LACANAU, France (Tuesday, August 12, 2008) - The Sooruz Lacanau Pro, an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS) 6-Star event, got underway at the famous French town of Lacanau, home of the oldest professional surfing event in France. Wind-blown tricky waves and sunny skies were today's setting and all Round 1 heats were completed.
From the 192 surfers entered in the event, 144 only remain in contention for the prestigious Sooruz Lacanau Pro crown and some big names will start their French campaign when Round 2 resumes tomorrow.
The tricky conditions and strong currents made it tough for all competitors to post high scores today but almost all favorites managed to make their way through to Round 2. Sam Page (AUS), 22, put on a good performance winning Heat 16 with an average 12.30 point heat tally (out of a possible 20) and was one of a few surfers of the day to find a barrel.
"
It was very tough out there and the current made it even harder", Page said. "
I cut my head pretty bad on my first wave but it was quite fun still. It was a real washing machine down
there but I managed to score enough to get through to next heat."
Page, who spent a year away from tour due to some serious injuries, will attend all events in Europe this summer and will be looking forward to secure points and climb up the ratings.
The European contingent suffered heavy losses on the opening day but young guns Marcos San Segundo (EUK) and ASP World Junior No. 3 Charles Martin (GLP) were among those qualifying.
Martin, 18, who has been away from the tour for a couple of months due to school obligations, was in the final of the ASP Grade-1 Oakley Lacanau Pro Junior last Saturday and aims at
getting a good result in the ASP WQS 6-Star event.
"
I could not hear the scores in the water because of the wind and the rain this morning", Martin said. "
The conditions are even more difficult than in the Pro Junior final and I am stoked I got out of this tricky heat."
Martin, who remains a top ASP European Junior surfer, will try and enter as many WQS events as possible in the next months.
"
I hope I can do good in the WQS event here because I was a bit ill last week and I am feeling better now", Martin said. "
I am still doing Pro Junior events but as I missed already a couple there is not much I can hope on that part."
Russell Winter (GBR) was another European representative to advance today. Winter, a former ASP World Tour member, seemed in good form out in the testing conditions and ended up second to
secure his spot in Round 2.
"I broke my wirst three months ago and I am slowly getting back to normal", Winter said. "
It is getting better week after week so it is really a relief to feel good again. I got a couple of good waves today but it is always quite difficult in Lacanau and in this kind of conditions there is a lot of luck involved."
The Australian crew dominated Day 1 and it was Micheal Spencer who got the highest heat tally of the day, an impressive 17.17 point score (out of a possible 20) in Heat 22. Spencer, who impressed with his great style and tactics in England last week, found a great barrel towards the end of his heat to easily advance.
"
My aim was to catch as many waves as I could to build on my scores", Spencer said. "
I had a lot of fun during that heat and I love the place. I have been competing here for a few years in the Pro Junior event and I really want to reach the man-on-man battles so I will try hard to keep up the good work."
Round 2 will resume at 8 AM (GMT+2) tomorrow Wednesday, August 13 at the main venue of the Sooruz Lacanau Pro.
The Sooruz Lacanau Pro is webcast LIVE at
www.aspeurope.com [1]
ROUND 1 RESULTS
Heat 1 : Wiggolly Dantas (BRA) 11.73 pts, Charlie Brown (BRA)
8.34 pts, Parrish Byrne (AUS) 6.64 pts
Heat 2 : Luke Campbell (AUS), Mason Ho (HAW) 10.00 pts, Adrian
Rapp (REU) 4.53 pts, Daniel Billon (FRA) 4.00pts
Heat 3 : Brent Dorrington (AUS) 9.93 pts, Luke Dorrington
(AUS) 9.87 pts, Hira Teriinatoofa (PYF) 9.10 pts, Justin Mujica
(PRT) 0.00 pts
Heat 4 : Frederico Pilurzu (CRI) 12.67 pts, Shaun Burrell (USA)
10.74 pts, Simon Marchand 6.74 pts, Jatyr Berasaluca (EUK) 5.37
pts
Heat 5 : Jack Perry (AUS) 8.54 pts, Che Stang (USA) 6.70 pts,
Txaber Trojaola (EUK) 5.73 pts, Alexander El Naib (DEU) 0.00pts
Heat 6 : Michael Marjanovic (AUS) 12.17 pts, Marco Polo (BRA)
8.00 pts, Marc Lacomare (FRA) 7.87 pts, Milton Morbeck (BRA)
5.14 pts
Heat 7 : Marcos San Segundo (EUK) 11.17 pts, Charles Martin
(GLP) 11.06 pts, Brad Ettinger (USA) 10.06 pts, Clint Kimmins
(AUS) 5.46 pts
Heat 8 : James Taipan Wood (AUS) 15.34 pts, Guilherme Herdy
(BRA) 8.60 pts, Chris Waring (USA) 7.47 pts, Omer Bar (ISR) 5.50
pts
Heat 9 : Chad Compton (USA) 9.80 pts, Joao Guedes (PRT) 9.33
pts, Flynn Novak (HAW) 7.70 pts, Rafael Ayme (REU) 3.53 pts
Heat 10 : Masatoshi Ohno (JPN) 13.00 pts, Bernardo Lopes (BRA)
7.37 pts, Shawn Dennis (ZAF) 6.64 pts, Nick Riley (AUS) 0.00 pts
Heat 11 : Thiago Camarao (BRA) 10.60 pts, Russell Winter (GBR)
9.00 pts, Justin McBride (USA) 5.07 pts, Fergal Smith (IRE) 0.00
pts
Heat 12 : Ryan Campbell (AUS) 13.40 pts, Miguel Ximenez (PRT)
11.76 pts, Adam Virs (USA) 8.83 pts, Cheyne Willis (HAW) 1.00
pts
Heat 13 : Willian Cardoso (BRA) 9.63 pts, Brandon Jackson (ZAF)
7.34 pts, Dale Lovelock (AUS) 6.00 pts, Jeremy Massiere (FRA)
3.33 pts
Heat 14 : Gilmar Silva (BRA) 6.73 pts, Dallas Petersen (AUS)
6.37 pts, Fabio Gouveia (BRA) 4.06 pts, Johnny Fryer (GBR) 2.67
pts
Heat 15 : Jarrad Sullivan (AUS) 7.93 pts, Beau Atchison (AUS)
7.13 pts, Dane Jonhson (USA) 6.94 pts, Wesley de Souza (USA)
4.20 pts
Heat 16 : Sam Page (AUS) 12.30 pts, Nick White (NZL) 7.67 pts,
Vincent Duvignac (FRA) 6.36 pts, Adrien Toyon (REU) 6.34 pts
Heat 17 : Ruben Gonzalez (PRT) 12.34 pts, Rowan Aish (NZL) 6.30
pts, Leon Van der Merwe (ZAF) 3.53 pts, Eneko Acero (EUK) 1.30
pts
Heat 18 : Luke Cheadle (AUS) 12.10 pts, Paulo Moura (BRA) 10.67
pts, Pablo Gutierrez (ESP) 8.16 pts, Edgar Nozes (PRT) 6.27 pts
Heat 19 : Dunga Neto (BRA) 12.00 pts, Diego Rosa (BRA) 6.57 pts,
Norman Landa (EUK) 4.97 pts, Tony Adams (USA) 1.50 pts
Heat 20 : David Richards (ZAF) 12.23 pts, Jay Quinn (NZL) 11.20
pts, Thomas Bady (FRA) 10.73 pts, Oier Illaramendi (EUK) 0.00
pts
Heat 21 : Steve Noble (AUS) 15.00 pts, Gavin Roberts (ZAF) 14.50
pts, Kyle Knox (USA) 6.47 pts, Damien Chaudoy (REU) 2.80 pts
Heat 22 : Michael Spencer (AUS) 17.17 pts, Frederic Robin (REU)
10.50 pts, Danilo Costa (BRA) 10.23 pts, Kepa Acero (EUK), 2.70
pts
Heat 23 : Christophe Allary (REU) 11.84 pts, Arthur Bourbon
(GLP) 8.70 pts, Kellen Ellison (USA) 0.73 pts, Nathan Carroll
(HAW) 0.00 pts
Heat 24 : Bobby Hansen (NZL) 9.16 pts, Reubin Pearce (ZAF) 8.30
pts, Nicolau Von Rupp (DEU) 8.10 pts, Ariano Marques (PRT) 3.00
pts
UPCOMING ROUND 2 HEATS
Heat 1 : Corey Ziems (AUS), Travis Logie (ZAF), Wiggoly Dantas
(BRA), Mason Ho (HAW)
Heat 2 : Blake Thornton (AUS), Antonio Bortoletto (ZAF), Charlie
Brown (BRA), Luke Campbell (AUS)
Heat 3 : Tiago Pires (PRT), Gavin Gillette (HAW), Brent
Dorrington (AUS), Frederico Pilurzu (CRI)
Heat 4 : Dustin Cuizon (HAW), Rudy Marechal (FRA), Luke
Dorrington (AUS), Frederico Pilurzu (CRI)
Heat 5 : Dane Gudauskas (USA), Tonino Benson (HAW), Jack Perry
(AUS), Marco Paulo (BRA)
Heat 6 : Leandro Batsos (BRA), Mike Losness (USA), Che Stang
(USA), Michael Marjanovic (AUS)
Heat 7 : Phillip MacDonald (AUS), Paul Fisher (AUS), Marcos San
Segundo (EUK), Guilherme Herdy (BRA)
Heat 8 : Damien Fahrenfort (ZAF), Jose Maria Cabrera (CNY),
Charles Martin (GLP), James Taipan Wood (AUS)
Heat 9 : Hugo Savalli (REU), Anthony Petruso (USA) Chad Compton
(USA), Bernardo Lopes (BRA)
Heat 10 : Glenn Hall (REU), Rudy JNR Palmboom (ZAF), Joao Guedes
(PRT) Masatoshi Ohno (JPN)
Heat 11 : Brian Toth (PRI), Eric RebiïÓe (FRA), Thiago Camarao
(BRA), Miguel Ximenez (PRT)
Heat 12 : Joel Centeio (HAW), Ben Dunn (AUS), Russell Winter
(GBR), Ryan Campbell (AUS)
Heat 13 : Dion Atkinson (AUS), Mark Mathews (AUS), Willian
Cardoso (BRA), Dallas Petersen (AUS)
Heat 14 : Makuakai Rothman (HAW), Blake Wilson (AUS), Brandon
Jackson (ZAF), Gilmar Silva (BRA)
Heat 15 : Hodei Collazo (EUK), Abdel El Harim (MAR), Jarrad
Sullivan (AUS), Nick White (NZL)
Heat 16 : Shaun Ward (USA), Kevin Sullivan (HAW), Beau Atchison
(PRT), Sam Page (AUS)
Heat 17 : Patrick Beven (FRA), Daniel Ross (AUS), Ruben Gonzalez
(PRT), Paulo Moura (BRA)
Heat 18 : Jarrad Howse (AUS), Romain Laulhe (FRA), Rowan Aish
(NZL), Luke Cheadle (AUS)
Heat 19 : Renato Galvao (BRA), Tanner Gudauskas (USA), Dunga
Neto (BRA), Jay Quinn (NZL)
Heat 20 : Jadson Andre (BRA), Robson Santos (BRA), Diego Rosa
(BRA), David Richards (ZAF)
Heat 21 : Joan Duru (FRA), Heitor Alves (BRA), Steve Noble
(AUS), Frederic Robin (REU)
Heat 22 : Jean Da Silva (BRA), Jean Sebastien Estienne (BLM),
Gavin Roberts (ZAF), Michael Spencer (AUS)
Heat 23 : Alain Riou (PYF), Sterling Spencer (USA), Christophe
Allary (REU), Reubin Pearce (ZAF)
Heat 24 : Andre Silva (BRA), Mikael Picon (FRA), Arthur Bourbon
(GLP), Bobby Hansen (NZL)
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