed extensively in Costa Rica over the years, but after one day surfing at Playa Colorado, he says so far, he likes Nicaragua better. “I would recommend people come down here; the waves are fun and they’re not big or dangerous,” Garcia says. “It’s really easy to surf here. There are lots of beach breaks and there have been a lot of really good waves since I’ve been here.”

Event organizers from the International Surfing Association (ISA) are equally impressed with Nicaragua, stating that the first day of the event was excellent due to its organization.

ISA Contest Director Marcos Bukao, of Brazil, mentioned that in this competition “everything was done very, very well”. In addition to the excellent preparation and initial execution of the week-long tournament, the surfing conditions were also good. The ISA official highlighted Nicaragua’s privilege to have great year-round conditions, a consistent offshore wind and a sandy ocean floor.

“This is all very important for tourism because the great majority of surfers are not professionals,” Bukao says. “Most surfers who come here are tourists who like sun, a sandy beach and safe surfing conditions—and this is what you have here. It’s a friendly beach, it’s not aggressive.”

The international media coverage of the championship tournament will do more to showcase Nicaragua’s natural beauty and excellent surfing than any event in the past, Bukao promises. And due to the international nature of the event, the surfing tournament will attract surfers from all over the world.

“Lots of people from around the world are going to be tuning in this week and what are they going to see? A hot, beautiful, peaceful, safe and friendly country with good waves,” stated Bukao. “Most certainly many of these people are going to make Nicaragua part of their vacation plans.”

Bukao also mentioned that in his opinion “the history of surfing in Nicaragua will be divided into two moments: a before and after the world surf championship”. “I saw this happen in Ecuador years ago and Panama more recently…In a few years, Nicaragua will be an international destination for surfing and surf-tourism will become an important part of the country’s income”, he stated.

Based on information from The Nicaragua Dispatch.