Ian Gouveia and Mitchell Parkinson claim top honours in Round 2 of CHIKO Pro Junior at Merewether
Brazil’s Ian Gouveia and Australia’s Mitchell Parkinson emerged triumphant in their respective Round 2 (Round of 96) heats of CHIKO Pro Junior at Newcastle’s Surfest that continued at Merewether in New South Wales, Australia, on Thursday, March 8.
The 4-Star Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Men’s Junior Qualifying event featured the young talent from all parts of the world, offering them a chance to take home the winning prize of $20,000 and earning crucial ASP Junior rating points that
could eventually put them in the field for the ASP Men’s Junior World Championship.
The six-foot waves along with the off-shore winds kept was making it pretty tough for the surfers to catch waves and score big, making majority of the battles low-scoring.
As the event moved to the ninth heat of Round 2, Gouveia took on fellow countryman Jesse Mendes and Australia’s Jason Girvan. Australia’s Jack Freestone was also part of the original line-up, but he failed to show up for the heat.
Gouveia exhibited a pretty promising form during the course of the battle and eventually managed to post a 5.25 and 6.50 on the score-board to get to a heat-total of 11.75 points. The score served to seal the fate of the contest in his favour, carrying him
through into the next round.
Mendes kicked-off the heat with an excellent wave, unloading a series of exquisite tricks to earn an 8.00 for the effort. However, he failed to back it up with any solid score and eventually had to settle for runner-up place with a heat-total of 9.25 points.
The result was enough to take him into the next round as well.
Girvan finished in third place with a two-wave total of 3.75 points. The lacklustre performance resulted in his elimination from the competition.
The 10th heat of Round 2 featured an exciting performance by Parkinson as he surfed his way to victory. The Australian adapted well to the conditions and managed to post a 4.50 and 7.50 on the score-board for a heat-total of 12.00 points. The
score proved sufficient to earn him the win and take him through into the next round.
Australia’s Jack Duggan extended his life in the event as well after securing runner-up place through a performance that resulted in a heat-total of 9.90 points.
The local talent Louis Gillick and French Polynesia’s Heimana Buisson were forced to make an early exit from the competition after finishing in third and fourth place respectively. Gillick finished with a heat-total of 9.75 points, while the latter posted
a 3.35 on the score-board off the only wave that he managed to catch during the heat.
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