Vasco Ribeiro the youngest surfer ever in a portuguese OPEN Final

Quiksilver team rider, VASCO RIBEIRO, with only 14 years old, was third in the 1st National Surf tour - TMN pro-, held this weekend in Porto, in Internacional Beach. Vasco is seriously considered as a potential national champion. And this was the first time that Vasco went so far in a senior championship. Vasco is the youngest surfer ever in an Open Portuguese Senior Final. Tiago Pires "SACA" (the fisrt portuguese surfer in WCT Tour) made it in the past with 16 years old. Vasco win 2 weeks ago the pro junior under-18, and now the final in Open Comp with the seniores, he is in an excellent physical form.

This event showed that new generation is stronger than ever. The fourth place went to José Ferreira (16 years old) that reachs as Vasco his first Open final.

Justin Mujica, the venezuelan surfer living in Portugal for years, national champion in 1999, win the TMN pro final.
The waves had 0,5/1m, Justin was the best athlete from the beginning, showing a high surf level and good maneuvers.Alexandre Ferreira "Xaninho" was second, marking his return to the comp.


Final Results TMN Pro:

1st - Justin Mujica
2nd - Alexandre Ferreira
3rd - Vasco Ribeiro (Quiksilver)
4th - José Ferreira

Joan Duru Storms up to 4th on the WQS ratings!

After a string of fantastic results, Joan Duru, the young 20-year-old Frenchman is now placed 4th on the World Qualifying Series Ratings.  His recent 3rd place result at the O‘Neill CWC will count as part of his end of year tally, taking Joan a step closer to a slot on the Dream Tour. The 6 Star Prime Event gave Joan a precious 2625 points as well as $5000 prize money. The points may be more important than anything else as they take Joan a step closer to a slot on the ASP World Tour, the elite level of global surfing.  

The recent WQS event, the 12th so far this year, was held in the far North of Scotland and ran in notoriously testing conditions. The cold, heavy reef waves of Thurso, are a long way both literally and metaphorically from Joan’s home in SW France. 

Despite the wind and cold Joan performed well, scoring a 9-point ride in the quarters. He was winning his semi final for 29 of the 30 minutes, but made an error in the dying seconds, which cost him a finals place in his first 6 Star event. Trying to better his second score Joan let one wave go in the last second, which cost him severely. Joan describes it as “a hard learnt lesson” but undoubtedly will turn this tactical mishap into a positive.   Alongside his power surfing and growing confidence extra experience of life on the tour is only going to better an already polished surfing ability.

This result comes on the back of a string of great results. Joan hasn’t placed lower than 9th in a European event this year and is leading the ASP European Tour Ratings.
”That 3rd is a keeper and I am still happy with that run," says Duru. "I surfed well in the event, felt relaxed and confident and after winning the event in France and getting a 9th last week, I’ve done what I wanted to. I am glad to go home now and rest and spend time with my friends. That strong lead on the European ratings is good news as well and I’ll keep this somewhere at the back of my head because I would love to get that title."

Photo : Aquashot / ASP

Euroforce Tahiti 2008 Episode online now!

Recap on the fates and fortunes of Europe’s best surfers as they take on Tahiti!  Aritz, Jeremy, and Tiago all score incredible waves in one of the most visually spectacular locations on the planet.  Miky topped the bill with his 9th place finish but Tiago perhaps demonstrates the true highs and lows of life as a rookie.  He scored a 10-point tube ride one minute but lost out due to a split second error over priority the next.  Mistakes here come fast and furious as our surfers do battle with something more daunting than Tour veterans; the awe inspiring waves of Teahupoo.   

Sit back and watch the action as a warm up before this year’s Billabong Pro 9-20th May, which remains one of the most anticipated events of the year for surfers and spectators alike.  Last year, two wild cards showed their mettle to take the top two spots, but this year Joel Parkinson is in pole position with 9X World Champion Kelly Slater playing catch up.  2009 is the year that the Euroforce have more guys than ever taking their turn in the gladiator pit!  We’ll keep you tuned into their progress and keep your eyes peeled for the Euroforce 2009 Tahiti edition shortly after the event comes to a close!

Watch the new Euroforce episode!!!

Fred Patacchia Wins 6.0 Lowers Pro

Fred Patacchia (North Shore, HI), 27, won mainland America’s first Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS) 6-Star PRIME event, the 6.0 Lowers Pro, when he defeated defending event champion Ben Bourgeois (Wrightsville Beach, NC), 30, by a score of 16.84 to 14.10 in two-to-four foot (1 metre) surf at the famed cobblestone reef of Lower Trestles in San Clemente, California.

The 6.0 Lowers Pro’s ASP 6-Star PRIME status marks the event as a critical stop on each competitors 2009 ASP WQS campaign because it offers the maximum amount of points towards qualification for the ASP World Tour.

Patacchia demolished the Lower Trestles righthanders in his Final against Bourgeois, opening up his battle against the former ASP World Tour campaigner with a 9.17 out of 10 in the opening minutes of the heat. The Hawaiian talent backed up the score with a 7.67 to solidify the win over Bourgeois.

“I’m psyching,” Patacchia said. “We got fun waves throughout the whole event and to do it at pretty fun Trestles with only one other guy out is even better, so I’m happy.”

Patacchia is currently sitting in the No. 3 position on the ASP World Tour after two events and was using the premier ASP WQS 6-Star PRIME to help his competitive focus before launching into the Billabong Pro Teahupoo next week.

“It’s a good warm up for the Hurley Pro,” Patacchia said. “It’s not a good warm up for Tahiti, but I just want to stay in contest mode, keep my body in shape and keep my mind strong and I’m having a fairly decent year this year so I just want to keep it going.”


6.0 Lowers Pro Final:
1 – Fred Patacchia (HAW)16.84
2 – Ben Bourgeois (USA) 14.10

 

Credit Photo: Hilleman / ASP

Alejo Muniz Wins the Estoril Quiksilver Pro 2009!

ESTORIL, Carcavelos, Portugal (Saturday, April 25, 2009) - Brazil's wunderkind Alejo Muniz (BRA) won the ASP WQS 6-Star Estoril Quiksilver Pro 2009 event today finishing on top of the final encounter against fellow finalist Masatoshi Ohno (JPN), clinching crucial 2500 ratings' points and a US$ 25.000 cheque, the richest winner's prize of the ASP World Qualifying Series (WQS). Muniz, who went through five rounds today defeating favorites and ASP Dream Tour members Tim Boal (FRA) and Marlon Lipke (DEU) on his way to the final, secured his best result to date in Portugal and gets his 2009 ASP season going with a significant confidence boost.



Muniz, 19, whose talent and performances already rocketed him to the status of Braziliam surfing's next best thing, dominated the Estoril Quiksilver Pro 2009 througout the week coming out on top of the pack with a couple of 9.60 point rides and an impressive 18.60 point heat combination on Day 3 of competition. Despite the tricky conditions of the final day, Muniz not only showed technical skills but came-up with solid tactics and maturity using his natural talent to defeat two of the world's best surfers.

"I am just so happy I cannot even realize what I have done right now," Muniz said. "My only wish coming here was to have fun as much as I could and enjoy my surfing in any kind of waves. It is the perfect day for me and I managed to get the best out of these conditions so I could not have hoped for anymore."



Muniz, who will be surfing a few ASP WQS events this year, remains focused on his preogression as a junior surfer still and will use the precious 2500 points to build his seeding for 2010 where he shall be a serious contender towards a possible ASP World Tour qualification in the near future. Muniz finishes the Estoril Quiksilver Pro with six of the best 10 results under his belt, a good sign of his potential.

"Defeating Tim (Boal) and Marlon (Lipke) is something I will remember for some time," Muniz said. "I felt a bit of pressure facing such good surfers but I really thought that focusing on my pleasure and having fun could get me somewhere. I think that's my biggest lesson from this event."



Fellow finalist Masatoshi Ohno (JPN), 27, became the first Japanese ever to make the final of an ASP WQS 6-Star event, the experienced competitor being another great surprise in the event after he defeated favorites Joan Duru (FRA) and Gony Zubizarreta (ESP) on his run to the final, two of Europe's best chances for an ASP Top 45 inception. Ohno, who was running out of energy in the 30-minute decider, heads to Scotland with another keeper for his ASP World Tour qualification.

"I wanted to win and I lacked this last section on my final wave to grab the 6.00 points I needed to get back in the lead," Ohno said. "It is my best result ever and I am so happy to do well here in Portugal, one of the European countries I like most. Alejo (Muniz) was impressive for sure but I was not far from clinching that crown. Definitely an excellent finish before the next event and a keeper for my main goal which is the ASP World Tour."



Ohno, who was coming from an equal 5th place finish in Tasmania, leaves Portugal's surf coast of Estoril with valuable 2188 ratings' points and will be much expected in the upcoming events where he can certainly cause some damage.

Romain Cloitre (REU), 20, got his best result ever today by reaching the Semifinals of the ASP WQS 6-Star event, the Reunion island born surfer and former ASP European Junior champion confirming his rise in the last couple of years. Cloitre, whose best result was an equal 17 in the ASP WQS 6-Star Prime event in France last year, managed to defeat one of the event's inform men Heat Joske (AUS), 20, in Round 5 before bettering Morocco's representative Abdel El Harim (MAR) in the Quarterfinals.

"It's been a tough week with the waves and I am a bit disappointed not to make the final," Cloitre said. "Masatoshi (Ohno) definitely got the better waves and surfed them well and I think I lacked a bit of luck during the heat and did not have a great wave choice so I did not deserve to win that one heat."



Cloitre, who used his renowned tactics and great competitive abilities to make it all the way through to the final four, heads to Scotland with a serious confidence boost and will be much expected on the hollow reefbreaks of Thurso's area next week.

"It is my best result ever and I am stoked with this equal 3rd still," Cloitre said. "It's been a year only since I am full time on the ASP World Qualifying Series (WQS) and eventhough it is sometimes hard to get eliminated first heat, it seems like the experience is paying off. I hadn't had any big result yet and it is just great for my confidence for this year."



Other Semifinalist to miss out on the final today was ASP World Tour member and first German ever to qualify for the elite Marlon Lipke (DEU). Lipke, who was ousted by 19-year-old phenomenon Muniz in a wave-starved heat, left the water disappointed with his Semifinal run.

"I wish I could have got just one good wave to express my surfing and defend my chances," Lipke said. "It's been a good week with a great day at Guincho and I had good fun watching my friends Tim (Boal, equal 5th) and Joan (Duru, equal 9th) surf so well. I think Joan is the revelation this year."



The ASP World Qualifying Series (WQS) now move to Scotland for the ASP WQS 6-Star Prime rated competition will start April 29, 2009



Check out all news, results, photos and videos at http://www.quiksilverlive.com/


__________________________________________________________________

ESTORIL QUIKSILVER PRO FINAL
1st, Alejo Muniz (BRA), 13.00 pts
2nd, Masatoshi Ohno (JPN), 12.37 pts

ESTORIL QUIKSILVER PRO SEMIFINALS
Heat 1: Masatoshi Ohno (JPN) 15.67 pts Def. Romain Cloitre (REU) 8.83 pts
Heat 2: Alejo Muniz (BRA) 13.83 pts Def. Marlon Lipke (DEU) 11.73 pts

ESTORIL QUIKSILVER PRO QUARTERFINALS
Heat 1: Romain Cloitre (REU) 13.00 pts Def. Abdel El Harim (MAR) 9.67 pts
Heat 2: Masatoshi Ohno (JPN) 15.67 pts Def. Gony Zubizarreta (ESP) 12.00 pts
Heat 3: Alejo Muniz (BRA) 14.93 pts Def. Tim Boal (FRA) 11.57 pts
Heat 4: Marlon Lipke (DEU) 11.57 pts Def. Renato Galvao (BRA) 8.40 pts