The noose is tightening … This Friday, the women’s 3rd round and quarter-finals were completed, as well as the 4th men’s round. Joys for some, regrets and tears for many.
In the men’s category, out of the eight remaining in the quarter-finals, four are or have been members of the Championship Tour, the world’s surfing elite: Leonardo Fioravanti, Miguel Pupo, Jadson Andre and Nat Young.
Leonardo Fioravanti, the young Italian prodigy, flies over his series. “On this spot of Basse-Pointe, if you have the right wave, you can easily have a 7 or 8. You just have to find the waves and I had good ones from the beginning that allowed me to have good scores”, he summarizes. Another favorite, American Nat Young also qualifies for the quarter finals. Miguel Tudela will be the only Peruvian athlete in the rest of the competition: “Only the very good surfers are left so it was a difficult serie. The conditions are also difficult but there are waves, you just have to choose well.”
Three Brazilians in quarter finals
With Miguel Pupo, Jadson Andre and Bino Lopes (2nd at MSP 2017), the golden and green nation will be very well represented. “I have a good board, this morning before the race I had some good waves that made me feel very confident, I was happy. The waves are really tricky. Sometimes they look small or bad but are interesting later so you must have the eye. I surfed as many waves as I could, especially since there was Nat Young in my series who is really a very good surfer,” says Miguel Pupo.
More than one French in the running
Jorgann Couzinet from Reunion island and Tristan Guilbaud from the Vendée province fail before the quarter-finals. “It was difficult, it was slow, I knew that waiting a long time was risky and I’ve screwed up! I also lost priority at the wrong time”, he claims, disappointed.
The Tahitian Mihimana Braye is the only Frenchman to reach the quarter finals: “I have the same strategy since the beginning of the competition. I try to start my series with a good first wave that puts me in the rhythm, and take several more. I am very happy to represent Tahiti and France. In addition, I came to the MSP two years ago but I was injured during the competition and I could not compete.”
In the women’s category, after obtaining the best score of the day with a 9.17 in the third round, disappointment for the French Pauline Ado in the quarter-final against Claire Bevilacqua. “I try to do radical and explosive maneuvers, exploit the wave to the maximum and it paid off,” says the Australian.” In addition, I love the Caribbean, the people and the good energy”.
The young Portuguese Teresa Bonvalot, Junior European Champion 2016 and 2017, also fails to win in her series.
The only representative of the Caribbean still in the running is the Barbadian Chelsea Tuach. “I was facing Holly Wawn in the quarter finals. She has a lot of power but I wanted to beat her with explosive maneuvers,” says the former resident of the Championship Tour.
Australia monopolizes the semi finals! Out of the four surfers in the semi-finals, three are Aussies: Claire Bevilacqua, Isabella Nichols and Philippa Anderson.
Next meeting
Saturday, “call” at 9:30am.
Women’s semi-finals and final.
Men’s quarter finals, semi-finals and final.
