Carissa Moore bows out to Sally Fitzgibbons in Billabong Women’s Rio Pro Semi-finals
Australia’s Sally Fitzgibbons made her way through into the Final of Billabong Women’s Rio Pro, the fifth of seven stops on the 2012 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Women’s World Tour, after getting the better of Hawaii’s Carissa Moore in the
second Semi-final that went down at the main event site of Barra da Tijuca in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Sunday, May 13.
The clash between the two phenomenal surfers turned out to be nothing short of spectacular. The battle turned out to be something that would not be getting forgotten anytime soon.
Moore, reigning ASP Women’s World Champion and 2011 Billabong Women’s Rio Pro Champion, had not looked comfortable in the testy one-to-two foot waves breaking at the primary event site on Saturday. However, the peaky one-to-three foot waves gracing Barra
da Tijuca on Sunday transformed her into a shadow of her former self, pretty much reminding everyone why she became the youngest woman to lift the coveted ASP Women’s World Title.
Pitted against Fitzgibbons in the second Semi-final, the 19-year-old Moore gradually built momentum before unleashing a series of quick turns on her first business-wave to post a 7.83 on the score-board. She immediately backed it up with another impressive
effort, this time getting a 7.53 for her impressive ride to get to a heat-total of 15.36 points. It seemed that the fate of the battle had been decided.
However, Fitzgibbons had no intention of letting her Hawaiian rival deprive her of the Finals’ spot. The 2011 ASP Women’s World Runner-Up did not succumb to the pressure that she was placed under after Moore’s onslaught and stepped up to meet the challenge
head on. After looking quite vulnerable for most part of the heat, she scored an 8.00 off a wave in the final minutes of the heat and immediately backed it up with a 7.47-point ride to reach a heat-total of 15.47 points, leaving everyone at the site stunned.
The Australian surfer reminded everyone that it is never over until it is over.
Talking about the eventual outcome of the heat, Fitzgibbons said, “I think we all want to make the Final and it’s disappointing. I’ve lost to Sally [Fitzgibbons] twice this year and I’ve just got to keep trying in the next couple of events and that’s it.”
The excellent come-from-behind victory carried Fitzgibbons into the Final of the latest edition of Billabong Women’s Rio Pro where she was going to face Hawaii’s Coco Ho for the event title.
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