Gabriel Medina downs Julian Wilson to lift Quiksilver Pro France title – 2011 ASP World Tour
After a series of adrenaline-pumping battles, the eighth of eleven stops on the 2011 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour, Quiksilver Pro France, came down to the Final, with Brazil’s Gabriel Medina and Australia’s Julian Wilson competing
for the event title at La Graviere in France on Wednesday, October 12.
There could not have been a more befitting finale to what had turned out to be a thrilling week. Both the finalists fought tooth and nail until the end, though Medina eventually managed to edge past Wilson to claim a maiden victory.
The 17-year-old Medina had joined the ranks of the elite ASP surfers after September’s rotation. Despite lacking experience to compete at the biggest stage of the sport, the young Brazilian proved wise beyond his years and took only a short time to justify
his place among the best surfers from around the world.
After proving his mettle with numerous confident wins throughout the course of the event, Medina made his way into the Finals to face the emerging Australian force, Wilson, in a battle for the coveted event-title.
Both the surfers got off to a slow start during the Finals, but Medina eventually broke free of the shackles by locking a juicy wave to score 7.83 points off it. Wilson went through a series of average-scores before catching a wave to post an 8.50 on the
score-board and taking the lead.
As the heat progressed, the young Australian added an additional 7.60 points to his account, moving to a heat-total of 16.10 points. The score was undoubtedly a competitive one, creating a strong possibility for Wilson to walk away with the win.
However, Medina rose to the occasion quite well and locked a wave in the final minutes of the heat to unload a series of high-risk manoeuvres, earning 9.17 points for the effort and clinching his inaugural ASP World Title victory.
Expressing his joy during the post-Final interview, Medina said, “This is the best feeling ever. I beat some great guys on the way to Final and I'm very stoked now. I want to thank all my friends and family and god for their support. It has been an amazing
week for me. Just two years ago, I was here competing in the King of the Groms and I won that event and now I'm here in the main event and I've won it. It doesn't seem real.”
While he may have missed out on top honours, Wilson was still pretty excited about his runner-up finish. He referred to the event as one of his most memorable experiences and a source of strong motivation to go all the way at the Portugal stop of the World
Tour.
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