ASP World Tour action to resume with Billabong Pro at Jeffreys Bay
The fourth of eleven stops on Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour, Billabong Pro, is all set to bring adrenaline-pumping surfing action to Jeffreys Bay, an Eastern Cape coastal town in South Africa, from July 12-24.
A total of 32 surfing elite will be converging to the event site to participate in the latest stop of the ASP World Tour with the determination of making a solid impact and improve their standings on the ASP World Title Rankings, which would eventually determine
the 2011 ASP World Surfing Champion.
The field for the upcoming showdown consists of the surfing legend from America, Kelly Slater, along with the two-time ASP World Champion from Australia, Mick Fanning, his compatriot Taj Burrow, South Africa’s Jordy Smith and current ASP World Tour No.1,
Adriano de Souza from Brazil among many others.
The previous edition of the event saw Smith walk away with a maiden victory and both, him and the local crowd, would be hoping to see a similar result this year and improve his standings in the current ASP World Rankings, sitting in fifth spot at the moment.
“I’ll just take the same approach as last year,” said Smith while talking about the upcoming contest. “Hopefully the swell picks up a bit before we get underway and it will be a great battle.”
The 23-year-old Durban-resident is coming to the competition straight from the recently concluded ASP Prime event, Mr. Price Pro Ballito, where he missed out on the title after getting eliminated in the semi-final stage. Evidently in good form currently,
he would definitely be a force to reckon with during the battle that takes place in his own backyard.
The 10-time ASP World Champion, Slater, is always the surfer to look out for at every event. After getting off to a great start this season, winning Quiksilver Pro in Australia, the 39-year-old surfing phenom took a few hard blows, finishing 5th
and 13th at the next two stops respectively. Currently sitting in No.3 slot on the Rankings, the American will be determined to break free of the shackles and rise to the top once again and maintain his position to take his 11th title
home.
Current ASP No.1, De Souza, will be another of the few surfers to really look out for at the 26th edition of Billabong Pro. He is enjoying a dream 2011 season so far, making a podium finish at the second stop and going all the way at Billabong
Rio Pro in Brazil two months ago. He will be looking to cement his No.1 position by clinching victory in South Africa and increasing his lead over the rest of the pack.
Australia Joel Parkinson, currently ASP No.2, is breathing down De Souza’s neck while pursuing the World Title. After finishing ninth at Quiksilver Pro, he bounced back and managed to claim victory at the second stop of the tour, Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach
in Australia. A fifth place at the Brazilian stop of the tour placed him in third place. The 30-year-old will be looking to collect yet another good finish and make himself an even stronger contender for the World Surfing Championship title.
While the field is loaded with surfing heavy-weights, there is one surfer who will remain missing from the competition, America’s Dane Reynolds. Still not fully recovered from the injury that has kept him out of the previous three stops, the 25-year-old
Californian is sitting out the fourth stop as well. Once again, the fans will have to remain deprived of his flamboyant, stylish and technical manoeuvres.
The newly appointed director of the contest, Eric Stedman will be hoping to get the contest underway on Thursday and get done with as many opening round heats as possible. According to the official surf forecasters, contestable swells from the southwest
are expected to grace the event site by Thursday afternoon, offering almost five-to-six foot waves, before fading over Friday afternoon. Light winds will be prevailing at the location as well, though it is hardly of any concern.
Lets just hope that the fourth stop of ASP World Tour gets underway on time and delivers non-stop surfing action that we have all been waiting for since a couple of months.
Tags: