Louise Lepront has won the World Surf League Qualifying Series Stop No.4 of the 2024/2025 WSL Africa regional season, the SA Open of Surfing, in contestable three-to-four-foot surf and strong offshore wind at Pollok Beach in Gqeberha, the Eastern Cape, on Sunday, March 16, 2025.
Natasha van Greunen finished runner-up in an intense day of competition, which completed multiple rounds in much-improved conditions after Saturday’s gale-force onshore situation, allowing the women to deliver their biggest performances of the event.
There was a flurry of waves exchanged between top seeds Natasha van Greunen and Louise Lepront as soon as the buzzer sounded. Fresh off a spectacular result at the Pro Taghazout Bay QS 3,000 in Morocco, Lepront was definitely carrying this momentum and confidence into her approach at the SA Open of Surfing.
Van Greunen didn’t have the same success she found in Morocco, but she was driven by her experience and fond memories of competing at Pollok Beach to find the good scoring opportunities available.
There was not a lot of downtime in the Final, with both surfers staying active to improve on their scores and catching 10 waves each in the 25 minutes.
Lepront had a slight edge over van Greunen with her first wave, and then improved with a solid back-up score. van Greunen never gave up and earned her two best scores in the latter half of the matchup, but it wasn’t enough and Lepront earned the win.
With this result, Lepront extends her lead atop of the WSL Africa QS rankings, and is on track to qualify for the 2025 Challenger Series.
As part of the City Surf Series, the SA Open of Surfing has become a solid fixture on the WSL Africa QS calendar, running from 15-16 March 2025 at Pollok Beach, Gqeberha. Visit WorldSurfLeague.com for more updates.
Competitors will now travel down the Garden Route to George for the next stop on tour, the Vic Bay Pro QS 1,000, from 22-23 March 2025.
The SA Open of Surfing is supported by Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality, Astron Energy, Accelerate Sport, Surfing South Africa and Red Bull.
The SA Open of Surfing Results on Sunday, 16 March, 2025
SA Open of Surfing QS 1,000 Women’s Final
1. Louise Lepront (RSA) 8.66
2. Natasha van Greunen (RSA) 7.43
Semifinal Results
Heat 1: Natasha van Greunen (RSA) 11.40 Def. Remi Fourie (RSA) 6.40
Heat 2: Louise Lepront (RSA) 12.50 Def. Anastasia Venter (RSA) 6.63
Quarterfinal Results
Heat 1: Remi Fourie (RSA) 8.17 Def. Jessie van Niekerk (RSA) 2.23
Heat 2: Natasha van Greunen (RSA) 7.83 Def. Leah Lepront (RSA) 6.47
Heat 3: Louise Lepront (RSA) 9.83 Def. Lily Heny (RSA) 2.24
Heat 4: Anastasia Venter (RSA) 11.33 Def. Crystal Hulett (RSA) 4.50
The SA Open of Surfing Results on Saturday, 15 March, 2025
SA Open of Surfing QS 1,000 Women’s Round of 10 Results
Heat 1: Remi Fourie (RSA) 9.83 def. Crystal Hulett (RSA) 6.17, Adriel Wolmarans (RSA) 4.86, Jasmine Venter (RSA) 2.67
SA Open of Surfing QS 1,000 Women’s Quarterfinals Matchups
Heat 1: Jessie van Niekerk (RSA) vs Remi Fourie (RSA)
Heat 2: Natasha van Greunen (RSA) vs Leah Lepront (RSA)
Heat 3: Louise Lepront (RSA) vs Lily Heny (RSA)
Heat 4: Anastasia Venter (RSA) vs Crystal Hulett (RSA)
Original Copy: WSL Africa, with editing by gsport
Main Photo Caption: Louise Lepront has won the SA Open of Surfing in three-to-four-foot surf and strong offshore wind at Pollok Beach in Gqeberha, the Eastern Cape, on Sunday, March 16, 2025. All Photos: Kody McGregor/World Surf League
Photo 2 Caption: Lepront adds this win to a fistful of titles earned over the years, and is on track to qualify for the 2025 Challenger Series.
Photo 3 Caption: Runner-Up Natasha van Greunen beat Leah Lepront in the quarterfinals, before defeating Round of 10 qualifier Remi Fourie in the semi’s.
Photo 4 Caption: Runner-Up Natasha van Greunen pictured with SA Open of Surfing 2025 champion, Louise Lepront.
