Medina, Boukhiam, Crews and Villaran survive Round 1 of Quiksilver Saquarema Prime – Surfing News
Brazil’s Gabriel Medina, Morocco’s Ramzi Boukhiam, Australia’s Mitch Crews and Peru’s Gabriel Villaran clinched victory in their respective Round 1 (Round of 96) heats of the Association of Surfing Professionals
(ASP) 2013 Quiksilver Saquarema Prime, which continued at Itauna beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Wednesday, May 22, 2013.
The four surfers consequently secured their place in the second round (Round of 48).
Hawaii’s Kiron Jabour, his compatriot Granger Larsen, Ireland’s Glenn Hall and Brazil’s Tomas Hermes successfully extended their life in the competition as well after securing second-place finish in their respective
Round 1 heats.
With coveted ASP Prime ranking points, as well as a hefty prize on offer, the top surfers from around the globe had enough motivation to fight hard for survival in the competition.
The 13th heat of Round 1 pitted Medina, 2013 ASP World Championship Tour contender, against Jabour, Brazil’s Yan Guimaraes and New Zealand’s Billy Stairmand in a four-man bout for the
Round 2 spot.
It turned out to be a smooth sailing for the Medina, courtesy of a near-perfect 9.43 off his first business-wave and an impressive 8.93 off his second-best ride for a heat-total of 18.36 points.
Jabour accompanied the Brazilian surfer into the next round after claiming place through a heat-total of 16.20 points.
The next heat saw Boukhiam taking on Larsen, Puerto Rico’s Brian Toth and Hawaii’s Torrey Meister.
The Moroccan surfer completely stole the show with an exceptional performance and ended up posting the highest heat-total of the day, an 18.47, which comprised of a 9.80 and 8.67-point wave. With neither of his
rivals managing to even threaten his lead, he walked away with a comfortable win.
“I’m so happy. It was really tough, but I was able to get two good waves and I want to thank my team for my conditioning because I needed all my energy to face these difficult conditions,” said Boukhiam. “It’s
my first time here and I caught some strong waves. It sounds like it will be even bigger tomorrow, so I’m happy to remain in the contest.”
Larsen made the Round 2 cut as well after finishing second with a two-wave total of 9.20 points.
Crews got the better of Hall, Brazil’s Ricardo dos Santos and his fellow countryperson Flavio Nakagima in the 15th heat to advance to the next round.
The Australian surfer claimed the win with the help of a heat-total of 10.23 points, which comprised of a couple of waves in the five-point range.
Hall managed to avoid elimination by grabbing second position and registering a heat-total of 9.54 points.
The final heat of the day saw Villaran clinch the win after downing Hermes and his Brazilian compatriots, namely Miguel Pupo and Jean da Silva.
The Peruvian surfer collected an 8.00 off his first business-wave and backed it up with a 6.50-point ride, thus registering a heat-total of 14.50 points.
Hermes claimed the second-place finish with finishing with a heat-total of 14.27 points, thus accompanying Villaran into the next round.
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