Sixteen-year-old Noa Ginella beat out favorites Charlie MacArthur and Dan Gavare in a stunning upset this past weekend at the ' First Ascent SUP Surf Sprint, reports. The virtually unknown North Shore native had never paddled whitewater before, or even visited Colorado. Despite authorities' high-flow warning, first-timer Ginella beat out second place Gavere by a full 16 seconds.聽
Tom Bradley, co-founder of C4 Waterman, the presenting sponsor of the Games' SUP events, was one of the few people not surprised by the upset. “Noa's an amazing athlete. Anytime we've put him in a competitive situation, he excels,” Bradley said.
–Shauna Sweeney