When Bailey Nagy takes to the lineups in Peru, she’ll be doing so with some of the finest coaches the North Shore behind her. Trained by Pancho Sullivan and Myles Padaca, Bailey has benefited tremendously from having two North Shore legends in her corner. While competing at the games in Peru, you can expect Bailey to hold her own against anyone the world has on offer if the surf gets solid.
Sporting a bit of cover on his dome, Honolulu’s Zeke Lau will be deploying to New Zealand with a healthy dose of talent, charisma, and flair. As one of the preeminent members of the HI squad, expect Zeke to be one of the leaders of the team both in and out of the water.
Coming from one of Hawaii’s greatest surfing families, Isaiah Moniz has been steeped in the sport since he was old enough to get on a board. All that time in the water has paid off in spades as he’s the current NSSA Regional Men’s and Explorer champ. Isaiah is one of the most powerful surfers on the team. If conditions at the contest call for power and rail work, expect Isaiah to shine.
With one of surfing’s most fabled pedigrees behind him, Kauai’s Kaimana Jaquias has all of the earmarks of a future great. Remarkably smooth in the water, like his other counterparts, Kaimana has found competitive success on the national level as well, as he’s the current NSSA Open Men’s national champ. If you’re looking to see a smoothas- butter approach to a heat, watch Kaimana don a jersey.
It’s only a matter of time before Kaoli Kahokuloa finds himself thrust into surfing’s center stage. Humble, determined, and extremely talented, Kaoli has all of the earmarks of a future great. In the water, Kaoli seems to be most comfortable when he’s whipping airs. The embodiment of aloha and full of potential, Kaoli will be one of Team Hawaii’s greatest assets both in and out of the water in Peru.
Kauai’s Koa Smith found himself in surfing’s limelight at an early age. With his characteristically quick wit and even quicker backside hack, Koa has been gracing the glossy pages of magazines the world over for years. Recently, Koa’s surfing has matured considerably with the tow headed goofyfoot tapping into an arsenal of power surfing. To boot, Koa proved that his breed of surfing is on par with anyone in the world as he found himself with a very respectable bronze-medal finish at the games last year in New Zealand.
Support: Billabong, VonZipper, Tokoro Surfboards, Dakine
Another Garden Island girl with a big future ahead of her, Brianna Cope has been steadily laying the groundwork to break onto the world scene with a host of solid competitive showings both on the mainland and in her native Hawaii. Look for Brianna to shine the most if Peru offers up some rights with open walls.
Already heralded as one of the most talented young surfers alive today, Maui’s Ian Gentil is quickly becoming the stuff of legends in gromdom. The scary thing is that he’s completely worthy of all the hype. As one of the younger members on the team, look to Ian to cement the already rock-solid reputation of Hawai‘i’s groms when they go overseas.
Age: 37 years old
Kane Daly really came into his own this year and wowed the team coaches enough to earn himself one of the coveted spots on this year’s roster. The goofy-foot with the smooth-as-butter style has been gaining a reputation as a viable threat from many of his junior counterparts in the past 12 months. And trust us, it’s warranted. The kid rips. Hard.
Keanu Asing is no stranger to the podium. Over the course of his junior career, the Ewa Beach native has won nearly every accolade under the sun in Hawaii. On an international level, Keanu made headlines when he won the world junior title in 2009 at the ISA World Junior Games in Ecuador. With one gold medal behind him, you can rest assured Keanu will be gunning for another one.
As one of the North Shore’s next great female surfers, Sunset Beach’s Mahina Maeda is laying all of the tracks necessary to move herself towards a successful career. Having claimed first place in the under 12 girl’s division at Nationals, Mahina has shown that she’s extremely adept in a heat. When the heat horns blow in Peru, we’ll be looking toward Mahina to do some damage.