Aleksy's back in Essex - this is what he left behind (From Echo)

Aleksy's back in Essex - this is what he left behind

2:50pm Thursday 9th February 2012 in Other Sport

CANVEY'S windsurfing star Aleksy Gayda is back from his extended training break in South Africa.

The British Wavesailing Association Wave Tour amateur winner spent several months on the beaches of South Africa – trying to perfect the moves which he hopes will take him to victorywhen the British season begins.

The 18-year-old former Appleton School pupil – who has been used to weeks of warm waters and keeping an eye open for sharks – got back to the UK just a few days ago.

“I have just got home and it’s freezing!” he said.

“Cape Town was super good. As well as all the windsurfing I climbed Table Mountain up the expert climbers route, which was really hard. But it was amazing when I got up there.

“On the water I managed to land a manoeuvre called a ‘push loop’. I was really pleased to have pulled this off.”

Gayda trained in South Africa longside British pro sailor Andy Chambers, the Netherlands’ main professional windsurfers association tour competitor Youp Schmidt and Southampton-based John Skye who is a former Freestyle European Champion.

But now the youngster is back down to earth with a bump.

He’s jobhunting and looking to try to secure sponsors to help fund his assault on the domestic wavesailing season.

>Gayda won last season’s British tour which included rounds at Gwithian beach near Hayle in Cornwall, in Wales and on thr Scottish island of Tiree.

There is an outside chance he could also get a ‘wild card’ entry onto the full World Tour series at its Tenerife event in August.