Michel Bourez edge past Simao Romao in second round of 2011 Billabong Rio Pro
French Polynesian, Michel Bourez, emerged triumphant from his heat against Brazil’s Simao Romao in the second round of Men’s 2011 Billabong Rio Pro that was held at the Aproador beach resort in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday, May 18.
The battle between the two surfers turned out to be a real nail-biter as both of them looked determined to seek redemption after a disappointing performance in the first round of the event. Bourez had ended up at the bottom when facing America’s Cory Lopez
and Australia’s Chris Davidson in his previous heat, which led many to believe that maybe the French Polynesian surfer will not be able to make any serious impact in the current stop of the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Men’s World Tour.
To make matters worse for him, he was pitted against Romao, who was contested by one of the world’s best surfer, Mick Fanning from Australia, in the first round to be forced into the second round. The local knowledge was bound to give an advantage to the
Brazilian surfer, which was surely alarming for Bourez.
As the battle kicked off, both the surfers began to search for the most promising waves to lock them up and earn enough score from the judges to walk-away from the heat victorious.
Romao managed to secure a score of 12.10 after his two waves, but Bourez edged past his rival, though just barely, with a core of 12.50. The French Polynesian had finally been able to find his rhythm and right not time too. The victory in the second round
cemented a place for Bourez in the third round.
The conditions at Rio de Janeiro have not been very suitable for surfing over the last few days and the surfers ended up with two-to-four foot waves at their disposal. Still, the vast experience and skills are coming into play as the in-form surfers already
made a strong statement during the first round of the competition, while a few others are beginning to adjust to the conditions and regaining their form.
The next round of the Men’s 2011 Billabong Rio Pro will bring the surfers back to the primary event site of Barra Da Tijuca if good conditions continue to prevail.
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