Tough conditions have not stopped Mount Maunganui surfer Elin Tawharu from progressing through to the third round of the Vissla ISA World Junior Championship in the Azores Islands.

A 1.5m swell combined with strong onshore winds offered limited scoring opportunities for the best junior surfers in the world.

Mt Maunganui surfer Raiha Ensor competing in the Azores Islands. Photo: ISA / Rezendes.

However, Elin Tawharu, competing in the Under 16 Girls Division for the third year in a row, managed to edge out her opponents from France and South Africa to advance to the final 32 surfers in second place.

Also competing from the Bay are Kehu Butler (Mt Maunganui) and Jared Gebert (Ohope), both in the Under 16 Boys Division, along with Raiha Ensor (Mt Maunganui) and Kea Smith (Mt Maungaui), competing in the Under 18 Girls and Under 16 Girls Divisions, respectively.

Along with four other surfers, the Bay locals make up the nine-strong New Zealand Junior Surfing Team, which is competing among 39 nations and over 370 surfers at this year's event, the biggest in the history of the International Surfing Association. The event runs from the 17th – 25th September.

The World Junior Surfing Championships is an annual event having been held since 2003. New Zealand has competed at the event since its inception as well as competing at the World Grommet Titles as it was formerly known since 1989.