Llywelyn “Sponge” Williams has been crowned ISA World Para Surf Champion for the fourth year in a row.

Sponge retained his title after winning gold in the Men’s Kneel category of the competition held at Oceanside, California on Saturday 7th November.

The event was held in perfect conditions, with clean waves pumping into Oceanside in the 4-6ft range – an optimal stage for competitors to showcase their skills.

Wearing green, Sponge was first out of the blocks in his final; he pulled into a right-hander peeling towards the pier, drew deep bottom turns and went rail-to-rail before riding carefully through the pier to open his account on a 6.0.

In the red rash-vest, Dijackson Santos hit back on a solid left, driving hard off the bottom and smashing the lip, getting his fins free. A triumphant fist was held skyward as the Brazilian emerged through the white water, a manoeuvre that earned an incredible 9.33 from the judges.

Pencampwr y Byd

Sponge composed himself to find another runner — this one longer, steeper, and full of scoring potential. The Abersoch local linked precise carves and smooth rail transitions all the way to the inside, earning a 7.67 to push his combined total to 13.67 – just 0.01 ahead of Dijackson on 13.66.

France’s Maxime Cabanne and Mexico’s Juan Martín Díaz Martínez fought to find rhythm. However, Sponge and Santos turned things into a two-horse race. With eight minutes remaining, the 2024 world champ used priority cleverly to preserve the slenderest of leads and claim a famous victory.

Brenin Cymru

Llywelyn became AASP World Tour Champion for the first time in September before securing top honours at the European Para Surf Championships in October. This latest win caps a stellar year for the Welsh athlete, who extends his dominance over the Men’s Kneel division at world level.

Reacting to the win, Sponge said:

“I was determined to get a fourth gold heading here, and I put in the work. The division has changed a little from last year, so the pressure was on for the finals. To win by .01 with holding priority for 13 minutes was intense, but we got the win for Wales once again.

“I’ve been watching Dijackson right the way through the competition and I knew he could score big. I knew I just needed two good waves and luckily early on I missed all the stanchions and got through the pier to the other side, so I was happy about that.

“I got the second wave and just played the game, using priority. There’s a lot more to it than just catching waves and having fun; we’re here working, we want the gold medal and I did my job.”

Reflecting on his run of world championship wins, Sponge said:

“In 2021, I had an interference call and lost my first position in the final three minutes, so I was just so determined to get my first title in 2022, and now it’s even more work to try to keep it. I worked for ten years for the initial win, and it’s just more work now and competitions are getting tougher, more people are joining the community.

“It’s just great to see the sport grow as we push towards the Paralympics to come in 2032 hopefully, so there’s a lot more work to be done.

“Huge thanks to Sarah [Gibbons] my team manager, and to Ollie (Vaughan Jones) who’s joined us this year. Thank you to all my sponsors: Graham Heath Construction, Gimblet Rock Holiday Park, Domain des Jeanne wine company, and DW Williams and Sons.

“Without the support, we can’t do this and we hope that more people come on board to support these amazing athletes to carry on chasing the dream!”