Kingscliff surfer Codie Klein is making waves on the surfing circuit after recovering from major knee surgery, boosting her ranking to 37th during the European ASP World Qualifier Tour.
Off the back of her Australia University Surfing Championship title win in Newcastle in late July, the Bond University student spent the rest of the season focusing on re-building her ranking in America and Europe in preparation for the next round of competitions early next year.
"For me, the focus in Europe was to build my ranking back up ready for next year," Klein said.
"As for the injury, I didn't put too much pressure on myself. It's never going to be 100% again, but I felt close to 100% and surfing is such an unpredictable sport. A lot of it is luck."
Klein tied equal 13th in the Spain round of the competition which saw her ranking climb to the top 40, enough to put her in a good position for the 2015 qualifiers.
"I'm really excited about the upcoming Australian Open in Manly in February," she said.
"It's the hardest competition as it's the first one of the year before competitors drop off and secure spots on another tour so everybody is vying for a place, but it's a cool vibe," she said.
After short break in Italy to mark the end of the European tour in August, Klein has returned to her intensive strength and conditioning training at the Surfing Australia High Performance Centre, where her scholarship continues for the third year.
Klein has also resumed her studies at Bond University on the Gold Coast where she is currently studying three subjects full time towards a Bachelor of Commerce degree.
Klein said the benefit of studying at Bond University was that she could accelerate her degree, while studying part time.
"As the university works on a three semester a year program, I'm still able to graduate within the same time frame as my friends who are studying full time at other universities," said Klein.
Bond University is also supporting Codie's surfing career through the Bond Elite Sports Program, which allows her the flexibility she needs to balance her studies and surfing goals.
"The Bond Elite Sports Program is great. If I miss an exam or a class because I'm away, I have a dedicated Bond staff member who arranges alternatives, allowing me to continue working towards my degree while also pursuing my surfing goals," she said.
"This year I've been really lucky as most of the events have fallen in exam time so I've been able to finish the exam before going away, giving me the chance to focus 100% on the competition."
ENDS