Emilia Whitehouse is a young British wakesurfer with big ambitions. She has recently been interviewed for the sports pages at her local paper, the Leicester Mercury, which has kindly allowed us to reproduce the article……

MAKING WAVES TO RAISE SPORT'S PROFILE IN THE UK

A teenager is making waves and aiming for the top in the new sport of wakesurfing. Melton Vale College student Emilia Whitehouse finished first this summer at the Malibu Boats UK Wakesurf Nationals and also won the women’s surf category with an impressive score of 37.58.

Wakesurfing is where you hold on to a rope attached to a boat and then release it to free surf the waves created by the boat. It is a hugely popular sport in the United States but does not get much coverage in the UK. That is something A-level student Emilia, 16, is passionate about changing.

“I want to increase the popularity in wakesurfing in the UK so, in the future, it’s as popular as it is in the US,” she said.

With the sport not fitting the criteria to be accepted by the exam boards in the UK, Emilia has had to alter what she studied for GCSE PE and her A-levels at Melton Vale College (MV16).

That is why she is planning on going overseas after her studies for more opportunities.

She said: “My aim for the future after finishing at MV16 is to study in America, as wakesurfing is bigger out there and hopefully I can continue training while I study.

“I would also like wakesurfing to be my full-time job so that means I would have to get sponsors and maybe even teach wakesurfing. But my main goal is to go to the Worlds and compete and get a world title.”

Having started to learn and fall in love with wakesurfing as a child, encouraged and helped by her parents, Emilia’s passion and self-motivation is pushing her to reach her goals recreationally and academically.

Training in America, Spain and throughout the season at home, this passion is mostly self-funded, apart from a vital link-up with Malibu Boats UK – and all alongside studying for her A-levels.

Emilia’s parents, Richard and Siobhan, of Great Dalby, near Melton, said: “We have supported her ambitions and love of the water from an early age. We have encouraged her to link her love of sports with educational subjects throughout her studies, which will hopefully allow her to follow her desire to be forever involved in recreation in her leisure and working life.”

Natasha Roberts, assistant head of college at Melton Vale, said: “We are excited to watch Emilia’s progress as a wakesurfer and impressed by her desire to raise the profile of the sport.

“She is a true inspiration to her peers, balancing her studies with her training and we will do all be can to support her desire to study in the US through our careers programme at MV.”

Article copyright: Leicester Mercury (published 30 November 2022)
Photos: Mark Osmond