Dion Atkinson and Dale Staples steal the show in opening heats of Hainan Classic
Australia’s Dion Atkinson and South Africa’s Dale Staples rocketed off to a great start in the second event of Hainan Wanning Riyue Bay International Surfing Festival Presented by Quiksilver, Hainan Classic, on Wednesday, January 11.
The inaugural Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) 4-Star event in China had been surrounded by a lot of hype and doubts at the same time as people around the world wondered if the country would be able to offer waves fit enough for surfing. While
the International Surfing Association (ISA) China Cup had already put the worries regarding the quality of the waves to rest, the opening day of Hainan Classic further proved ASP’s decision to bring surfing competition to China as the correct one.
The day started off with three-to-five foot waves gracing the primary event site, setting up the stage for a thrilling showdown between the surfing talent from around the globe.
The event kicked off with Round 1 (Round of 64), pitting Atkinson against his fellow countrymen Jerome Forrest and Adam Bennetts, along with Venezuela’s Yusbelki Aldana Herr in a four-man battle.
The 25-year-old Atkinson took control of the heat in the opening minutes with an impressive 7.00-point wave and soon landed a series of exquisite manoeuvres to add an additional 8.33 points to his account for a heat-total of 15.33 points. The two-wave total
remained unbeatable until the end, thus carrying him off to a convincing victory and adding him to the Round 2 (Round of 32) line-up.
Forrest successfully extended his life in the event as well by securing runner-up place with a heat-total of 12.66 points, which comprised of a 5.73 and 6.93-point wave.
Bennetts barely missed out on survival after finishing 0.09 points behind Forrest to finish in third place. Herr, on the other hand, remained the most disappointment of the lot, finishing in fourth place after merely scoring 4.80 points in total off his
best-two waves.
The second heat saw the South African sensation Staples confidently make his way into the second round after prevailing over the Japanese surfers Yujiro Tsuji and Geoffrey Watson, as well as Venezuela’s Jesus Chacon.
The 21-year-old Staples got off to a slow start, but eventually picked up momentum to collect a couple of scores within the range of six to eventually finish with a heat-total of 13.20 points. The score eventually proved to be a decisive one, sealing the
fate of the contest in the South African’s favour.
Tsuji confirmed his place in Round 2 as well after finishing with a heat-total of 11.36 points to secure runner-up place.
Chacon finished third with a heat-total of 10.10 points, while a disappointing performance by Watson got him to a two-wave total of 5.13 points, thus putting him in fourth place. Both the surfers were consequently ejected from the contention for the event
title.
While Atkinson and Staples may have gotten an ideal start at the event, it would be interesting to see if they can continue to exhibit their phenomenal form when facing what is surely going to be a tougher competition in the following rounds.
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