surfing

The Billabong Pro Tahiti, Stop No. 5 of 10 on the 2010 ASP World Tour, has been called off for the day, with only small, inconsistent surf available at the main site of Teahupoo.

With careers on the line in Tahiti, the result of the ASP midyear field reduction from the Top 45 to the Top 34 (Top 32 finishers plus two wildcards), this year’s Billabong Pro Tahiti boasts unprecedented importance for the world’s best surfers.

“We monitored conditions for a good while this morning and deemed it not contestable,” Richie Porta, ASP International Head Judge, said. “It was very small and just too inconsistent to run. We’re working with everyone, the surfers, the organizers, the forecasters to ensure that the athletes have the best possible conditions.”

Surfline, official forecasters for the Billabong Pro Tahiti, are calling for a slow start to the contest waiting period with a very modest mix of southwest swells providing contestable, but small scale, surf today and tomorrow.

A full breakdown of ASP World Title Rankings possibilities, including the ASP midyear field reduction, for the Billabong Pro Tahiti are available at ASPWorldTour.com

Event organizers will reconvene tomorrow morning at 7am to assess conditions for a possible 8am start.

When competition commences, up first will be Damien Hobgood (USA), 31, Kekoa Bacalso (HAW), 25, and Jay Thompson (AUS), 28, in the opening heat of the Billabong Pro Tahiti.

The Billabong Pro Tahiti will be webcast LIVE via http://www.billabongpro.com/tahiti10/

BILLABONG AZORES ISLANDS WOMENS PRO FINAL RESULT
Laura Enever (AUS) 17.34 Def. Courtney Conlogue (USA) 13.83  
Laura Enever (AUS) 18,  claimed her maiden ASP Women’s Star-Series victory with a come-from-behind win over Courtney Conlogue (USA) 18, at the Billabong Azores Islands Women’s  Pro presented by Nissan an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) sanctioned event
.Claiming her first ASP Women’s Star-Series title Enever was ecstatic with her win and thankful for all the support from friends on the shoreline. Her best result so far this year the 3000 points will definitely boost her higher on the ASP Women’s World rankings

Waves in the 1-2ft (0.5m) range were on offer with the occasional bigger set coming through. After waiting for the tide to lower event officials gave the green light to start with clear skies and light off-shore winds making small but ideal conditions for the 35-minute final.

After watching her opponent get off to a flying start Laura Enever clawed her way back into the final using her priority to nail a 9.17 out of a possible 10 to escape from a combination situation and place herself within striking distance of the Billabong Azores Islands Women’s Pro title. With 5 minutes remaining both girls had an exchange which Enever came out on top with another excellent 8.17 point ride to turn the tables on Conlogue.

“Courtney got a couple of quick scores up on me and she had me needing a combination of scores for quite a while and I couldn’t actually find one but then I got that 9 point ride and I knew that I could do it which I eventually did backing up it up with another good score so I was really happy in the end. It was really cool because I had a whole lot of guys supporting me so it felt really good to win the final and do it for them.”

“I knew that if I got two turns in I would be able to get a score,” continued Enever. “So that was what I was looking for and I needed only a low score so I waited for another one to come in because it would have been pretty stupid of me to have lost it from there so I am really stoked with the way it all worked out.”

Courtney Conlogue will face Laura Enever in final  of the Billabong Azores Islands Pro this weekend. Surfers competing in the event earned crucial points for their 2010 ASP world rankings and the ASP European Open series.
BILLABONG AZORES ISLANDS WOMENS PRO SEMIFINAL RESULTS
SF 1: Courtney Conlogue (USA) 15.20 Def. Claire Bevilacqua (AUS) 7.37
SF 2: Laura Enever (AUS) 9.96 Def. Sophia Mulanovich (PER) 8.87
BILLABONG AZORES ISLANDS WOMENS PRO QUARTERFINAL RESULTS
QF 1: Courtney Conlogue (USA) 15.10 Def. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 14.07
QF 2: Claire Bevilacqua (AUS) 12.23 Def. Pauline Ado (FRA) 10.17
QF 3: Laura Enever (AUS) 13.26 Def. Nage Melamed (HAW) 7.17
QF 4: Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 10.64 Def. Bianca Buitendag (ZAF) 9.20

Update
Sao Miguel, Azores Islands –SAO MIGUEL, Azores Islands (Friday, August 13, 2010) – The Billabong Azores Islands Pro presented by Nissan an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) sanctioned event has called a lay day due to small, inconsistent conditions.

Event officials met early with surfer representatives to assess conditions and despite making another call later in the morning officials were left with no other choice than to postpone proceedings. A building swell is predicted to arrive overnight and increase through to Sunday allowing a restart to the 145,000$US event.

Local favourite Brett Simpson defeated the Association of Surfing’s world number one Jordy Smith to retain his US Open crown in Huntington Beach, California.
In the process Simpson also picked up the winner’s cheque for $100,000

The Californian had surfed consistently throughout the event’s entirety and jumped out to a quick start in his final against the South African Smith. An impressive display from Simpson left Smith looking for a near-perfect score in the dying moments of their match-up.

“Last year barely sank in and now I won this year,” Simpson said. “It’s so hard to imagine it all over again because you have to stay consistent and surf so many heats.

“Luckily I zoned everything out and tried not to worry about the points or the money and that’s when I have competed the best. To be at home with so many friends and family, I’ve enjoyed it so much. To win out here two years in a row is unimaginable