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Junior Season Ends As Seniors Face Big Second Half Of Year |
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Written by Ben Kennings
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Monday, 18 July 2011 |
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| Matt Hewitt - Image Steve Robertson / ASP |
The competitive season has come to an end for the New Zealand surfers on the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Australasian Pro Junior Series with Matt Hewitt (Mount Maunganui) narrowly missing out on qualification for the World Pro Junior Tour - two places outside qualification in sixth place.
The final event of the year took place in South Australia over the weekend with Hewitt
securing an excellent fifth placing at the event. However, sitting in fifth place going into
the event and the cut off point being the top four surfers on the ratings,
Hewitt was overtaken by event winner and Ryan Callinan and third place getter
Dean Bowen relegating him to sixth on the ratings.
It is a tough position to be in for the young Kiwi surfer who was the only
surfer to win more than one event during the series.
“Pretty bummed, I did everything I could this year and the last heat I surfed
was the same” said a dejected Hewitt while taking some brief timeout back in New Zealand.
“I thought I got scored pretty low in my last heat but there is not much you
can do about that” reflected Hewitt who also said that it took him a while to
realise that a fifth placing at the event was a enormous result in itself.
Hewitt fell to Bowen on a wave starved final day of the event in a heat that
gave Hewitt limited opportunity to get good scores the heat finishing 12.35
points vs 9.75 points.
Hewitt was well aware that the whole season was on the line for that 30 minute
heat. “It was pretty serious, I didn’t
really talk to him (Dean). He was
focussed too. If I made it I would have
been in” said Hewitt who now becomes a reserve in the case that injury to one
of the qualified surfers prevents them from competing.
Hewitt now heads to the United
States this week where he will spend the
next two months surfing, training and competing in American waters.
Gisborne surfer Johnny Hicks secured his best result of his career placing
fifth at the Fantastic Noodles Pro Junior event losing to 2011 Series Champion
Thomas Woods in the quarterfinals. The
result catapulted Hicks up to 16th on the ratings one place behind
Alex Dive (Mnt) who finished in 15th after his placing 13th
equal result at the event.
Buck Woods (Gis) finished the year ranked 48th overall after missing
the final event of the year.
Paige Hareb (Tara) has held on to twelfth place on the ASP Women’s World Tour
after her third consecutive ninth placing, this time in France at the Roxy Pro
over the weekend.
Hareb defeated defending world champion and eventual event winner Stephanie
Gilmore (Aus) in the early rounds before finally being eliminated by Coco Ho
(Haw) in Round 4 12.4 vs 11.30.
Hareb goes into the final event of the year – the Nike US Open requiring a big
result to push her into the top ten and automatic requalification for the 2012
ASP World Tour.
Following the final event of the year Hareb will have three further world
qualifying series events in Sri Lanka,
Spain and Portugal where she will aim to hold
her ranking of fifth and requalify for the ASP World Tour.
Sarah Mason (Gis) will also attend the final three events where she will look
to improve on her current ranking of tenth and into the top six required for
qualification.
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| Paige Hareb and friends - Image Aquashot / ASP |
Jay Quinn in Portugal - Image Aquashot / ASP |
Richard Christie (Gis), Jay Quinn (Gis) and Billy Stairmand (Rag) will head
back on the road in less than two weeks time to contest the US Open at Huntington Beach, California. The event is a six star prime for the Men’s
Division. The three surfers will then
head to Europe for a string of no less than
five back-to-back events throughout August and September.
Christie currently leads the New
Zealand surfers in 47th with
Stairmand in 49th and Quinn in 54th. A massive result by any of the three surfers
at the US Open could see them qualify for the ASP World Tour at the mid year
cut off point.
Information
For more information on the New
Zealand surfer’s performances please contact
Ben Kennings on 07 8250022 or 021 2278732. Alternatively email benkennings@surfingnz.co.nz.
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