LUKAS Skinner won a historic silver medal at the 2023 ISA World Junior Surfing Championships in Brazil.

The 15-year-old from Perranporth won every heat on route to the final and surfed an incredible heat, just missing first place by 0.06 after Spaniard Hans Odriozola took to the air and landed a buzzer beater of a 8.10.

The silver medal caps a year in which he won two other major surfing contests – the World Grom Search Finals in Australia and the European Grom Search Final in Morocco.

Skinner, who broke his left foot in August, keeping him out of the water until three weeks before the championships, said he had "mixed emotions" about the result, telling BBC News: "I'm over the moon, but also pretty gutted that I didn't get gold."

A Surfing England spokesperson said: "We can’t overstate what an achievement world championship silver is, Lukas putting himself and English surfing firmly on the world map.

"The team, athletes, and coaches have shown amazing spirit through the championships, with lots of emotion in Brazil and at home as we celebrate a phenomenal performance on so many levels. We are so proud of everyone.

"A huge thank you to @dryrobe who are headline sponsors of Team England Juniors, and to @candmclub @decathlonuk and @thewave."