Rip Curl Footwear Trials - Malibu Pro
The Rip Curl Footwear trials, the first installment of action held in conjunction with the Women's ASP World Championship Tour's (WCT) arrival in Malibu, Calif., will be held at Leo Carillo Beach today, Sept. 30.
Twelve trialists, one of whom will earn wildcard entry into the Rip Curl
Malibu Pro main event, will surf a Round Robin format on Friday, swell dependent.
The main event is tentatively slated to occur Friday, Oct. 7 and Saturday,
Oct. 8 at Malibu's Surfrider Beach when a forecasted southern hemisphere
swell should offer the best conditions available during the Oct. 1-9
contest window. The Rip Curl Celebrity Surf Bout will also take place on
Saturday, Oct. 8, adding to the climax of the USA?s only stand alone
women's professional event.
Among the trialists hoping to advance will be 15-year-old Bethany Hamilton,
the young Hawaiian surfer who survived a vicious shark attack two years
ago. Despite the loss of her arm, Hamilton still holds her own in the
competitive arena and will arrive in Malibu fresh from a recent victory at
Oahu's O'Neill Island Girl Junior Pro.
"I am always excited about surfing in big competitions. It's not easy to
get into competitions like this, so I am really happy to be here," said
Hamilton who made her WCT Trials debut when she vied for a spot in the same
event last year.
"I never know what I'm going to be doing in the water or how I'm going to
go, but I just want to have fun. I'm looking forward to it."
Also looking forward to another shot at a wildcard is Stephanie Gilmore,
the 17-year-old Australian powerhouse who has surfed the trials in five of
six events held this year, winning the wildcard in three of them. Gilmore,
who will be surfing Malibu for the first time, took her wildcard win all
the way to the top to become the youngest female surfer to win a WCT event
at her homebreak on the Gold Coast of Australia in March. She will no
doubt be eager to repeat that feat but will first have to outscore surfers
like her friend Karina Petroni (USA) who won the trials last year.
"I'm good friends with Karina and after she won the trials she told me all
about the event. She said it was small, but really fun and a great event,"
said Gilmore.
"I couldn't be here last year, but when she got into the main event it was
pretty sick and I was pretty stoked for her. We grew up surfing Snapper
together and some breaks really similar to Malibu, so it would be fun to
get some good waves for the event."
"All of the girls said it was so much fun here last year - mixing it up
with the Hollywood crew and celebrities," Gilmore continued. "It's an
important event for women's surfing and it's pretty cool that it's a fun
event too. I'm really excited about being here and have been looking
forward to it."
Also on the trials roster are former World Championship Tour surfers Marie
Pierre Abgrall (FRA) and Julia Christian (USA). Christian, a local
Californian who surfed the 2003 ASP Women's Tour, secured her spot back in
the big leagues with a major win at the US Open of Surf in Huntington in
July.
The remaining trialists in the Rip Curl Footwear Trials include Ashley Bobb
(USA), Alana Blanchard (HAW), Amy Nicholl (USA), Demi Boelsterli (USA),
Malia Manuel (HAW) and Sofia Sarlo (BRA).
The Malibu Pro press conference and official kick-off party will also take
place Friday. Both will be held at the Malibu Inn.
Tune into the live webcast of the Rip Curl Malibu Pro at www.ripcurl.com/malibu and www.aspworldtour.com
Source: ASP
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