Strand surfer Adin Masencamp is in the form of his life ahead of the 2022 World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour & Challenger Series.
This comes after the final Qualifying Series event for the 2021-’22 season was completed at Nahoon Reef in East London a couple of weeks ago, where Masencamp was crowned the WSL Africa Men’s Champion. His win saw him seeded at number one for the Africa region going into the Challenger Series.
“It feels so good,” Masencamp quippedjust days after his win. “It was a very special win for a number of reasons, and some personal setbacks over the past year. I lost my main sponsor recently, which really made me switch and turn around to focus on what really matters. I spent time focusing on my goals and worked with my sports physiotherapist and biokineticist, putting in hours in the water – and it all paid off.”
Masencamp branded his victory a “huge reward”, adding he is positive heading into the series as the top-seeded African.
Elaborating on some of his challenges, particularly during the lockdown when he was unable surf, he stressed there were some benefits to switching off and spending time with family, train at home and reassess his goals.
“I brought about a refreshed take on things and, when I took the leap into real life, I was able to move forward and make the transition into competitive mode. After two events I felt like myself again and it put me back on track to take on the world.”
Despite losing his lead sponsor, the 22-year-old is grateful for contributions from smaller businesses, organisations and the local community. “It’s refreshing to know that the sponsors and community believe in me,” he said. “Their support motivates me to be the best I can possibly be.”
Over the past 18 months Masencamp also put videos of his surfing carer together and uploaded it to his YouTube channel. One of them, Ascension, details his journey to the top and goals, and provides an understanding of obstacles he has overcome.
Road To Victory documents his journey through one of the most difficult periods of his professional surfing career, especially mentally, after losing his main sponsor. “This left me questioning my ability and career as a pro surfer. Thankfully, with the help of a sports psychologist and a great team around me, I picked myself up and put systems in place to achieve my goals,” he shared.
“I had set out to win the WSL Ballito Pro. Achieving this goal showed with hard work and focusing one’s energy into a specific goal, one can achieve anything.”
He reaffirmed that winning the competition at the end of last year as the highlight of his career. “It was special to go up against the world-renowned Jordy Smith and win – that made the victory so much sweeter.”
Looking ahead at the upcoming WSL Championship Tour in Australia from Saturday 7 to Sunday 15 May, Masencamp is training hard, driven to succeed and focused on his goals. “I’m going to be doing all the right things to be completely ready for that moment and to be on top.”
V To get in touch with Masencamp about sponsorship opportunities, email him on adinmasen@gmail.com or follow @adinmasencamp on Instagram.
