Wakeboarder off to world champs

Sophie Gallon, 12, is heading to Mexico later this year to compete on the world stage. Photo / Ben Fraser

Rigorous training and pushing through mental barriers has seen one Rotorua girl qualify to compete on the world stage for wakeboarding.

John Paul College Year 8 student Sophie Gallon, 12, will compete at the wakeboarding world championships in Mexico in November.

She qualified after placing at the top of the leaderboard for the junior girls category at the national competition on Lake Karapiro last month.

Sophie said prior to the nationals she wasn't taking anything for granted.

"There was a lot of preparation leading up to the nationals over Easter weekend, we were out on the water every day - wind, rain or shine.

"I've won the national competition three times now and, this year, I really wanted to push myself to do tricks I hadn't done before."

Sophie said not being able to move past mental barriers was what stopped her getting the top spot in 2014.

"Last year, I had a mental block where I didn't feel safe pushing myself to do the more difficult tricks and I think that's why I didn't win last year.

"This year, I was ready to do a whole lot more and felt much more confident going into the competition."

Coming from a family of wakeboarders, Sophie said she couldn't imagine wanting to do anything else.

"I've been doing wakeboarding competitively since I was 8 but it does feel a bit weird knowing I've qualified to go to the world championships. This will be my first time at worlds and it doesn't seem real to me yet."

Father Terry Robinson said John Paul College had been "really supportive throughout this experience.

"The school has been really great with allowing Sophie to pursue her ambitions with wakeboarding.

"Our next step is just more training and more improving before the big championships. Sophie's coach is Kurt Robertson who bases himself in Florida for half the year so we're planning to go over there for three weeks in July for her training."

Mr Robinson said they were looking for people to sponsor Sophie's journey to Mexico.

"Our plan is to take Rotorua to Mexico and promote it as the amazing wakeboarding and water sports city that it is and it would be really great if we could get some sponsors on board to help us do that."