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Malibu - the legendary right hand point break that put surfing on the map in the USA.
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Rip Curl Malibu Pro (October 2 - 10)
Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) www.aspworldtour.com 2004 Women's World Championship Tour (WCT)
Two of World's Top Five Eliminated in Sensational Day at Rip Curl Malibu Pro WCT
Saturday, 2 October, 2004 (Malibu, CA, USA)
Australia's six-time world professional surfing champion Layne Beachley and Brazil's current world number three Jacqueline Silva today bowed out of the inaugural Rip Curl Pro WCT at California's legendary Malibu Beach in surprise Round Three results.
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Melanie Redman-Carr (Aus) was beaten by Hawaiian Keala Kennelly in round 3. Redman-Carr had to settle for equal ninth place and US $2,750 in prize money.
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The narrow losses of Beachley and Silva in tricky conditions severely dented their chances for the 2004 world title, with four other contenders all advancing to tomorrow's quarter finals of the first stand-alone women's World Championship competition on the US mainland.
In inconsistent one to two foot surf, 32-year-old Beachley, currently ranked number four, was eliminated by Hawaiian Megan Abubo, a 26-year-old seeded 15th in this event, while 25-year-old Silva was knocked out by Australia's 1993 world champion Pauline Menczer, the 14th seed, and at 34, the oldest competitor on tour.
In both upset heats, less than one point separated the winners from the losers; Menczer scoring a total of 9.5 points (out of a possible 20) to Silva's 8.75, and Abubo scoring 11.75 points versus Beachley's 11.00.
Current world number one, Peru's Sofia Mulanovich, was lucky to survive her third round clash today with 16-year-old American sensation and wildcard Karina Petroni. On the total points from their best two rides the pair were tied, but the 21-year-old South American's best single ride of 7.5 points (out of a possible 10) gave her a half point countback victory over the Florida-based Petroni, one of the surfing world's outstanding up-and-comers.
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Hawaiian Melanie Bartels ripped but fell to Chelsea Georgeson (Aus) in round 3.
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"I'm really happy to get through today and I can only thank God," said Mulanovich, who will meet 8th seeded Maria Tita Tavares, of Brazil, in tomorrow's quarter finals, after Tavares eliminated Australian 9th seed Trudy Todd.
Australian 21-year-old Chelsea Georgeson, seeded 5th at Malibu, was today's standout performer, posting the day's highest heat score of 16.25 (out of a possible 20) and best single ride score of 9.5 in her third round victory over Hawaiian 22-year-old Melanie Bartels, Bartels score of 13 points matching her seeding position.
Georgeson said of her top scoring ride "I was stoked to get that wave because if Mel had caught it, I would have been 2nd (and eliminated)." In a classic youth-versus-experience clash, Georgeson meets fellow Australian Menczer in the quarters.
Hawaii's 33-year-old Rochelle Ballard, seeded 2nd here, kept her hopes for a maiden world title alive with the day's second-best heat score (14.25) in her win over Australian Prue Jeffries. Ballard said after her heat win "I felt nervous about this heat, but I'm really happy to have caught some high scoring rides and get through."
She now meets Australian rookie Laurina McGrath in the quarters, after McGrath beat fellow Australian Sam Cornish today.
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Wildcard Karina Petroni (Florida, USA) was in close contention for a round 3 victory but fell short of less than a point in the dying seconds and was beaten by current ratings leader Sofia Mulanovich (Peru).
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On a day when luck played almost as big a part in the results as the surfing, the fourth succesful world title contender today, Keala Kennelly, also Hawaiian, set up a quarter-final clash with fellow islander Abubo by beating 10th seeded Australian Melanie Redman-Carr.
If Mulanovich reaches tomorrow's woman-on-woman final of the Rip Curl Malibu Pro, it will end Beachley's six-year reign as world champion. Although there are two more World Championship competitions after Malibu, the diminutive Peruvian holds such a commanding lead on the ratings that if she wins at Malibu, only Ballard could stop her from claiming South America's first world professional crown. And Ballard would have to win both remaining events in Hawaii to do so.
The inaugural Rip Curl Malibu Pro WCT has a total prize pool of US$62,500, with the winner to walk away with US$10,000. Although conditions are again expected to be less than ideal tomorrow, organisers have been forced to run the event in the first two days of its 10-day waiting period by a bleak surf forecast of mill-pond conditions from Monday on.
An entertaining sideshow to tomorrow's action will be the Celebrity Surfbout, a fun team surfing competition pitting some of Hollywood's leading actors against a lineup of high-profile musicians. Among those already confirmed to compete in the Celebrity Surfbout are:
- American Jorja Fox, one of the stars of the highly popular TV series CSI;
- Australian Simon Baker, star of the recent hit TV series The Guardian and the soon to be released movie The Ring 2;
- American self-confessed "idiot" Chris Pontius, best known for his crazy antics on MTV's Jackass and Wild Boyz programs;
- Australian Dominic Purcell, a rising Hollywood star with a lead role in the soon to be released movie Blade Trinity;
- American Mark Ruffalo, star of current hit movie 13 Going On 30.
The Rip Curl Malibu Pro is the fifth of seven Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) world championship competitions in 2004, with each surfer's best six results to determine the final 2004 rankings. The final two events will run in Hawaii in November and December.
For more information, please contact in the USA:
Adam Sharp, phone 1-760-917-9117, email asharp@ripcurl.com
Gary Dunne, phone 1-760-481-8312, email gdunne@ripcurl.com.au
Jesse Faen (ASP International Media Manager),
Email: jesse@aspworldtour.com
Mobile: +61 (0) 407 189 289
ASP International Office (Aus): +61 (0) 7 5599 1550 www.aspworldtour.com
ASP Digital Image Enquiries:
Karen Wilson, email karenwilson@aspworldtour.com
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