All the pictures from Woonona's wet but inspirational Ocean Queen Classic

"As a surfer, you surf the conditions, not the waves," organiser Nathan McEwan told the Illawarra Mercury in a packed Woonona Surf Life Saving Club as the event started.

The competition is the region's first all-female invitation surf showdown, with more than 40 female surfers competing across two divisions on Sunday, May 5.

You can see some of the competitors in our gallery below.

Mr McEwan, acknowledging the crucial role of the community, has high hopes the event will become a main attraction for the surfing calendar. He expressed his gratitude for the turnout on Sunday, which exceeded his expectations despite the challenging weather conditions.

"We really hoped to have a crowd, and this crowd, even given the weather, is fantastic.

"If it was a sunny day, we could only imagine the effect it would be having for everybody and the validity that it would be giving us putting this on in the first place."

"This is the first year of many. I want to put Woonona and the northern suburbs of the Illawarra on the map. This will be an annual event. I'm confident of that."

The competition has attracted a wealth of sponsors from across the Illawarra which has enabled it to provide prize money to the competitors. First place in the women's division is $3000, while the winner of the junior division nets a cool $1000.

"This is a great event for our local community getting out there supporting women in surfing, and it's great to see so many people here today, despite the really challenging weather conditions and that's a testament to the work that Nathan has put in over the past six months to get this event up and happening on one of our local beaches here," Cunningham MP Alison Byrnes said as she opened the competition.

Wollongong state MP Paul Scully joked with the crowd and said Ms Byrnes used to surf Woonona Beach, and he was surprised she wasn't taking part in the open event.

The NSW Government gave the event a $10,000 grant to support female participation.

"It's great to see the inaugural women's surfing competition here at Woonona Beach. It's great for female participation in a sport that's always downgraded women's participation, even though we've had some great champions from the region. That's why the New South Wales government is happy to kick in $10,000."

The competition will wrap up at 2.30pm, with the Open Final expected to be held at 2pm. Come back to the Illawarra Mercury for full results and pictures of the winners.