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46| Shaun Joubert Birthday: May 2, 1991 Hometown:Mossel Bay, South Africa In the recent SURFER interview, Hot 100 leader Jordy Smith claimed of South Africa’s talent, “You haven’t seen anything yet.” When he did so, he was referring to the kids coming up behind him, and if you were to pinpoint one, it would be Shaun Joubert. Back at home Joubert is already being dubbed “the next Jordy.” His straight-up, explosive attack is evidence of a talent that’s soon to bubble over beyond South African borders. Moniker or not, Joubert’s prowess will come to prove that there’s much more to Africa’s recent resurgence than one or two hot surfers—there’s an entire generation making a move. 47| Joan Duru Birthday: June 26, 1988 Hometown: Ondres, France Ignited by the spark of Mikey Picon and now Jeremy Flores, Joan Duru is the heir apparent to the Hossegor legacy. The 2006 European Junior champion, Duru is an example of how French surfers are starting to progress towards possible future WCT contenders. Raised surfing some of the finest beachbreaks in the world, Duru has proven his salt against other top juniors, taking down both Matt Wilkinson and Pablo Paulino at the Rip Curl Pro Junior in Hossegor last August. Europeans have traditionally struggled on the world’s stage, but in the hyper-competitive world of today’s junior circut, Duru stands to prove that’s no longer an issue. |
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