Adriano de Souza defeats Michel Bourez in fifth round of Billabong Rio Pro – Surfing news
Brazil’s most promising surfer, Adriano de Souza, clinched the win in his heat against French-Polynesian, Michel Bourez, in the fifth round of the men’s Billabong Rio Pro that went down at the beach-break of Barra Da Tijuca in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on
Friday morning, May 20th.
The conditions at the event site turned out to be extremely challenging, with very few waves breaking at the beach. It seemed that mother-nature was still not in the mood to cooperate with the event and give her blessings. Instead of going for another lay
day, the event organisers decided to let the heats continue in order to wrap up the competition. There really was no point in delaying the contest when the conditions were deteriorating.
The promising Brazilian surfer faced the French Polynesian in extremely tough conditions. Both struggled to catch good waves. One could hardly blame the surfers for struggling as there was hardly anything on offer. Eventually, De Souza settled for average
waves to pull off his manoeuvres, ending his heat with a total score of 10.73.
Bourez failed to make the most out of what the break had to offer and only managed to earn a 7.90 after his two waves to surrender victory to his Brazilian opponent.
Those who had seen De Souza in the previous stop of the 2011 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Men’s World Tour, Rip Curl Pro, at Bells Beach in Victoria, Australia, must be quite aware of the potential that the 24-year-old possesses. It takes more
than just sheer luck to eliminate the World Number One surfer, Kelly Slater, in perfect surfing conditions.
However, taking his recent heat performances into account, De Souza had remained rather inconsistent. For someone who was being considered as one of the few formidable forces to be reckoned with in Rio de Janeiro, the Brazilian was not really doing justice
to his repute and the hype that surrounded him. Even the home-advantage had not been able to bring out the best in him.
De Souza needs to stay focused and find consistency if he wants to survive in the upcoming stages of the competition.
Tags: