November 24, 2008 - The 2008 Reef Hawaiian Pro was always going to be about the new guard of women’s surfing from the opening heat of competition. And when it was over, Haleiwa crowned it’s youngest ever Vans Triple Crown of Surfing event champion in 16-year-old Carissa Moore.
Seems that Moore, who just dropped her longtime sponsor Roxy and signed a huge sponsorship deal with Nike and Red Bull, is making history on all fronts.
Moore won her way through every round of the competition from the preliminary trials heat that awarded one wildcard spot into the event. She now leads the 2008 Vans Triple Crown of Surfing series ratings.
Three teenagers and a 36-year-old, 7-time world champion featured in the 30-minute final. Moore won, multiple world champ Layne Beachley (Australia) was second, 17-year-old Laura Enever (Australia) was third, and North Shore local Coco Ho, 17, was fourth.
While Moore’s rise to the win came with calm, sure-footedness, there was no shortage of drama around her to help pave the road to victory.
First came the fourth place elimination of reigning world champion Stephanie Gilmore (Australia) in quarter final one.
Next came the quarter final defeat of Alana Blanchard (Hawaii), who was hoping for a final finish today to guarantee her qualification onto the 2009 ASP women’s World Tour.
In the final, 17-year-old Coco Ho was at the center of drama. A win here would have guaranteed Ho a start on the 2009 elite World Tour, but after finding herself in fourth for most of the heat, her focus shifted to securing the win for Moore. With less than a minute remaining, Beachley was in need of little more than six points to steal the win from Moore. Ho took off, dropping in on Beachley, popping an air above her head and effectively shutting down Layne’s scoring potential in a classic case of schoolgirl tactics.
While it will never be known if Layne would have earned the score she needed to win, its indisputable that Moore earned the victory on the merits of her surfing alone.
As the final ASP women’s World Qualifying Series (WQS) event of the year, all eyes will now shift to the next two stops on the Vans Triple Crown to determine the final lineup for the 2009 women’s ASP World Tour: the Roxy Pro (Nov.24-Dec.6) and the Billabong Pro Maui (Dec. 8-20).
In addition to being the second of three stops on the 2008 Vans Triple Crown of Surfing, this week’s Roxy Pro at Sunset Beach carries the added weight of potentially crowning the 2008 ASP Women’s World Champion. Will Aussie Stephanie Gilmore, 20, reigning ASP Women’s World Champion and current No. 1 on the ASP Women’s World Tour successfully defend her title?
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