Small surf at Keramas keeps Round 3 of Oakley Pro Bali from getting underway – Surfing news
A lay day was called for the Oakley Pro Bali, event no. 5 on the 2013 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Championship Tour, on Friday, June 21, 2013, due to presence of only small surf at the main event venue of Keramas in Bali, Indonesia.
Since plenty of swell is projected in coming days, the event organisers decided to keep Round 3 of the latest elite tour event on hold until the conditions showed a significant improvement.
“Waves have dropped this morning so we’ve called competition off for the day,” Rich Porta, ASP International Head Judge, said. “We are tracking a few swell models arriving in the coming days and will be back tomorrow morning to make another assessment.”
Giving some of the best surfing talent from around the globe an opportunity to showcase their skills at Keramas for the first time in history, the Oakley Pro Bali featured plenty of exquisite performances, exhilarating battles and huge upsets on all three days of the competition.
On the very first day, the crowd witnessed some of the top seeds failing to hold their own and consequently getting relegated to the second round, thus having to make an extra bit of an effort to reach Round 3.
America’s Kelly Slater, 11-time ASP World Champion and current no. 1 on the 2013 ASP World Championship Tour, and Australia’s Joel Parkinson, reigning ASP World Champion, were two of the most notable surfing heavy-weights who were involved in the Round 1 upsets.
While both the surfers put on uncharacteristic performances on the opening day of the competition, they bounced back strongly in Round 2 to keep themselves alive in the contention for the event title.
Other top surfers who failed to make a solid impact in Round 1, but successfully made amends in the second round to extend their life in the event included Australia’s Taj Burrow, Julian Wilson, Josh Kerr and Brazil’s Gabriel Medina.
Hawaii’s Sebastian Zietz survived Round 2 as well to qualify into Round 3, where he will be pitted against his in-form compatriot John John Florence for the second time in three rounds.
When competition resumes, Burrow will lock horns with Brazil’s Miguel Pupo in the first heat of Round 3.
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