Sally Fitzgibbons claims 2011 ASP 6-Star Swatch Girls Pro France title
Australian surfing sensation, Sally Fitzgibbons clinched the 2011 ASP 6-Star Swatch Girls Pro France title at Les Bourdaines, France, on Friday, June 3, by defeating Sage Erickson of USA in the final of the event.
Fitzgibbons gave a remarkable performance in the final as she dominated the heat from the start to finish. Although the conditions were really challenging, Fitzgibbons came out on top with an outstanding two-wave score of 16.00.
Erickson would've had to be on the top of her game to beat that kind of a score in the final of the event. Unfortunately for her, the pressure of the final and her poor-wave handling skill defined her performance on the day, as she scored a below-par, 9.70
points.
Fitzgibbons was thrilled with her performance and said while speaking to reporters after the heat, “I am really excited to get the win here with everyone surfing so well. It was super challenging with the conditions so to come out on top I am really happy.
It is a great confidence boost and I came here for a little holiday but to get the win was a bonus for sure.”
Meanwhile, the runner-up of 2011 Swatch Girls Pro, Sage Erickson wasn’t too unhappy with her performance either. The surfer failed to deliver in the final but as a result of her final showing at the event, she has improved her ranking in the Women’s Star
Tour.
Most importantly, she has booked her place in the Elite 2012 ASP Women’s World Tour.
Erickson said after the heat, “In each contest I am striving to get on the Women’s World Tour and I think it is a dream like every other surfer has to get on that tour. I have definitely been trying a lot harder to improve my surfing and it seems to be falling
into place. I am really excited and I am taking it contest by contest and heat by heat.”
Earlier, Fitzgibbons won the semifinal heat in a tough battle against American surfer, Courtney Conlogue which saw the two surfers separated by just 0.67 points.
Meanwhile, Sage Erickson beat Sarah Baum with a comprehensive margin of 6.1 points in the second semifinal heat this morning.
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