Durban’s Travis Logie recorded his career best result in an ASP World Title Series event when he placed third in the Billabong Pro Tahiti which was won by reigning and 10-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA) in classic two metre waves at Teahupoo in French Polynesia yesterday (Monday).

Meanwhile fellow South African Jordy Smith retained his ASP No. 2 ranking despite being eliminated by Logie in a re-run Round 3 heat after Smith suffered a dislocated rib in powerful three metre surf on Sunday.

Logie, 32, ranked No. 44 prior to the event and desperate to make the top 32 cut-off before 15 September that would enable him to compete in the World Title race for the last five events of the year, received a late call-up following the withdrawal of Bobby Martinez (USA).

Encouraged by his wife, Logie flew from Europe, where he was competing in the Star and Prime rated events, to Tahiti, arriving without surfboards and riding, and breaking, several of good friend Alan Riou’s boards as he progressed through the event .

Logie’s fairytale run to the semifinals saw him win his Round 1 heat over fourth seed Jeremy Flores (FRA) and Jadson Andre (BRA) to advance directly to Round 3. There he lost in the injury affected heat against Smith which the ASP decided to re-run and Logie, himself suffering from cuts, bruises and a strained AC shoulder joint resulting from a wipe-out during the heat, won through to Round 4.

Victory over Brett Simpson (USA) and Chris Davidson (AUS) in the three-man ‘demo’ round heat saw Logie skip Round 5 and progress directly to the quarterfinals. On the final day of the event he again defeated Simpson to reach the first semifinal of his five year career in ASP Title Race events, before meeting his match against in form Australian Owen Wright.

“It’s been an unbelievable week for me,” Logie said. “I don’t think it has all sunk in yet. I was in Europe, I barely made it here in time, I’ve been on borrowed equipment, I’ve been banged up on the reef, I had a re-surf with my good mate Jordy (Smith) and I’ve also scored the best result of my career. It’s all happened very fast. So yeah, I’m happy with how everything’s worked out, but would have liked to have made that Final.”

Logie is now ranked No. 34 and right on the cusp of re-qualifying for the elite tour when the ASP mid season rotation is implemented after the Quiksilver Pro New York, surfing’s first event to offer US $1 million in prize-money, which runs from 4-15 September. He will be hoping that the carnage suffered by the top 32 surfers in the phenomenal surf in Tahiti will enable him to get an injury-replacement spot in that event and to force his way into the top 32.

Smith entered Tahiti ranked No. 2 and briefly held the No. 1 spot in the 2011 ASP World Title rankings when the then No. 1, Joel Parkinson (AUS), was eliminated from the event in Round 2. However, the controversial re-run of his Round 3 heat against Logie robbed the 23 year-old, who now lives in Cape Town, of the opportunity to extend his rankings lead and he was ultimately overtaken when Slater won the event.

Smith is reportedly in America for diagnosis on his rib injury. Similar injuries can take four to six weeks to recover which would see him miss the next two events in New York and at Trestles in California during September

Slater, ranked No. 6 before Tahiti, benefited from the early elimination of Parkinson, Smith, Taj Burrow (AUS) and Flores to leapfrog them all into the rankings lead thanks to his haul of 10 000 precious points for the victory.

“It’s one of those weird events where you have to scramble through the early rounds,” Slater said. “Every year at this event, there are few of the top guys that lose in the early rounds and you have to scramble if you want a result here. You have to be in tune with the tides, swell direction and everything to make sure you get those waves that get you the score.”
 
Today’s win marked Slater’s 47th elite tour victory (out of 67 Finals appearances).

The Billabong Pro Tahiti experienced what is being called the best surf in the 14 year-history of the event. Pristine two metre waves set the scene for Round 1 before huge and unruly waves provided a stiff test for Round 2.

The French Government then issued a Code Red alert for Saturday, keeping all commercial craft in the harbour, which resulted in some of the biggest waves ever seen at Teahupoo being surfed by specialist tow-in teams who had jetted into the South Pacific island specifically for the occasion.

Sunday saw Rounds 3, 4 and 5 being held in what Slater called “…probably the best I’ve ever surfed it – it’s just so big and perfect.” Windless conditions bright sunshine and incredibly hollow two to three metre (6 – 10 foot) waves provided the world’s best competitive surfers with ideal conditions.

The final day was held in still perfect but slightly smaller 2.0 to 2.5 metre waves that continued to pump all day.

Flores, who became just the third surfer at elite tour level to record a perfect heat of 20 points out of a possible 20 on Sunday morning, collected the coveted Andy Irons Award for most committed performance of the event. This is the inaugural year for the award which honours the late Andy irons (HAW), the three-time ASP World Champion and last year’s Billabong Pro Tahiti Champion.

Every ride from the Billabong Pro Tahiti can be viewed at www.billabongpro.com, along with news, images and results from each day’s action, including the tow-in sessions.

BILLABONG PRO TAHITI FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Kelly Slater (USA) 18.43
2 – Owen Wright (AUS) 17.10
 
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 14.50 def. Josh Kerr (AUS) 10.60
SF 2: Owen Wright (AUS) 19.50 def. Travis Logie (ZAF) 14.40
 
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Josh Kerr (AUS) 11.94 def. Jeremy Flores (FRA) 11.83
QF 2: Kelly Slater (USA) 17.50 def. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 6.17
QF 3: Travis Logie (ZAF) 18.07 def. Brett Simpson (USA) 17.14
QF 4: Owen Wright (AUS) 16.74 def. Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 13.10
 
ASP WORLD TITLE RANKINGS TOP 5 (After Billabong Pro Tahiti)
1. Kelly Slater (USA) 26,950 pts
2. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 26,500 pts
3. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 26,200 pts
4. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 22,750 pts
5. Owen Wright (AUS) 21,900 pts

ENDS

PLEASE NOTE: Broadcast quality and web quality footage of the Billabong Pro Tahiti is available for Media outlets. Contact Life’s a Beach Communications for download details.

Issued on behalf of:

ASP Africa
Contact:            Colin Fitch – Operations Manager
Tel:                   021 534 5738
Email:               colin@aspafrica.com

Compiled & Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Fax:             +27 (0) 86 684 6250
Mobile:         +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

About ASP: The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the recognized world governing body of professional surfing and has been crowning surfing’s undisputed World Champions since 1976. The ASP sanctions and crowns World Champions for the following tours: the ASP World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, ASP World Junior Tour, ASP World Longboard and Masters Championships.
The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts and other media platforms. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Japan, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America.

South African surfers Travis Logie and Jordy Smith won their respective Round 1 heats in the Billabong Pro Tahiti, which started in epic 1.5 to 2 metre waves at Teahupoo on Saturday, to move directly into Round 3 of stop No. 5 of 11 on the 2011 ASP World Title season.

Logie, 32, currently No. 44 on the ASP World Rankings, gained entry into the Billabong Pro Tahiti at the 11th hour with the withdrawal of Bobby Martinez (USA). The Durbanite embarked on a white-knuckle trip from Europe to Tahiti, showing up with less than 10 hours before his heat and without any of his surfboards or equipment.
 
“I got the call about 24 hours ago from Renato Hickel (ASP World Tour Manager) and got on the next plane from Europe,” Logie said. “I was over there competing in the 6-Star events and opted to take the opportunity in Tahiti. I don’t have any boards or any equipment so I used my good friend Alain Riou’s board his morning and it felt pretty good.”

Logie posted a heat tally of 16.07 (out of 20), the fourth highest of the day, to dispatch Jadson Andre (BRA) and No. 4 seed Jeremy Flores to the cutthroat man-on-man Round 2 heats.
 
Smith, 23, the current No. 2 on the ASP World Title Rankings, kept his 2011 campaign red-hot today, putting on a commanding backhand performance en route to his Round 1 victory. The Capetonian was enthusiastic with today’s conditions and excited for the swell on the horizon.
 
“I’ve been here most of the day and I’ve just been psyching to get out there,” Smith said. “It’s so much fun – just perfect, blue barrels. I’m so happy to be here in Tahiti and the forecast looks pretty amazing. We’ll see how it pans out.”
 
Smith’s two wave tally of 15.36 was the ninth best of the day and enough to relegate trials winner and wildcard Ricardo dos Santos (BRA) and Raoni Monteiro (BRA) to Round 2.

American CJ Hobgood, the 2001 ASP World Champion and 2004 Tahiti event winner, was the top scorer of Round 1, racking up a near perfect score of 9.87 (out of 10) before adding a 9.50 for a heat total of 19.37 to defeat current ASP World Title Race No. 1 Joel Parkinson and fellow Australian Adam Melling.

Kelly Slater (USA), 39, reigning and 10-time ASP World Champion, was at his usual polished best, remaining patient to score a winning wave on the buzzer against opponents Dan Ross (AUS) and dangerous local wildcard Heiarii Williams (PYF).

Surfline, official forecasters for the Billabong Pro Tahiti, predict plenty of swell for the next week. A medium SSW swell will maintain through the weekend to be followed by another medium size South swell for early next week. A major swell event is forecast for 25 & 26 August with potential for even more swell by the 28th.

Event organizers will reconvene on Sunday morning at 6:30am (6.30pm South African time) to assess conditions for a possible 7:30am start (7.30pm in SA).

When competition resumes, the opening heat of elimination Round 2 will feature Jeremy Flores (FRA) versus Heiarii Williams (PYF).

All the action from the Billabong Pro Tahiti can be followed live on www.billabongpro.com. Tahiti is situated at GMT -10, i.e. 12 hours behind South Africa. 8am in Tahiti is 8pm in SA.

BILLABONG PRO TAHITI ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Cory Lopez (USA) 12.83, Adrian Buchan (AUS) 11.47, Chris Davidson (AUS) 4.67
Heat 2: Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 15.83, Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 14.73, Taj Burrow (AUS) 13.27
Heat 3: Travis Logie (ZAF) 16.07, Jadson Andre (BRA) 14.40, Jeremy Flores (FRA) 11.73
Heat 4: Mick Fanning (AUS) 15.23, Gabe Kling (USA) 13.97, Tiago Pires (PRT) 7.97
Heat 5: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 15.36, Ricardo dos Santos (BRA) 14.47, Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 8.47
Heat 6: Kelly Slater (USA) 13.96, Daniel Ross (AUS) 13.07, Heiarii Williams (PYF) 10.47
Heat 7: Kai Otton (AUS) 11.47, Heitor Alves (BRA) 10.53, Owen Wright (AUS) 10.33
Heat 8: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 19.38, Joel Parkinson (AUS) 15.60, Adam Melling (AUS) 10.33
Heat 9: Taylor Knox (USA) 12.90, Alejo Muniz (BRA) 12.53, Bede Durbidge (AUS) 11.10
Heat 10: Damien Hobgood (USA) 13.73, Patrick Gudauskas (USA) 13.10, Brett Simpson (USA) 8.83
Heat 11: Dusty Payne (HAW) 16.76, Kieren Perrow (AUS) 15.63, Michel Bourez (PYF) 15.17
Heat 12: Julian Wilson (AUS) 16.50, Josh Kerr (AUS) 15.84, Adriano de Souza (BRA) 10.27
 
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Jeremy Flores (FRA) vs. Heiarii Williams (PYF)
Heat 2: Taj Burrow (AUS) vs. Ricardo dos Santos (BRA)
Heat 3: Adrian Buchan (AUS) vs. Gabe Kling (USA)
Heat 4: Owen Wright (AUS) vs. Adam Melling (AUS)
Heat 5: Joel Parkinson (AUS) vs. Brett Simpson (USA)
Heat 6: Bede Durbidge (AUS) vs. Josh Kerr (AUS)
Heat 7: Michel Bourez (PYF) vs. Daniel Ross (AUS)
Heat 8: Adriano de Souza (BRA) vs. Raoni Monteiro (BRA)
Heat 9: Kieren Perrow (AUS) vs. Tiago Pires (PRT)
Heat 10: Patrick Gudauskas (USA) vs. Jadson Andre (BRA)
Heat 11: Alejo Muniz (BRA) vs. Matt Wilkinson (AUS)
Heat 12: Heitor Alves (BRA) vs. Chris Davidson (AUS)

ENDS

Issued on behalf of:

ASP Africa
Contact:            Colin Fitch – Operations Manager
Tel:                   021 534 5738
Email:               colin@aspafrica.com

Compiled & Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Fax:             +27 (0) 86 684 6250
Mobile:         +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

About ASP: The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the recognized world governing body of professional surfing and has been crowning surfing’s undisputed World Champions since 1976. The ASP sanctions and crowns World Champions for the following tours: the ASP World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, ASP World Junior Tour, ASP World Longboard and Masters Championships.
The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts and other media platforms. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Japan, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America.

Billabong Pro J-Bay
Stop No 4 of 11 on the 2011 ASP World Tour
Supertubes, Jeffreys Bay, South Africa
14-24 July 2011

South African surfing sensation Jordy Smith clinched his second consecutive Billabong Pro J-Bay title when he beat Australian Mick Fanning in a tense final held in testing 1.5 metre waves and strong onshore winds at Supertubes in Jeffreys Bay today.

Smith, who looked in championship winning form ever since posting the highest scores of Round 1 last Friday, made full use of his many years of experience at Jeffreys Bay to tame the ‘victory at sea’ conditions and employed his exciting arsenal of progressive and aerial manoeuvres to rack up rides of 8.60 and 7.0 for a heat-winning total of 15.60 out of 20 in the final.

“It’s been an incredible week for me,” Smith said. “All the support of the people at Jeffreys Bay, Garth (Tarlow), Steve (Smith), my girlfriend Lyndall (Jarvis), my mom and dad and everyone else. It’s been a really special week for me and I’m so happy right now.”

The 23-year-old Durbanite who now lives in Cape Town pocketed US $75 000 for the victory and earned 10 000 priceless rankings points which moved him from fifth to second on the ASP World Title Race rankings behind Joel Parkinson (AUS), overtaking Adriano de Souza (BRA), Kelly Slater (USA) and Taj Burrow (AUS) in the process

“Mick (Fanning) has surfed amazing all week,” Smith said. “He’s always an inspiration and he’s right there with everyone in the hunt for the title. Today’s a huge win for me. Last year it was very emotional. To back it up this year just feels really, really good. It’s huge for my confidence and I’m looking forward to the rest of the year.”

Smith also collected the Nixon WTA award of a custom built Nixon watch valued at $10 000 for scoring the highest heat total at the event of 18.30 out of 20 in his Round 5 win over Bede Durbidge (AUS).

Fanning, a former two-time World and J-Bay champion, led the final with an excellent 8.0 point ride early on and was briefly out in front again at the halfway point, but could not produce the 7.61 point ride he needed to overtake Smith once the South African had snatched the lead back with an innovative ‘double-grab’ aerial with 12 minutes remaining.

The Australian, who takes home $30 000 and 8 000 points that sees him leapfrog from No. 8 to No. 4 on the rankings, was full of praise for Smith in his runners-up speech, before showering the winner with champagne. He also echoed the feelings of all of the world’s best surfers when he wished the late Andy Irons, a former three-time ASP World Champion, a happy birthday and sent his greetings to Irons’ family in Hawaii.

Smith started the final day in rampant form, powering his way to convincing victories over experienced former double J-Bay runner-up Damien Hobgood (USA) in the quarterfinals and then leaving Adrian Buchan (AUS) needing to replace both his scores to come within striking distance of winning their semi-final match-up.

Fanning meanwhile combo’d compatriot Josh Kerr in their quarterfinal encounter before coming out on top in a titanic semifinal battle with close friend and fellow Aussie Joel Parkinson where Fanning snatched victory with an incredible near-perfect 9.80 point ride, the highest scoring ride on the final day of competition.

With his equal third place finish here Parkinson heads the rankings in the hunt for the 2011 ASP World Title, but the perennial title contender remains cautious regarding the remainder of the season.
 
“I don’t really think about that yet,” Parkinson said. “It’s only the fourth event of the year and I’ve been in this position before. I’m happy with my surfing and my boards and I’ll keep my eyes on the next heat.”

The 2011 Billabong Pro J-Bay will make the history books for Smith’s second consecutive win and the phenomenal standard of surfing on the penultimate day when a perfect 10 point ride and a number of other high-flying and modernistic moves were performed and recorded in the planet’s premier high performance waves at Supertubes in Jeffreys Bay.

The final day’s proceedings started with a moving tribute to the late Andy Irons, a former three-time ASP World Champion, the 2004 Billabong Pro J-Bay champion and long-time Billabong team rider who passed away earlier this year and would have celebrated his birthday today.

All the action from the Billabong Pro J-Bay, including results, images and video-on-demand footage of every heat is available via www.billabongpro.com.

Further information on the event can be found at the Facebook fan page Billabong South Africa or on twitter @BillabongSA.

A daily 15 minute TV highlights package from the event will be broadcast on the channels of SuperSport with the premiere at 19h45 and multiple repeats. Check your TV schedule for updated broadcast times.

The Billabong Pro J-Bay 2011 was proudly presented by South Africa’s adventure province Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency and further supported by Carling Black Label, Monster Energy, Coca Cola, Amarok, Vida e Caffe, Tavcor, VonZipper and Nixon.

BILLABONG PRO JEFFREYS BAY FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Jordy Smith (ZAF) 15.60
2 – Mick Fanning (AUS) 14.83

BILLABONG PRO JEFFREYS BAY SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 17.46 def. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 11.87
SF 2: Mick Fanning (AUS) 17.47 def. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 11.93

BILLABONG PRO JEFFREYS BAY QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 15.10 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 8.94
QF 2: Adrian Buchan (AUS) 16.77 def. Julian Wilson (AUS) 14.90
QF 3: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 16.83 def. Alejo Muniz (BRA) 8.16
QF 4: Mick Fanning (AUS) 15.40 def. Josh Kerr (AUS) 5.43

ASP WORLD TITLE TOP 10 (After Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay):
1. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 25700 pts
2. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 24750 pts
3. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 22250 pts
4. Mick Fanning (AUS) 19500 pts
5. Taj Burrow (AUS) 18250 pts
6. Kelly Slater (USA) 16950 pts
7. Michel Bourez (PYF) 16000
8. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 15000
9. Josh Kerr (AUS) 13900 pts
9. Owen Wright (AUS) 13900 pts

ENDS

Compiled and issued by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Fax:             +27 (0) 86 684 6250
Mobile:         +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

Jordy Smith’s fairytale win at the Billabong Pro J-Bay in 2010 was the stuff of legends.

It was the SA surfing sensation’s maiden ASP World Tour event victory, becoming the first South African since Shaun Tomson in the 1980’s to win such an event. He did it in his home surf, the win occurred on Nelson Mandela’s birthday – a day of huge significance to South Africa – a Jordy survived several clutch moments en route to the final thanks to his brilliant, confident, cutting edge surfing and his never-say-die competitive approach.

Along the way he won the crowd, he won the event and he ended the day the No. 1 ranked surfer in the world.

By the time the 2010 ASP Men’s Tour wrapped up in December Jordy was sitting pretty at number two in the world. Rated second to the one and only Kelly Slater.

Later this week Jordy will paddle out to defend his Billabong Pro J-Bay crown and his legions of fans and admirers will be there – online and on the beach – to cheer him on.

This, the fourth of six Webisodes to be released on www.billabongpro.com in the lead up to the event features Jordy’s take on his home event – what it felt like to win last year and why he feels totally at ease, arriving in J-Bay with the support of a nation behind him.

The Billabong Pro J-Bay 2011 is scheduled for 14-24 July in the fabled waves of Supertubes in Jeffreys Bay. It is stop No. 4 of 11 on the ASP World Tour, the series of events that determines the annual ASP World Surfing Champion. The field comprises the world’s top 34 ranked professional surfers along with two wildcards. All the action will be webcast live via www.billabongpro.com.

The Billabong Pro J-Bay 2011 is proudly presented by South Africa’s adventure province Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency and further supported by Carling Black Label, Monster Energy, Coca Cola, Amarok, Vida e Caffe, Tavcor, VonZipper and Nixon.

To upload the video, made available rights free to media, simply visit the links below: 

Vimeo:
Link: http://vimeo.com/26247241

Embed code: <iframe src=”http://player.vimeo.com/video/26247241?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0” width=”510″ height=”287″ frameborder=”0″></iframe>

Download webisodes: https://www.filesanywhere.com/fs/v.aspx?v=8a6c688860646e76ae6d
Webisode 1: 245mb
Webisode 2: 159mb
Webisode 3: 143mb
Webisode 4: 277mb

\ends

Issued on behalf of:

Billabong South Africa
Contact: Brendon Kegel
Telephone: +27 (0) 42 200 2747
Email: brendon.kegel@billabong.co.za

Compiled and issued by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Fax:             +27 (0) 86 684 6250
Mobile:         +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

Sarah Baum used her patented forehand attack and full repertoire of progressive manoeuvres to clinch an outstanding third place finish in the ASP 6-Star Swatch Girls Pro France at Hossegor last Friday.

The result rocketed the 17 year-old from Warner Beach up to No. 7 on the latest ASP Women’s World Rankings and into contention for a spot on the 2011 ASP Women’s World Title Race. The Top 6 on the World Rankings at the end of each year join the Top 10 from the ASP World Title Race Rankings to contest all the events on following year’s World Title Race, the series of contests that determine the annual ASP Women’s World Champion.

With three of the women ranked above Baum already well-placed to re-qualify via their World Title Race Rankings, the SA teenager is in fact currently fourth in line for one of the six qualifying spots with three Star series events still to be run in 2011.

 Starting the Swatch event in the Round of 48, Baum posted a number of excellent performances including recording the highest scoring ride of Day 2 of the event on Friday – 8.75 out of a possible 10 – and winning a tightly contested quarterfinal over elite tour member Alana Blanchard (HAW). In the semifinals Baum was ousted by eventual runner-up Sage Erikson (USA), pocketing US $2 000 and 2 080 rankings points for third place.

“I am super stoked with a third here,” Baum said. “I didn’t expect to get this far in the event. Last year I made it to the Round of 12 and I am really pleased to beat that. It is my best result for sure. All the girls are ripping and it is a great feeling to be part of it. I am heading down to Estoril on Tuesday and I am now looking towards that contest.”

The Swatch event was won by current ASP World No. 2 Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS). Other South African girls in the event included Nikita Robb (East London, 19th), Bianca Buitendag (Victoria Bay, 19th), Rosanne Hodge (EL, 25th), Tarryn Chudleigh (Kommetjie, 37th) along with Fay Zoetmulder (Port Elizabeth) and Tanika Hoffman (Kom) who placed equal 49th.

The entire SA girls’ contingent has travelled to Portugal for the ASP 6-Star Estoril Surf and Music Billabong Girls 2011 which runs from Friday to Sunday, 10-12 June. The final two events on the 2011 ASP Women’s World Tour rankings, both 6-Star rated, will be run in Spain and on the Azores Islands in September.

Swatch Girls Pro France Final Result
Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 16.00 Def. Sage Erickson (USA) 9.70

Swatch Girls Pro France Semi-Final Results
Heat 1: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 15.67 Def. Courtney Conlogue (USA) 15.00
Heat 2: Sage Erickson (USA) 10.77 Def. Sarah Baum (ZAF) 4.67

Swatch Girls Pro France Quarter-Final Results
Heat 1: Courtney Conlogue (USA) 10.25 Def. Justine Dupont (FRA) 7.15
Heat 2: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 12.00 Def. Paige Hareb (NZL) 8.90
Heat 3: Sage Erickson (USA) 8.00 Def. Suelen Naraisa (BRA) 7.20
Heat 4: Sarah Baum (ZAF) 14.25 Def. Alana Blanchard (HAW) 8.40

ASP Women’s World Tour Rankings (After event #4 – Swatch Girls Pro France)
1 Conlogue,Courtney  USA 8220
2 Erickson,Sage  USA 6080
3 Fitzgibbons,Sally  AUS 5580
4 Hareb,Paige   NZL 4680
5 Woods,Rebecca  AUS 4183
6 Ho,Coco   HAW 3880
7 Baum,Sarah  ZAF 3423
8 Ado,Pauline  FRA 3160

South Africans
17 Robb,Nikita   ZAF 2143
22 Buitendag,Bianca  ZAF 1843
37 Hodge,Rosanne  ZAF 1170
37 Chudleigh,Tarryn  ZAF 1170
48 Zoetmulder,Faye  ZAF 880
77 Hoffman,Tanika  ZAF 250

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Bianca Buitendag grabs third place in Swatch Girls Pro Junior in France

Bianca Buitendag continued her sensational assault on the World’s age-group surfing scenario by grabbing third spot in the Swatch Girls Pro Junior France on Saturday.

The lanky 17 year-old from Victoria Bay in the Southern Cape, who won the Billabong ASP World Junior Championships in Australia in January and finished runner-up in the U18 girls’ division of the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Championships in Peru 10 days ago, again defeated a slew of the world’s best female surfers aged 20-and-under in France.

Buitendag earned US $350 after defeat by eventual champion Sarah Mason (NZL) in a semifinal encounter held in tricky one metre waves.

“The swell definitely dropped and although the conditions were quite nice I didn’t get any good scoring waves,” said Buitendag. “I have a Pro Junior event coming up in South Africa and it is very important to get a result there to qualify for the World Juniors.”

Mason went on to beat Demitry Stoyle (AUS) in the final held at Les Bourdaines on the Bay of Biscay coast. South Africans Faye Zoetmulder (PE) and Tanika Hoffman (Kom) finished 25th and 33rd respectively.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Royden Bryson the top South African in South American Prime events

Royden Bryson produced the best results by the South Africans in the two Prime rated events run in South America over the past fortnight. The Hout Bay based Capetonian boosted his ASP World Tour ranking from No. 113 to No. 81 after placing 13th in the Saquarema Surf Pro International near Rio de Janeiro and following that up with 9th in the Super Surf International in Santa Catarina.

Both events were run in huge waves with the final day of the Saquarema event postponed to the Monday when the waves on the Sunday were deemed too dangerous for competition. ASP Dream Tour member Kai Otton (AUS) beat Raoni Monteiro (BRA) to pocket the US$40 000 and 6 500 points there while Brazilian prodigy Gabriel Medina,17, scored two perfect 10 point rides on the final day to claim the title from experienced Australian Tom Whittaker in the Super Surf.

Dale Staples (St Francis Bay), who qualifies for all 11 events on the 2011 Prime Series thanks to his third place finish in the 2010 ASP World Junior Title Tour, and fellow 20 year-old, Shaun Joubert (Mossel Bay), who leapfrogged into the top 100 on the rankings with an outstanding fifth place finish in the first Prime event of 2011, were eliminated in the first round (Round of 96) in both events.

Brandon Jackson (Durban North) and former ASP Dream Tour campaigner Travis Logie (Durban) only competed in the Super Surf event with Jackson ousted early and Logie, in his first event after recovering from a foot injury sustained in April, advanced to the Round of 48 but placed fourth in his next match-up to end the event 37th overall.

Logie has dropped from No. 28 to No. 42 in the rankings but remains the highest placed SA surfer behind Jordy Smith (Durban) who is No. 2 behind 10 times ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA). Joubert has maintained his ranking of No. 80 with Bryson now up to No. 81 while Jackson has held on to his No. 104 spot.

ASP World Tour Rankings (After Super Surf International, Brazil)
1 Slater,Kelly   USA 66200
2 Smith,Jordy  ZAF 52000
3 Fanning,Mick  AUS 43648
4 Burrow,Taj   AUS 43177
5 Durbidge,Bede  AUS 39370

South Africans (Top 200 out of 784)
42 Logie,Travis  ZAF 15162
80 Joubert,Shaun  ZAF 8570
81 Bryson,Royden  ZAF 8564
104 Jackson,Brandon  ZAF 6280
113 Palmboom,Rudy ZAF 5807
141 Strachan,Klee  ZAF 4072
147 Fahrenfort,Damien  ZAF 3849
157 Gibbens,Brendon  ZAF 3357
170 Staples,Dale   ZAF 2912
176 Weare,David  ZAF 2695
178 De Vries,Beyrick  ZAF 2608

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Beyrick de Vries takes early lead in ASP Africa Pro Junior men’s rankings

Beyrick de Vries won the 2-Star rated Quiksilver Pro Junior at New Pier in Durban back in April to take the early lead in the 2011 ASP Africa Pro Junior men’s rankings which determine four of the five-man squad invited to compete in the this year’s ASP World Junior Title series.

De Vries, 18, from Umhlanga, produced an impressive display of progressive surfing to overcome Slade Prestwich (Scottburgh), 16, in the final and take home US $2 500 and 500 rankings points.

Dylan Lightfoot (Jeffreys Bay) and Michael February (Kommetjie) were sidelined by Prestwich and de Vries in their respective semifinals while Dale Staples (St Francis Bay), David van Zyl (Glenashley), Matt Pallet (Cape Town) and Matt Bromley (Kommetjie) ended their campaigns in the quarters.

The ASP Africa Pro Junior men’s rankings will be finalised after the 1-Star Billabong Pro Junior at Victoria Bay in the Southern Cape from September 1-4. The top four on the season ending rankings plus the highest placed ASP Africa Pro Junior on the ASP World Tour Rankings who has not already qualified via the local rankings will join representatives from the other six ASP regions in the World Junior Title series.

The 2011 series comprises three events starting with the Oakley ASP World Junior in Bali from October 3-14, followed by the inaugural Arnette ASP World Junior in Rio de Janeiro from October 24-November and culminating in the Billabong ASP World Junior Championships which will be staged as part of the recently announced Australian Open of Surfing at Manly Beach in Sydney from 11-19 February, 2012.

ASP Africa Pro Junior Men’s Rankings (After Quiksilver Pro Junior)

1 De Vries, Beyrick 500
2 Prestwich, Slade 375
3 Lightfoot, Dylan 281
 February, Michael 281
5 Staples, Dale  211
 Bromley, Matthew 211
 Van Zyl, David 211
 Pallet, Matt  211
9 Gibbens, Brendon 158
 Smit, Rigard  158
 Godfrey, Nicholas 158
 Baum, Sarah  158

++++++++++++++++++++++++

Mid-year international events in Durban, Ballito & Jeffreys Bay

South Africa’s traditional mid-year series of international surfing events will be kick-started by the ASP 1-Star Roxy Wahine Girls Pro Junior in Durban followed by the ASP Prime rated Mr Price Pro Ballito at Ballito in KZN and culminates in Jeffreys Bay with the Billabong Pro J-Bay, stop No. 4 of 11 on the 2011 ASP World Title series.

The inaugural edition of the Roxy Wahine Pro Junior to be an ASP rated event will be staged at New Pier in Durban on the weekend 18 & 19 June. The event features the country’s best 20-years-and-under female surfers competing for a prize-purse of US $2 000 with the winner also earning one of the two coveted invitations to compete in the 2011 ASP World Junior Title series.

The 12th edition of Mr Price Pro Ballito is stop No. 7 of 11 on the ASP Prime Tour and will be run from July 4-10. The event is restricted to the top 88 ranked ASP surfers who enter plus six wildcards and two trialists and offers $250 000 in total prize-money with $40 000 and 6 500 points going to the winner. The field is headed by defending event champion and current World No. 2, Jordy Smith, and includes 24 of the world’s top 34 ranked surfers.

The 26th running of the Billabong Pro J-Bay will again attract all of the world’s top 34 ranked surfers to the waves of Supertubes from July 14-24. The event offers a total purse of $425 000 with the winner earning $75 000 and 10 000 points. The seeding is headed by 10-time and reigning ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA) along with former world champions Mick Fanning (AUS) and CJ Hobgood (USA), former event champions Jordy Smith (ZAF) and Australians Joel Parkinson and Taj Burrow and current ASP World Title Race ranking s leader Adriano de Souza (BRA).

ASP World Title Race rankings (After event No. 3 – Billabong Pro Rio)

1 Adriano De Souza (BRA) 20500
2 Joel  Parkinson (AUS) 19200
3 Kelly  Slater (USA)  16950
4 Taj  Burrow (AUS)  16500
5 Jordy Smith (ZAF)  14750
6 Owen  Wright (AUS) 12150
7 Michel Bourez (PYF) 12000
8 Mick  Fanning (AUS) 11500
9 Bede  Durbidge (AUS) 11000
9 Tiago  Pires (PRT)  11000

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

For more news on the South African based ASP Events see www.aspafrica.com. For up to date news on the events and ASP Africa members ‘like’ ASP Africa on Facebook

ENDS
Issued on behalf of:

ASP Africa
Contact:            Colin Fitch – Operations Manager
Tel:                   021 534 5738
Email:               colin@aspafrica.com

Compiled & Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Fax:             +27 (0) 86 684 6250
Mobile:         +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

About ASP: The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the recognized world governing body of professional surfing and has been crowning surfing’s undisputed World Champions since 1976. The ASP sanctions and crowns World Champions for the following tours: the ASP World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, ASP World Junior Tour, ASP World Longboard and Masters Championships.
The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts and other media platforms. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Japan, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America.

All 32 of the world’s top ranked professional surfers will be in Jeffreys Bay in July for the R3 million Billabong Pro J-Bay 2011, Africa’s only stop on the ASP World Tour, the 11-event series of events that determines surfing’s annual men’s world champion.

Scheduled for 14-24 July, the 26th edition of the continent’s most prestigious surfing event will again be staged at Supertubes, the 300 metre stretch of coastline universally acknowledged as one of the planet’s top 10 high performance surf breaks.

The stellar field for the 2011 Billabong Pro J-Bay, arguably the most talented group of surfers ever assembled, includes 10-time and reigning ASP world Champion Kelly Slater (USA); South African superstar and defending event champion, Jordy Smith; former two-time world and event champion Mick Fanning (AUS) and previous Billabong Pro J-Bay champions Joel Parkinson and Taj Burrow (both Australians).

Throw in the progressive manoeuvres of Dane Reynolds (USA), the precocious talents of Owen Wright (AUS), Michel Bourez (TAH) and 2010 runner-up Adam Melling (AUS), add established stars like current ASP World Tour No. 1 ranked Adriano de Souza (BRA), the Hobgood twins – 2000 world champion CJ and 2009 J-Bay runner-up Damien – along with fellow American Bobby Martinez and spectacular surfing performances are guaranteed to light up the waves at Supers.

The 36 man field also includes South Africa’s ‘uber-wildcard’ Sean Holmes (Cape Town), conqueror of both Slater and the late Andy Irons (HAW) on his way to fifth place last year. Holmes’ uncanny affinity with the waves at Supertubes has wrecked the title hopes of so many of the top contenders over the years.

The second wildcard goes to the winner of the VonZipper Superheat, a five-man encounter held on the first day of the event featuring South African rising stars Shaun Joubert (Mossel Bay) and Dale Staples (St Francis Bay); international contenders Granger Larson (HAW) and reigning ASP World Junior Champion Jack Freestone (AUS) along with Shaun Payne (St Francis Bay), winner of the Xcel Pro Showdown at Supers.

This year sees three days of major underground music talent coinciding with the world-class surfing action. The Billabong Pro Music Festival runs Friday to Sunday, 15 to 17 July, at the Jolly Dolphin featuring a lineup of 14 top SA bands including the likes of Aking, City Bowl Mizers, P.H.Fat, Jack Parow and the ever-popular local Hot Wasabi band fronted by the legendary Steve Walsh.

Billabong continues its efforts to heighten awareness of local and global surf communities to the challenge of climate change, and how we all need to become part of the solution, by making the 2011 Billabong Pro J-Bay a ‘greener event’.

Building on the programs instituted over the past two years, the estimated 384.5 tonnes of CO2 emissions generated by the event activities, including the travel by local and international participants and officials, will be reduced wherever possible. The remaining emissions will be offset using United Nations Kyoto compliant carbon credits ensuring a low carbon, climate-conscious event and that the barrels ridden at Supers are green in more ways than one.

Greening initiatives at the event include using renewable energy, biodegradable food and beverage containers, paper instead of plastic bags and bio-diesel fuel in event vehicles where possible alongside an event recycling program. More about climate change and what it means to surfers can be found at www.cleanerclimate.com/billabongpro

The eyes of the surfing world will be firmly fixed on Jeffreys Bay from 14-24 July as hundreds of thousands of surf fans worldwide log millions of page impressions while following the fortunes of their favourite surfers.

All the action will be covered via webcasts on www.billbabongpro.com featuring live scoring, expert commentary and interviews, video footage with multiple camera angles, slow-motion replays, video on demand highlights of previous heats and online competitions with valuable prizes.

The optimum experience remains attending the event and there is nothing quite like watching the action live from the natural amphitheatre on the dunes overlooking the liquid runway known as Supertubes, mingling with the world’s best surfers and enjoying the legendary party atmosphere in J-Bay throughout the 11-day event. Be there.

The Billabong Pro J-Bay 2011 is proudly presented by South Africa’s adventure province Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency and further supported by Carling Black Label, Monster Energy, Coca Cola, Amarok, Vida e Caffe, Tavcor, VonZipper and Nixon.

\ends
Compiled and issued by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Fax:             +27 (0) 86 684 6250
Mobile:         +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

South African surf star Jordy Smith placed third in the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach presented by Ford Ranger at Bells Beach in Australia earlier today, pocketing US $17 500 (approx. R120 000) and 6 500 rankings points that elevated the Durbanite from No. 5 to No. 3 in the 2011 ASP World Title rankings.

The 50th edition of the iconic event was won by Joel Parkinson who claimed his third Bell and his 10th elite tour victory by defeating compatriot Mick Fanning in a dynamic final held in superb two to 2.5 metre waves.

“It’s incredible,” Parkinson said. “It’s not so much the fact that I’ve won the event, but more so that it’s the 50th anniversary. It feels that much more special. We’ve had such good waves too. I can’t remember the last time that Bells had such good waves. I’m so excited. I can’t believe this.”

Parkinson, who’s last two ASP World Title campaigns have been marred by injuries, is adamant that he is 100% healthy this season and surfing better than ever and vaults from 9th to 2nd on the ASP World Title Rankings behind 10 time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA), who finished equal 5th at Bells.

Smith, 22, the 2010 ASP World runner-up, cruised through to the Semifinals of the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach, recording the top scores on Day 2 of the event despite admittedly feeling out of rhythm throughout the event.

“It was a nice last wave, but it was a pity I didn’t get any before that,” Smith said of his semi-final defeat to Fanning. “I’ve felt off all week so to get a 3rd is pretty good. I’ve got two 3rds now, which is kind of frustrating because you want to make the Final, but that’s how it goes sometimes. 3rd is better than 5th.”

Slater suffered a surprise elimination at the hands of De Souza in this morning’s quarterfinal clash. The young Brazilian left little room for the Champ to respond and an admittedly out-of-rhythm Slater saw his Bells Beach title defence cut abruptly short.

“It’s not my day, not my week and that happens,” Slater said. “For some reason you don’t make the right choices and you’re not in sync with it, I’m definitely not in the zone this week at all. A 5th isn’t that bad a result, but when all the guys who you expect to be in the world title hunt finish higher than you it feels like a 17th.”

On Saturday the Rip Curl Women’s Pro Bells Beach presented by Ford Fiesta was won by Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS), 20, who claimed her maiden ASP Women’s World Title event win after a hard-fought final with current ASP Women’s World No. 1 Carissa Moore (HAW), 18.

Highlights from the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach presented by FORD will be available via www.live.ripcurl.com

The next stop on the 2011 ASP World Title season is the Billabong Pro Rio in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from May 11 – 22, 2011.

For more information, log onto www.aspworldtour.com

RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Joel Parkinson (AUS) 18.53
2 – Mick Fanning (AUS) 13.26

RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 16.33 def. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 12.00
SF 2: Mick Fanning (AUS) 18.87 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 17.23

RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 16.66 def. Owen Wright (AUS) 13.16
QF 2: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 18.00 def. Kelly Slater (USA) 11.24
QF 3: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 14.16 def. Chris Davidson (AUS) 11.10
QF 4: Mick Fanning (AUS) 17.46 def. Jadson Andre (BRA) 14.03

RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 5 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Owen Wright (AUS) 14.17 def. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 9.26
Heat 2: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 13.97 def. C.J. Hobgood (USA) 13.66
Heat 3: Chris Davidson (AUS) 16.03 def. Michel Bourez (PYF) 15.37
Heat 4: Jadson Andre (BRA) 14.37 def. Tiago Pires (PRT) 13.93

ASP WORLD TITLE RATINGS (After Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach):
1. Kelly Slater (USA) 15,200 pts
2. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 14,000 pts
3. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 13,000 pts
4. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 10,500 pts
4. Tiago Pires (PRT) 10,500 pts

RIP CURL WOMEN’S PRO BELLS BEACH FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 16.77
2 – Carissa Moore (HAW) 15.40

RIP CURL WOMEN’S PRO BELLS BEACH SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Carissa Moore (HAW) 15.10 def. Silvana Lima (BRA) 12.60
SF 2: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 18.37 def Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 12.60

ASP WOMEN’S WORLD TITLE TOP 5 (After Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach):
1. Carissa Moore (HAW) 18,000 pts
2. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 16,400 pts
3. Tyler Wright (AUS) 13,200 pts
4. Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 11,700 pts
5. Silvana Lima (BRA) 11,700 pts

Ends

Issued on behalf of:

ASP Africa
Contact:            Colin Fitch – Operations Manager
Tel:                   021 534 5738
Email:               colin@aspafrica.com

Compiled & Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Fax:             +27 (0) 86 684 6250
Mobile:         +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

About ASP: The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the recognized world governing body of professional surfing and has been crowning surfing’s undisputed World Champions since 1976. The ASP sanctions and crowns World Champions for the following tours: the ASP World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, ASP World Junior Tour, ASP World Longboard and Masters Championships.
The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts and other media platforms. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Japan, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America.

South African surf star Jordy Smith took third place in the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast presented by Land Rover, the season opening event on the 2011 ASP World Tour, at Snapper Rocks in Australia earlier today.

Reigning 10-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA), 39, secured an unprecedented 46th elite tour win by defeating defending event champion Taj Burrow (AUS), 32, in a hard fought final held in deteriorating wind affected one metre waves.

 “I’m having a lot of fun,” Slater said from the podium after becoming the first to win the event three times. “It’s pretty easy. You go out and surf Snapper by yourself, it’s pretty fun. Everyone loves this event because the waves are so fun. I don’t think I’m the only one that thought Taj was the standout of the event. At some point he had to stop getting 9s and I just picked the right heat.”
 
Burrow, who was arguably the form surfer throughout the entirety of the event, went on an absolute rampage on the final day of competition to oust American Brett Simpson (USA), 26, in the Quarterfinals and dangerous South African Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, in the Semifinals, but fell just short of the score needed to surpass Slater for the victory in the back-half of their final duel, finishing runner-up overall.
 
“I’m excited about the tour for 2011,” Burrow said. “This was a fun event and it’s just a bummer the waves didn’t hang in there at the end. I couldn’t better a 3 (out of 10). Hats off to Kelly, he built a house and it worked. I’d just like to thank everyone that organized the contest, it was awesome.”
 
Jordy Smith (ZAF), 23, the runner-up for 2010 ASP World Title, surfed with style, punch and bite throughout the duration of the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast, securing exciting last-minute victories over Joel Parkinson (AUS), 29, and Alejo Muniz (BRA), 21, to advance through to the Semifinals. However, the big South African was unable to overtake Burrow in a repeat of last season’s final.
 
“It’s disappointing when everything seems to be going well and the surf doesn’t cooperate,” Smith said. “Taj (Burrow) surfed amazing though and third place is still a good start for me. I’m looking forward to the next event and I’ll just put my head down and work hard until then.”

Despite finishing one place worse off than his runner-up spot in the corresponding event in 2010, Smith’s performances were a clear signal that he will be a strong contender for the 2011 ASP World Title.

He convincingly won his Round 1 encounter against Pat Gudauskas (USA) and Aussie wildcard Mitch Crews to move directly into Round 3 where, after the contest was delayed for seven days waiting for swell, he dispatched veteran campaigner Corey Lopez (USA) with the highest scores of the round (17.17 points out of 20) to reach the last 12.

Although he slipped up in Round 4, the so-called ‘demonstration round’ where none of the surfers are eliminated, finishing third behind Brett Simpson (USA) and Adriano de Souza (BRA), the South African roared back into contention with a morale-boosting, high scoring Round 5 victory over perennial ASP World Title contender and local hero Joel Parkinson to advance to the quarterfinals.

A last minute comeback against red-hot rookie Alejo Muniz (BRA) this morning set up Smith’s semifinal encounter with Burrow which he ultimately lost when the Australian posted two outstanding rides

Highlights from the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast will be available via http://www.quiksilverpro.com.au
 
The next stop on the 2011 ASP World Title season will be the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach presented by Ford Ranger from April 19 – 30, 2011.
 
For more information, log onto www.aspworldtour.com
 
QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Kelly Slater (USA) 11.20
2 – Taj Burrow (AUS) 10.17
 
QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 16.77 def. Tiago Pires (PRT) 8.20
SF 2: Taj Burrow (AUS) 17.56 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 11.40
 
QUIKSILVER PRO GOLD COAST QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 15.40 def. Dusty Payne (HAW) 9.06
QF 2: Tiago Pires (PRT) 14.64 def. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 14.40
QF 3: Taj Burrow (AUS) 17.30 def. Brett Simpson (USA) 11.60
QF 4: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 13.03 def. Alejo Muniz (BRA) 9.95
 
ASP WORLD TITLE TOP 5 (After Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast):
1. Kelly Slater (USA) 10,000 points
2. Taj Burrow (AUS) 8,000 points
3. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 6,500 points
3. Tiago Pires (PRT) 6,500 points
5. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 5,200 points
5. Brett Simpson (USA) 5,200 points
5. Dusty Payne (HAW) 5,200 points
5. Alejo Muniz (BRA) 5,200 points

For further information go to www.aspworldtour.com

Ends
Issued on behalf of:

ASP Africa
Contact:            Colin Fitch – Operations Manager
Tel:                   021 534 5738
Email:               colin@aspafrica.com

Compiled & Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Fax:             +27 (0) 86 684 6250
Mobile:         +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email:           lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

About ASP: The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the recognized world governing body of professional surfing and has been crowning surfing’s undisputed World Champions since 1976. The ASP sanctions and crowns World Champions for the following tours: the ASP World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, ASP World Junior Tour, ASP World Longboard and Masters Championships.
The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts and other media platforms. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Japan, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America.

Monday 20 December 2010 – Jordy Smith has ended the 2010 ASP World tour Season ranked No. 2, the best result by a South African surfer since 1977 World Champion Shaun Tomson finished second in 1984.

Smith won his maiden event title at the Billabong Pro in Jeffreys Bay in July and also reached the final in two other events, finishing runner-up to Taj Burrow (AUS) in the season opening Quiksilver Pro on Australia’s Gold Coast and to newly crowned 10-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA) at the Rip Curl Pro Portugal in October.

The 22 year-old Durbanite started his break-through third year on the Dream Tour, the highest level of competition surfing, with an entirely new strategy. Realising that he performed at his best when relaxed and not under pressure to get results, his mantra became “I’m just going to go out there and have fun and let the results take care of themselves.”

And the new approach really worked as a more relaxed Smith employed his patented aerial attack and futuristic manoeuvres to defeat the cream of the world’s top competitive surfers on a regular basis, only failing to reach the last eight once in the 10 events – when he was bundled out in the Round of 32 by wildcard Manoa Drollet at Teahupoo in Tahiti.

His one victory, two seconds, six fifth place finishes and one 17th, plus a couple of good results in Prime and Star rated events, saw Smith amass US $235 150 (approximately R1.64 million) in prize-money in 2010, taking his career prize-money earnings to just over $526 000 and signing up a slew of new sponsorship deals along the way.

Slater, 38, undeniably the best competitive surfer of all time, reached the final in six of the 10 events, winning four titles, and accumulated $416 000 in 2010, including a bonus of $100 000 for winning the ASP World Title.

The other five event titles were won by Burrow, rookie Jadson Andre (a 20 year-old Brazilian whose father is two years younger than Slater!), the late former three-time ASP World Champion Andy Irons (HAW), two-time and 2009 ASP World Champion Mick Fanning (AUS) and Jeremy Flores (FRA) who became the first European surfer to win an event in Hawaii by capturing the Billabong Pipeline Masters in memory of Andy Irons.

The 2011 ASP World Tour will get underway with the Quiksilver Pro on Australia’s Gold Coast at the end of February.

ASP World Title Race
2010 Final Rankings
1 Kelly Slater (USA)  69 000 points
2 Jordy Smith (ZAF)  52 250
3 Mick Fanning (AUS)  44 750
4 Taj Burrow (AUS)  42 000
4 Dane Reynolds (USA) 42 000
6 Bede Durbidge (AUS) 39 000
7 Adrian Buchan (AUS) 37 250
7 Owen Wright (AUS)  37 250
9 Jeremy Flores (FRA) 35 750
10 Adriano De Souza (BRA) 32 000

South Africans
29 Travis Logie (ZAF)  13 000 points

++++++++++++++++

Smith the only South African on 2011 ASP World Tour

Jordy Smith will be the sole South African on the 2011 ASP World Tours after fellow Durbanite Travis Logie amongst the men and Rosanne Hodge and Nikita Robb (both East London) amongst the women all failed to finish inside the cut-off criteria for requalification.

Logie, 31, did well to survive the mid-year cut from 44 to 34 on the ASP World Tour and was on the cusp of requalifying for 2011 through both the ASP World Title Rankings, where the top 22 automatically requalify, and on the ASP World Rankings, where the top 10 who have not already qualified via the World Tour rankings join the Dream Tour.

However, following a Round 1 loss in the Pipe Masters, Logie ended the year ranked No. 29 on the World Title Race Rankings and even closer on the World Tour Rankings where his 36th place saw him end just 1 723 points (less than 1 750 earned for a 13th place finish) behind Dusty Payne (HAW) who grabbed the No. 32 and final qualifying spot.

Hodge was the model of consistency in 2010, her fourth consecutive year on the ASP Women’s World Tour, reaching Round 3 in the first six events but not managing to advance to the quarterfinals, before placing 17th in the final event. She ended the year ranked No.13, significantly adrift of Rebecca Woods (AUS) who grabbed the 10th and final spot.

Robb struggled to impress the judges in her rookie season at the highest level, only posting two heat tallies of over 10 out of 20 in 14 attempts, and bowed out with three 9ths, three 17ths and a 19th which gave her a yearend ranking of No. 15.

The pair also finished well off the pace in the ASP Women’s Star rated series where the top 6 qualify for the following year’s top tier. Robb was the highest placed SA woman at No. 14 while Hodge ended her season ranked No. 22.

Royden Bryson fared best of the South African campaigners in the Prime and Star rated events, ending the year ranked No. 76. The former East Londoner now living in Cape Town won the 6-Star rated O’Neill Cold Water Classic in Scotland and put himself into contention for the US $50 000 bonus for the five-event Col Water Classic Series title before missing the next two events in that series in Canada and Santa Cruz, California.

Brandon Jackson (Durban North), who came within a whisker on qualifying for the 2010 ASP World Tour, was the only other SA surfer in the top 100, finishing at No. 100. Rudy Palmboom (Bluff) came in at No. 106 in his third campaign and Shaun Joubert, 19, from Mossel Bay, ended his first season at No. 118, achieving his objective of placing amongst the top 120 who are virtually guaranteed a start in all of next year’s Prime rated events.

ASP World Tour Rankings
2010 Men
1 Slater,Kelly   USA 69000 points
2 Smith,Jordy  ZAF 52350
3 Burrow,Taj   AUS 45432
4 Fanning,Mick  AUS 44750
5 Durbidge,Bede  AUS 42463

South Africans (Top 200 of 1089)
36 Logie,Travis  ZAF 16327 points
76 Bryson,Royden  ZAF 9601
100 Jackson,Brandon  ZAF 7015
106 Palmboom,Rudy ZAF 6653
118 Joubert,Shaun  ZAF 5884
154 Fahrenfort,Damien  ZAF 4087
155 Strachan,Klee  ZAF 4072
160 Weare,David  ZAF 3799
170 De Vries,Beyrick  ZAF 3512
172 Gibbens,Brendon  ZAF 3443
173 Basnett,Ricky  ZAF 3432

ASP Women’s World Title Race
2010 Final Rankings
1 – Stephanie Gilmore (AUS)
2 – Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS)
3 – Carissa Moore (HAW)
4 – Silvana Lima (BRA)
5 – Sofia Mulanovich (PER)

South Africans
13 – Rosanne Hodge (ZAF)
15 – Nikita Robb (ZAF)

ASP World Tour Rankings
2010 Women
1 Fitzgibbons,Sally  AUS 12120 points
2 Enever,Laura  AUS 11520
3 Wright,Tyler   AUS 10920
3 Conlogue,Courtney  USA 10920
5 Ho,Coco   HAW 10380
6 Silva,Jacqueline  BRA 10320

South Africans (Top 50 of 130)
14 Robb,Nikita   ZAF 8520 points
19 Buitendag,Bianca  ZAF 8160
22 Hodge,Rosanne  ZAF 7680
26 Chudleigh,Tarryn  ZAF 7200
36 Baum,Sarah   ZAF 6000
48 Rautenbach,Chantelle  ZAF 4953

+++++++++++++++++++

ENDS

Issued on behalf of:

ASP Africa
Contact:            Colin Fitch – Operations Manager
Tel:                   021 534 5738
Email:               colin@aspafrica.com

Compiled & Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
PO Box 48272, Kommetjie 7976, South Africa
Tel:              +27 (0) 21 783 4965
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About ASP: The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the recognized world governing body of professional surfing and has been crowning surfing’s undisputed World Champions since 1976. The ASP sanctions and crowns World Champions for the following tours: the ASP World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, ASP World Junior Tour, ASP World Longboard and Masters Championships.
The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts and other media platforms. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Japan, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America.

PIPELINE, Oahu/Hawaii (Thursday, December 16, 2010) – Jeremy Flores (FRA) 22, won the Billabong Pipe Masters in memory of Andy Irons over Kieren Perrow (AUS), 33, in a come-from-behind victory in firing four-to-six foot (1.5 metre) backdoor barrels, marking his first career ASP World Tour victory.

Joel Parkinson (AUS), 29, was another to stand atop the Billabong Pipe Masters podium, clinching his third, consecutive Vans Triple Crown title to conclude the 2010 ASP World Tour season.

Flores, who was in need of a solid 8.60 single-wave score in the dying moments, clawed his way back into the Final against Perrow and threaded the needle on a beautiful righthand barrel to earn a 9.37. Making history as the first European to ever win the Billabong Pipe Masters in the event’s 40 year history, Flores punctuated his season with his career-best result.

“This is such a dream,” Flores said. “I’ve been coming to Hawaii for so long and this is my favorite place in the world, the waves, the people, everything. I just knew I couldn’t give up in the Final even though I was behind. It’s the Pipe Masters and it’s everything. I’m so stoked.”

Flores’ impressive showing in the Final wasn’t his only come-from-behind win of the day, as the young Frenchman also topped reigning 10-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA), 38, in the dying minutes of their Semifinals match-up, marking a significant turnaround in the young Frenchman’s career.

“I’m so stoked to be here and to have made this result,” Flores said. “I’ve been surfing a lot again in all conditions, small or big and I kind of lost that at the start of the year. I think that’s what has helped my rhythm. I’ve just been surfing three times a day no matter what the conditions are and I think that’s the biggest thing that changed this year for me. I just feel like I’ve found my rhythm again.”

Flores Finished at No. 9 on the ASP World Tour Rankings for 2010.

Perrow dominated the tricky Backdoor Pipeline conditions throughout the event’s entirety, weaving through several tight barrels to drop some of the event’s top scores including a 9.90 a 9.83 and a 9.70, However the hard-charging Australian saw his Billabong Pipe Masters title slip from his grasp in the final minutes of his match up against Flores.

“You never think you’ve won until the hooter goes I guess,” Perrow said. “I know Jeremy (Flores) is capable of getting great scores which he showed throughout the event and I wanted to be patient and wait for that good one. I went on that one that wasn’t so good and Jeremy got that 9 and all credit to him. It’ been a fantastic week though, the support from everyone has been amazing.”

Kelly Slater (USA), 38, reigning ten-time ASP World Champion, appeared to be the form surfer of the event, notching the event’s only perfect 10-point ride in his Round 4 heat, but made an uncharacteristic priority mistake in his Semifinals bout against Flores, allowing the young Frenchman to find the score needed to overtake Slater in the final minutes of their heat to leave the Floridian icon with a 3rd place finish overall.

“I thought there was a bigger one behind but there have only been one wave sets and I didn’t even think about it in the moment. As soon as it went over I was like ‘oh no,’ but that’s the way it goes. I’ve had it go that way for me before, but good for Jeremy he’s a great tube rider and I’m sure he’s stoked to be in the Final. To start the heat off I fell and Jeremy was just getting barreled across and I said ‘you know, I’m going to come back and win this heat.’ I let my guard down in the end and that’s the way it goes. You can get 18 or 20 points at Pipeline in the last two minutes.”

The 2010 Billabong Pipe Masters in Memory of Andy Irons also represents Slater’s historic 20th event at the Banzai Pipeline and the ASP World Tour veteran took the time to reflect on his many years in Hawaii.

“I have a lot of good memories here at Pipeline,” Slater said. “I think I’ve surfed in 20 of these things. I think my first one (Pipe Masters) was my best memory, just because of the guys I was surfing against. I saw people like Tom Carroll, who won that year, and I just sat on the beach in awe. He was just amazing that year.”

Dane Reynolds (USA), 25, was another talent to shine in the racy Backdoor Pipeline conditions. The innovative natural-footer topped fellow Americans Taylor Knox (USA), 39, Damien Hobgood (USA), 31, and Patrick Gudauskas (USA), 25, but fell to Perrow in the Semifinals to match his best result of the 2010 ASP World Tour season with an equal 3rd place finish.

“It was funny because my Semifinals heat turned a total flip-flop for me,” Reynolds said. “In my Quarterfinals heat I was in the spot every time a wave came and in the second heat it just went flat. I think in the end it was a pretty good morning with a few tubes at Backdoor. It doesn’t happen every morning for me. It’s a good way to end the year and I’m looking forward to Snapper.”

Joel Parkinson returned to Hawaii to defend his Vans Triple Crown title after a brutal laceration to his foot sidelined him for nearly the entire 2010 ASP World Tour season. The stylish natural-footer put on a memorable performance despite the injury, posting a victory at the ASP PRIME Reef Hawaiian Pro, a 9th at the O’Neill World Cup at Sunset Beach and a 13th at the Billabong Pipe Masters to secure his third consecutive Vans Triple Crown Title.

“I’m excited,” Parkinson said. “This year’s Triple Crown didn’t go how I thought it would go. I was just hoping that I would make a few heats because I only felt like I was surfing at 60 percent at home, but everything changed when I got to Hawaii. The Triple Crown has always been really prestigious to me. It was always dominated by the best Hawaiians and it’s something that I’ve always held high. To get one was great, so to get three is amazing. I hope that next year I’m just injury free and that this win is just a stepping stone.”

Highlights from the Billabong Pipe Masters will be available via http://triplecrownofsurfing.com/billabongpipemasters/
 
For additional ASP information log on to www.aspworldtour.com

Billabong Pipe Masters Final Results:
1 – Jeremy Flores (FRA) 14.54
2 – Kieren Perrow (AUS) 13.77

Billabong Pipe Masters Semifinals Results:
SF 1: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 17.50 def. Kelly Slater (USA) 17.23
SF 2: Kieren Perrow (AUS) 15.03 def. Dane Reynolds (USA) 6.83

Billabong Pipe Masters Quarterfinals Results:
QF 1: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 14.00 def. Owen Wright (AUS) 7.43
QF 2: Kelly Slater (USA) 12.94 def. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 3.16
QF 3: Kieren Perrow (AUS) 13.00 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 12.00
QF 4: Dane Reynolds (USA) 17.00 def. Taylor Knox (USA) 3.37
 
ASP WORLD TOUR TOP 10 (Following Billabong Pipe Masters)
1. Kelly Slater (USA) 69000 Points
2. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 52250 points
3. Mick Fanning (AUS) 44750 points
4. Taj Burrow (AUS) 42000 points
4. Dane Reynolds (USA) 42000 points
6. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 39000 points
7. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 37250 points
7. Owen Wright (AUS) 37250 points
9. Jeremy Flores (FRA) 35750 points
10. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 32000 points
 
ENDS

Visit the Press Room on www.aspworldtour.com for news, images, transcribed athlete interviews and more.
 
ASSOCIATION OF SURFING PROFESSIONALS (ASP) MEDIA
ASP International Media Manager
Dave Prodan
email: dave@aspworldtour.com
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Digital Photographs:
High-resolution digital images for newspapers and Internet sites are available via the ASP Digital Images Department – please contact kirstin@aspworldtour.com
 
About ASP: The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the recognized world governing body of professional surfing and has been crowning surfing’s undisputed World Champions since 1976. The ASP sanctions and crowns World Champions for the following tours: the ASP World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, ASP World Junior Tour, ASP World Longboard and Masters Championships. The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts and other media platforms. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Japan, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America.