Taylor Knox and Gabriel Medina head into Quiksilver Pro France Quarter-Finals – 2011 ASP World Tour
The renowned beach-break of La Graviere in France continued to play host to the latest stop of the 2011 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour, Quiksilver Pro France, on Tuesday, October 11, as America’s Taylor Knox faced Australia’s Adrian Buchan in the first, while Brazil’s Gabriel Medina got ready to square off with France’s Jeremy Flores in the second heat of Round 5.
Knox made a strong charge in the final minutes of the first heat to prevail over Buchan and secure the Quarter-Final spot, pushing his opponent out of the contention for the event-title in the process.
The second heat turned out to be a no-contest as Flores was unable to compete due to an ankle injury, thus giving Medina a walk-over into the Quarter-Finals.
Tuesday had not started off well for the latest elite tour stop, with the fog keeping the competition on hold for five hours. However, Mother Nature eventually gave her blessing to the event, allowing it to resume in clean two-to-three foot waves.
The opening heat of Round 5 saw the 40-year-old Knox take on Buchan in a battle for survival. Both the surfers had failed to deliver in the previous round, but looked determined to make up for the lacklustre performance in their latest heat to remain alive in the competition.
As the heat got under-way, Knox drew first blood by locking a wave to unload a combination of impressive tricks and post 7.17 on the score-board. Buchan soon responded with a 5.33-point wave to keep the pressure to a minimum.
As the heat progressed, the American added another 6.33 points to his account, moving to a heat-total of 13.50 points. Despite a determined hunt and remarkable effort, Buchan was forced to surrender victory to his rival after failing to get the necessary score off his second wave and finishing off with a heat-total of 12.53 points. The 0.97-point deficit led to the Australian’s elimination from the competition.
The second heat was supposed to feature a battle between the 17-year-old Medina against the local-favourite, Flores, for the Quarter-Final spot. However, the latter was unable to show up for the heat due to an ankle injury sustained during his Round 3 heat. This compelled the officials to grant a walk-over to Medina, sending him through into the Quarter-Finals.
For more updates on Round 5 of Quiksilver Pro France, stay tuned to bettor.com.
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