Costa Rica Surfing – Leilani McGonagle, Costa Rican surfer, age 17, takes home the silver medal at the U-18 World Surfing Junior Championship 2017 in Hyuga, Japan.
She was headed for gold, but in the last seven of the 25 minutes of competition she was surpassed by Brisa Hennessy.
Still, the Tica, native of Pavones, Golfito, scored 14.17 points, a truly remarkable feat. Summer Macedo came in third with 12.53.
In addition to her win, the Tico Tag Team final resulted in a copper win. It’s the second year in a row the team returns home with a medal. The coach of the National Team called it “a well-deserved result.”
This was McGonagle’s sixth time at an International Surfing Association World Championship.
She won three silvers, two bronzes and a copper (fourth place).
Her first prize was in 2014 with a silver in Sub-18 and copper in Sub-16 in Ecuador. Other places she’s traveled to compete include Nicaragua, Portugal and France.
