Stephanie Gilmore defeats Laura Enever to claim Roxy Pro Gold Coast title – Surfing News
Australia’s Stephanie Gilmore prevailed over her compatriot Laura Enever in the Final of Roxy Pro Gold Coast that took place at the renowned Snapper Rocks in Queensland, Australia, on Sunday, March 4.
The competition field for the first stop on the 2012 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Women’s World Tour was full of extremely skilled surfers, with nearly all of them genuinely formidably in water.
However, the 24-year-old four-time ASP Women’s World Champion Gilmore managed to separate herself from the rest of the pack through a series of phenomenal performances.
Making her way steadily through the competition into the Final, she found herself facing an inform Enever for the coveted event-title. The 20-year-old Enever was in a form that was nothing short of deadly either and was expected to give the ASP Women’s Tour
veteran a real run for her money.
As the battle got underway, Enever got off to a confident start, posting a 7.77 on the score-board to take an early lead. Gilmore soon responded with a 7.17-point wave to relieve herself of some pressure, though she still remained in trail of her rival.
As the battle progressed, both the surfers kept searching for opportunities to add another big score to their account.
In the final minutes of the heat, Gilmore managed to lock a wave to unload a string of exquisite manoeuvres to earn a 9.20 for the effort, moving to a heat-total of 16.37 points and thus grabbing the lead.
Enever made a desperate attempt on her wave to earn a big score, but her effort turned out to be futile and she only managed to score a 6.43 off it to finish with a heat-total of 14.20 points.
Talking to a reporter after the heat, Gilmore said, “To be carried up the beach with your friends underneath you with thousands of people around has got to be one of the best feelings in the world. It took me back to 2005 when I won here as a grom. Last
year went so quickly and it felt like I didn’t even exist on the rankings and that fire wasn’t really there. This year it’s so good to have that back! My cheeks are so sore from smiling already.”
With her victory at Roxy Pro Gold Coast, Gilmore secured the No.1 spot on the ASP Women’s World Title rankings, the very spot that she had ended up losing at the same event last year.
The ASP Top-17 will resume their campaign for the coveted ASP World Title at Rip Curl Women’s Pro from April 3 – 9.
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