Stephanie Gilmore defeats Sally Fitzgibbons to advance to Roxy Pro France 2011 finals
With the conclusion of the first semi-final, the latest edition of Roxy Pro France 2011 moved on to the second semi-final at the backup event-site, La Grande Plage, in Biarritz, France, on Friday, July 15.
The second semi-final pitted the four-time and reigning Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Women’s World Champion from Australia, Stephanie Gilmore, against her compatriot and one of the most impressive surfer this season, Sally Fitzgibbons. Both
women fought hard, but eventually it was Gilmore who walked away with top honours to secure a place in the finals.
The 23-year-old Gilmore was not having the best of ASP Women’s World Tour seasons this year. She had not managed to add a single event victory to her name so far, something quite unusual for someone who had four ASP Women’s World titles under her belt.
However, as the latest stop of ASP Women’s World Tour was unwrapping, things were turning out to be pretty bright for the renowned surfer. After overcoming numerous obstacles, she had eventually managed to land into the semi-finals to battle for a place
in the final and move closer to her first victory of the season.
However, she now had to face one of the most impressive surfer of the current season, Fitzgibbons. The 20-year-old had been enjoying an amazing season so far, with two event-titles to her name already. She alone was separating Hawaii’s Carissa Moore from
the ASP crown right now, though the odds were pretty much against her. The young Australian was keeping complete control over her nerves throughout the event and enjoying her surfing rather than worrying about the championship title, undoubtedly a perfect
attitude under such circumstances.
As the semi-final heat between the two in-form surfers began, Gilmore seemed to be in a much better form as compared to her rival. While Fitzgibbons was struggling to catch waves, Gilmore was controlling the sea, catching wave after wave in her hunt for
a good score. She eventually locked a wave to score 8.00 points off it and later added another 7.30 points to her account to move to a two-wave total of 15.30 points.
Despite remaining impressive throughout the competition, Fitzgibbons seemed to have suddenly run out of luck, with hardly any good wave heading her wave. She eventually managed to catch three waves and posted a 7.00 and 5.67 on the scoreboard to finish with
a heat-total of 12.67 points. The effort proved to be futile, allowing her rival to clinch the win and move into the finals.
The defeat cost Fitzgibbons more than just a final’s spot or an event victory - it cost her the opportunity to deprive Hawaii’s Moore of the ASP Championship crown. With her out of the competition and Moore in the finals, the fate of the ASP Women’s World
Tour was sealed. The Hawaiian was the 2011 ASP Women’s World Tour Champion regardless of the outcome of Roxy Pro final.
While talking to a reporter later in the day, Fitzgibbons said, “It's been a fantastic year, I've enjoyed the highs and lows but it's a bit devastating to lose the world title. I am stoked to see my good friend Carissa (Moore) win the title.”
Even though the 20-year-old Australian was unable to go all the way this time, she made quite an unforgettable impact during the season. It will be interesting to see if she will come back next year to finish what she started.
For updates on the finals of Roxy Pro France 2011, stay tuned to bettor.com
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