Tamil Nadu surfers dominate inaugural national championships hosted in Andamans

LITTLE ANDAMAN: Tamil Nadu surfers dominated proceedings at the inaugural Little Andaman Pro 2026, the first-ever national surfing and stand-up paddling championship to be held in the Andaman & Nicobar group of Islands, which got under way on Friday at the iconic Butler Bay beach.

Teenage sensation Kishore Kumar (15.00), Sivaraj Babu (15.17), Srikanth D (13.00), and Ramesh Budhial (13.67) were among the standout performers in the surfing men’s open category, showcasing impressive skill and control on the waves. In the surfing Women’s Open category, Kamali Moorthy (5.94), Shrishti Selvam (9.50), and Sugar Shanti Banarase (9.63) delivered strong performances to secure their spots in the quarterfinals scheduled for Saturday.

In the surfing, men’s open category, a total of 38 surfers competed across 10 heats in Round 1. Out of these, 20 surfers advanced directly to Round 3 by finishing in the top two positions in their respective heats, while the remaining 18 surfers competed in the repechage (Round 2) on Day 2.
In the surfing women’s open category, additional surfers who advanced to the quarterfinals include Devi Ramanathan (2.93), Sandhya Arun (2.80), Nitisha Sethia (3.46), Riva Aurora (4.16), and Arti S (3.24).

The day also witnessed action in Stand-Up Paddling (SUP), where 16 stand-up paddlers competed, and the top 4 advanced to the semi-finals, which are scheduled for the last day. Sekar Patchai clocked the fastest time of 1:04.70 in the 200m regatta, followed closely by Dinesh Selvamani (1:05.89). The other athletes progressing to the semi-finals include Manikandan M (1:06.30) and Rajesh D (1:06.50).

In the SUP Technical category, two semi-finals were held, with Sekar Patchai once again leading the field, finishing the 2km race with the fastest time of 6:01.15.