The crew arrived to Nonzwakazi stadium to a cold and windy morning and very few skaters, but things changed as the day turned into a packed crowd and a beautiful sunny day in De Aar, South Africa.

A few skaters from Kimberley showed up to skate the contest, one being Gerhard Botha, who was on point and determined to finally take home the wildcard entry. During the first jam session, we awarded the skaters money for tricks. De Aar locals Werner Smith and Michiel van der Wadt split R600 for ripping the course and giving it 110%. Other skaters that took some cash include Martin Kotze with a crook on the out ledge, DBH with a the flip off the launch ramp, and William Jenkins with a bs flip off the launch ramp.

De Aar came prepared to witness some incredible skating, and they were by far the most live crowd we've witnessed in a while!

Jam session 1 results: 3rd-Llewellyn Botha (fake 540 big spin off box), 2nd-Martin Kotze (kick flip 50-50 box, bs 5-0 out ledge, kick flip manual), 1st-Gerhard Botha (smith down rail, feeble down rail)

Jam session 2 results: 3rd-Martin Kotze (crook out ledge, 180 nosegrind box), 2nd-DBH (tre flip launch ramp, 50-50 front shuvit out on the box), 1st-Gerhard Botha (50-50 down rail, board slide up rail, nollie lip slide down rail).

Gerhard Botha killed it the whole day and showed the best overall consistency earning him the wildcard entry! Gerhard will skate the Maloof Money Cup AM this September! Congrats, Gerhard!

Over 80 De Aar kids signed up for the skateboard clinics, which were taught by Llewellyn, Warrick, Chinner, Will I Am, and DBH with help from Fundi and Peter Mac, of course. 30 skateboards were handed away to the kids who showed the most potential on board. Thanks to Peter McKuchane and Northern Cape Tourism for providing the skateboards!

Big thanks to our helpers Llewellyn, William, and DBH as well as Warrick along with everyone from Northern Cape Tourism-Fundi, Pieter, Destination, Tebogo, and Peter McKuchane! Big shout out to Old School productions for the t shirts and to Boogaloos for the support!

Dawn in Soweto - Gail Force Winds & and Early Morning Chills greeted us as we arrived at Maponya Mall to set up for the most anticipated stop of the Hope Tour. We knew guns were going to come out blazing as Soweto gives rise to some of the best homegrown skateboarding talent in SA. This is Wandile's hood and he made sure that the local crew would not dissapoint, even Joubert from AV flew up from Cape Town just to cover this special Soweto affair. With SSS and all the crew in the house this was the biggest attendance to date on the Hope Tour.

Thanks to Wandile, Sam and the crew for keeping it real, and the ladies from EMS Jennifer & Polina for taking care of us.

Skaters of the Day! - Anthony De Mendonca - Front Blunt and overall consistency took the "Wildcard" with Ofentse - Nollie Heelflip and Bryce - 360 Flip, the "Big Money Winners" on the day.

Once again - R5k in cash was won & 25 Element completes were handed out to worthy & needy kids, with loads of MMC T's, Dickies & Converse give aways.

"Energy" - great energy, Soweto delivered as we embraced in recognition of another successful & inspiring Hope Tour stop.

Recognition & Respect goes out to - Kumba Iron Ore, Northern Cape Tourism and Boogaloos.

Big Thank You - Converse, Dickies, Monster Energy, Element, VZ, Volcom, Iron Fist, AV Skateboarding.

Look Out For - Soweto TV, Daily Sun & Mail & Guardian papers.

• 10am – 5pm: Open Vert and Mini Mega Practice
• 10am – 11am:South African Am Open Qualifier
  • • Open Jam
    • Designated number of skaters will be chosen to skate in the South African Am
• 11am – 2pm: Open Street Practice
• 2pm – 4:30pm:Street World Championship Qualifiers
  • • Format TBD based on number of skaters
• 4:30 - 4:45pm: Opening Ceremonies on the Vert Ramp
• 5pm – 6pm: Vert World Championship 
  • • 12 skaters
    • 2 Jams
    • 6 skaters per Jam, skate in order
    • 5 runs, best counts
    • 12 walls back-to-back
    • If skater falls prior to 12th wall, run is over
    • All runs are scored even if skater doesn’t make all 12 walls
    • 50% of score, Mini Mega is other 50%
    • Overall time is 58 minutes
• 6:15pm – 8:15pm: Concert – details TBD
• 8:15pm: Fireworks

• Live Webcast 12:45pm – 6:30pm & Live TV from 4:30pm – 6:30pm South African Standard Time
• 10am – 1pm: Open Street Practice
• 12pm – 4:30pm: Mini-Mega Practice
• 1pm – 4pm:Street World Championship Semi-Finals
  • • 36 Skaters
    • 12 Jams
    • 3 skaters per Jam
    • Course split into 2 sections with middle hubba area being part of both sections
    • 3 minute Jams
    • 4 minutes in between each Jam
    • Skaters judged on overall impression
    • Top 12 skaters advance to Finals with 1st through 4th getting a first round bye
    • Overall time is 2 hours and 48 minutes
• 4pm – 4:30pm: Concert – details TBD
• 4:30pm – 6:30pm:Mini Mega Finals and Awards 
  • • 12 Vert Finalists automatically qualify
    • 2 Jams
    • 6 skaters per Jam, skate in order
    • 8 runs, best counts
    • 5 minutes in between each Jam
    • 50% of score, Vert is other 50%
    • Overall time is 58 minutes

• Live Webcast 2:45pm – 4:30pm & Live TV 4:30pm - 6:30pm South African Standard Time
• 10am – 12pm: Open Street Practice
• 12pm – 2pm:South African Am Street
  • • 24 Skaters
    • 6 Jams
    • 4 skaters per Jam
    • Course split into 2 sections with middle hubba area being part of both sections
    • 4 minute Jams
    • 4 minutes in between each Jam
    • Skaters judged on overall impression
    • Overall time is 1 hour and 46 minutes
    • Prizes for top 3
• 3pm - 4pm:Mini Mega Gap Best Trick 
  • • Invite only
    • 20 minute Jam
    • Not judged in conjunction with Mini Mega and Vert
• 3pm – 4:30pm: Street World Championship Practice
• 4:30pm – 6:30pm:Street World Championship Finals and Awards 
  • • 12 Skaters in head to head Jams using the entire course
    • 4 minute Jams
    • 3 minutes in between each Jam
    • Final Jam is 4 minutes with 6 minute rest before
    • Skaters judged on overall impression
    • Overall time is 1 hour and 20 minutes
    • 

Click Here For Full Article
Zandisile Luphahla

Local skateboarding enthusiasts will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be coached by the world’s top vert skateboarder in the run-up to the 2012 Maloof Money Cup world skateboarding championships.

Pierre Luc Gagnon, who was crowned as vert world champion after an amazing skateboarding display at last year’s contest in Kimberley, will be conducting two vert half-pipe clinics at the Maloof Skate Plaza in Kimberley on September 24 and 25. He will also be defending his title during the Maloof Money Cup at the same venue from September 28-30.

According to the CEO of Maloof Skateboarding, Tim McFerran, the clinic will be offered free of charge, “but will be limited to the first 40 entrants to sign up via the website on maloofmoneycup.com. Twenty entrants will be accommodated for each of the one-day clinics,” he said.

McFerran said clinic attendants will not only receive personal attention from the champion, but “loads of cool prizes are up for grabs as well”.

“This is an unbelievable opportunity for young skateboarders to receive personal training from the best vert skateboarder in the world. This is what the Maloof championship is all about – paying it forward, exposing South African youth to the incredible sport of skateboarding.

“Getting world-class skateboarders to actively assist in helping these youngsters will be a huge boost for the sport. It’s like getting training tips from an Olympic gold medal winner,” said McFerran.

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MEDIA RELEASE AUGUST 2012
SKATEBOARDING TRANSFORMS LIVES
The Skateboarding for Hope community outreach initiative is literally transforming the lives of the youth of South Africa as it traverses the country to introduce the sport of skateboarding to local youngsters.

The road show is a joint campaign between American-based Maloof Skateboarding and the Northern Cape Provincial Government, which has been running for the past two years, and culminates at the Maloof Money Cup World Skateboarding Championships in Kimberley in September. As a government collective, the province has set their target on promoting skateboarding as an affordable, accessible lifestyle alternative and has been using the road show as a platform for skateboarding demonstrations, competitions and life skills development.

The Maloof contest is considered to be the premier showcase for professional and amateur skateboarding in the world and was hosted in the Northern Cape for the first time in 2011. The enthusiastic response to the first competition has led to the extension of the hosting contract until 2015. The Skateboarding for Hope road show helps to take a yearly event and expand it to a year-long event to reach so many more kids throughout the country.

After the huge success of the first competition at the amazing skate plaza in Kimberley, the youth of the Northern Cape has embraced skateboarding as a sport with hundreds of skateboarding enthusiasts practising their skateboarding skills on a weekly basis under the watchful eye of the skate park director and top local riders. The skate plaza has become a popular hang out amongst the youth with regular clinics, demonstrations and best trick competitions and skateboarding fans travelling from all over the country to experience the plaza.

Due to the commitment from the provincial government, skateboarding has already been encoded as a school sport within the province and four community skate parks are currently being developed within the four regions of the province. According to MEC John Block of the Department of Tourism Development and Economic Affairs has definitely been a change agent within the Northern Cape. “Our youth faces tremendous socio-economic challenges and skateboarding is helping to create an amazing youth subculture, which transcends cultural and historical borders. Traveling through the province visiting different venues with the Skateboarding for Hope tour has shown how skateboarding is connecting our youth and building communities,” mentions Block.

The Kimberley Skate Plaza has quickly grown in reputation and experts reckon that the level of talent showcased by local youngsters is of an extremely high standard and could catapult them to the professional skateboarding arena within a couple of years.

According to Tim McFerran of Maloof Skateboarding, skateboarding has grabbed the imagination of South African youth in a spectacular fashion. “Following the inaugural Maloof championships last year, we have witnessed a surge of incredibly talented young skateboarders. It has been impressive to see how much they improve between each of my visits to Kimberley. There is a young boy called Damian Bramley, who started skating after last year’s event, and with less than a year’s training has the potential to become one of the best vert skaters,” explains McFerran.

14-year old Theo Setsetsefrom Botswana is another skateboarding success story and actually moved to boarding school in Kimberley after attending last year’s Maloof Money Cup in order to skate the plaza. Expert skateboarders reckon that he is exhibiting some of the most incredible board control and skills for someone his age. “Skateboarding is very competitive in Kimberley, but I love skating here. The skate park is a great starting point as it keeps the kids off the streets. Skating is a hobby that keeps you from everything bad,” says Theo, who has already won two skating competitions at the plaza during the past few months. “I want to keep progressing with my skating and hope to be able to skate in the Maloof Money Cup one day.”

During the run-up to the 2012 Maloof Money Cup, which will take place in Kimberley from 28 – 30 September, the Skateboarding for Hope tour will stop in De Aar, Soweto, Port Elizabeth, Johannesburg, Springbok and Cape Town.
For more information, visit www.experiencenortherncape.com or www.maloofmoneycup.com.

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ENDS
Issued by PERIDOT COMMUNICATIONS
On behalf of MALOOF MONEY CUP SOUTH AFRICA

For media enquiries, please contact Ronelda Visser on 0832733984.

Announcing the 2012 South Africa Design a Deck winning design:

Laura Sawers of Johannesburg, South Africa

For the first time on the big screen, you and your friends can get the feel of what it is like to see the world’s best skateboarding as real as it gets in your local theatre. If you can’t get to Kimberly south Africa then you can still see the world’s greatest skateboarding event, the Maloof Money Cup World Championship coming to you on the big screen in every major city in the US.  Come and  be part of the biggest showing of skateboarding and the first time it’s been shown in theatres.  Look for special promotion from CCS when you attend.

October 2, 2012 at 7 PM

Be sure to enter your information below so we can notify you when the tickets go on sale

Wow!, Nelspruit was amazing, these guys were so down for the event and 1000% committed. what a pleasure being in a beautiful town with an awesome crew. The perfect day at Riverside Mall.

Overall winners - R5k in Cash

Young Guns ( Picture 21 below with - Eugene Cambell far left, then Dylan Whitehair next to him, then myself - Gavin Powell with Marinus Hassink on my right, holding out cash with his left hand)

1st - Marinus Hassink - Nose Grab
2nd - Eugene Campbell - Kick flip
3rd - Dylan Whitehair - Kick flip

Old School Rippers ( Picture 22 below with JJ holding the Wilcard, on his left - Duane Bodenstein and on immediate right myself - Gavin Powell, then - Simon De Goede with - Wandile Nsomi next to him and Thabo Nage Kneeling in the front. ) Wandile & Thabo ran the Best Trick Jamm Sessions.

1st - Simon De Goede - Boardslide Fakie
2nd - JJ Bezuidenhout - Indie Grab
3rd - Duane Bodenstein - Foot Plant

Wilcard Card Entry - Am Division - Maloof Money Cup - went to JJ Bezuidenhout for overall consistency on the day. About 30 participants on the day.

Element Complete skateboards handed out to Needy skaters in Nespruit.


We would like to give a "Big" shout out to Gareth and his team at "G Skate" for all the help in setting up and breaking down, your crew rocks man!. and huge thanks go out to Andre & Glenda - De Goede family for the "Milkshakes" and awesome braai and hospitality after the event on Saturday - Amazing people - Thank You.

What a Day! - Maloof Money Cup, Northern Cape Province & Boogaloos - Hope Tour Nelspruit - Keeping it Real & Giving Back Big Time!

To all the Hope Tour supporting Brands - Element, VZ, Converse, Dickies, Monster Energy, Iron Fist, Volcom, AV Skateboarding - You are "Making a Difference" - Thank You!!

- Gavin Powell

Want to travel with your mates to Kimberley and represent your city this September during the Maloof Money Cup and win some cash? Here's your chance! The Maloof All-City contest is a head-to-head elimination format contest in which 10 teams of 4 skaters from all over South Africa skate against each other on different obstacles and sections of the course for a chance at cash prizes and the Maloof All-City Championship Title! Scroll down for guidelines and rules for submissions!

Rules and Guidelines for Submisions:

Teams of 4 skaters will submit their footage online. If there are more than 10 teams, the public will vote on the 10 best videos. Submissions must be no longer than 2 minutes, and must feature at least 2 clips from each skater on the team. Each submission must also provide names and face shots of all 4 skaters on the team. Footage may be from anywhere: skatepark or in the streets. Anyone may enter: Pros, ams, unsponsored. However, skaters must be residents of South Africa.

Eash of the ten teams that have been selected to participate in the all cities contest will be provided with R1000 just for showing up (to cover travel costs, etc).

Skaters are competing for:

1st R8000
2nd R4000
3rd R2000

Format:

Each skater on each team will compete in a head to head format on each of the following sections/obstacles.

Section 1: Tech section- Everything to the right of the big 4 stair (marble manual pad, 3 stair with downward manual pad & 3 stair hubbas, bank to ledge)
Section 2: Marble Ledges
Section 3: Everything to the left of the big 4 stair (quarterpipe, rock gap/rail, 5 stair, rail, and hubba)
Section 4: Big section: big 4 stair and the gap to rail & 5 stair on each side of the big 4

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Sign Up Here!

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MEDIA RELEASE AUGUST 2012

Local skateboarding enthusiasts will have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get first-hand coaching from the top vert skateboarder in the world in the run-up to the 2012 Maloof Money Cup world skateboarding championships. Pierre Luc Gagnon, also known as PLG, was crowned as vert world champion after an amazing skateboarding display at last year’s contest in Kimberley and will be back to defend his title this year from 28 – 30 September.

PLG has not only dominated the vert contests of the world’s greatest skateboarding event, the Maloof Money Cup, each year, but has also won numerous other contests like X Games and the Dew Tour. He is considered to be the most prolific winner in vert skateboarding history. PLG will be conducting two vert half-pipe clinics at the amazing Maloof Skate Plaza in Kimberley on 24 and 25 September for anyone keen to get some insider info on the challenges of vert skateboarding.

The youth clinic will be offered free of charge, but will be limited to the first forty entrants to sign up via the website on www.maloofmoneycup.com. Twenty entrants will be accommodated for each of the 1-day clinics. Successful participants will receive confirmation and will have to be on site from 16h00 – 18h00 daily. Clinic attendants will not only receive personal attention from the world champion, but loads of cool prizes are up for grabs as well.

“This is an unbelievable opportunity for young skateboarders to receive personal training from the best vert skateboarder in the world. This is what the Maloof championship is all about – paying it forward, exposing South African youth to the incredible sport of skateboarding and allowing them to hone their skills. By getting world-class skateboarders to actively assist in helping these youngsters will definitely be a huge boost for the sport in the Northern Cape and the rest of the country. It’s like getting training tips from an Olympic gold medal winner,” mentions Tim McFerran of Maloof Skateboarding.

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ENDS
Issued by PERIDOT COMMUNICATIONS
On behalf of MALOOF SKATEBOARDING
For media enquiries, please contact Ronelda Visser on 0832733984.

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