Stephanie Gilmore claims sixth world title at Target Maui Pro
HONOLUA BAY, Maui/Hawaii (Thursday, November 27) - Australian Stephanie Gilmore, 26, has claimed her 6th world surfing crown today, besting an international field of world-class athletes on the 2014 Samsung Galaxy ASP Women’s World Championship Tour.
Gilmore opened up this year’s season with an emphatic win at home on the Gold Coast, re-establishing herself as a threat to the title following years of pressure applied by a new generation of talent.
“I didn’t win an event last year and I think that was a bit of a wakeup call for me,” Gilmore said. “I came into this season with the goal to surf better and I think the improvement in wave quality on the women’s tour was very motivating for me. To open up with a win at home on the Gold Coast and, maybe more importantly, feeling like I was surfing at a level I was pleased with, was really important in setting the tone for my year.”
While Gilmore started the season strong, it was opponents Carissa Moore and Sally Fitzgibbons who quickly surged to the front with back-to-back wins at Margaret River/Bells Beach and Rio de Janeiro/Fiji respectively. Compatriot Tyler Wright would throw herself into the race with wins at Huntington Beach and France, but September saw Gilmore strike back with a major win at Lower Trestles before consolidating with another victory in Portugal and taking the ratings’ lead heading into Hawaii.
“It’s been one of the most exciting title races in the sport’s history,” Gilmore said. “All the girls at the top were really close and it came down to the last event. I fell back a little bit in the ratings through the midway point in the season, but I was still getting results and always felt like I was in the race.”
Heading into the final event of the year, the Target Maui Pro, the world’s best surfers returned to the idyllic pointbreak of Honolua Bay - a venue that Gilmore dominated when it was previously on the schedule, posting victories in 2007, 2008 and 2009. Despite an in-form campaign at this season’s event, Gilmore fell in the Quarterfinals to Californian Courtney Conlogue, leaving to the door open to remaining contenders Sally Fitzgibbons and Tyler Wright.
“I just didn’t really find the positioning in that heat,” Gilmore said. “I looked at the draw for the Quarterfinals and I was thinking to myself what a tough competitor Courtney (Conlogue) is to draw here. That’s what happens when you change the seedings around and get the yellow jersey, it mixes things up. It was tough and I’m super disappointed. I really didn’t put on a performance that was World Title worthy but that’s the way it goes.”
“I paddled off after that heat and there were some tears and some emotions,” Gilmore said. “I took a few breaths - it was a long year and I have to think about everything that’s happened along the way - the good results and the bad.”
Immediately following Gilmore’s elimination, Fitzgibbons was ousted from the event by Bianca Buitendag, dashing her hopes for a maiden world surfing crown and leaving only Wright remaining in the hunt against Gilmore.
Wright, needing to win the event to send the title race to a three-heat surf-off, proceeded to smash her Quarterfinals and Semifinals heats before meeting Moore in the Final. The two form surfers went blow-for-blow in the Final match, but it was Moore who nailed the coffin shut on her final ride with a 9.73 (out of a possible 10), taking the Target Maui Pro win and handing Gilmore her 6th ASP Women’s World Title.
“That was probably the most emotional I’ve ever been watching someone else surf in my life,” Gilmore said. “I know how focused Tyler (Wright) is and I was completely prepared for a surf-off. However, I also knew how incredibly capable Carissa (Moore) is at virtually every venue. I feel like I had a year’s worth of emotions packed into one heat. I won my first title here at Honolua Bay, but after my loss in the Quarterfinals, I was prepared for anything to happen. I’m really emotional right now.”
Today’s title clinching puts Gilmore one behind the all-time women’s record-holder of Layne Beachley (AUS) with 7 and third behind all-time men’s and women’s record-holder Kelly Slater (USA) with 11.
“The caliber of surfing on tour this season is the highest it has ever been,” Gilmore said. “There are no easy heats. This was the hardest title I’ve ever won. The talent level is only going to increase in future years but I’m so pleased I’ve won and want to thank everyone who has supported me this year - my family, my friends and my sponsors.”
Gilmore’s 2014 Samsung Galaxy ASP WCT Results:
- Roxy Pro Gold Coast: WINNER
- Drug Aware Margaret River Pro: 3rd
- Rip Curl Women’s Pro Bells Beach: 3rd
- Rio Women’s Pro: 13th
- Fiji Women’s Pro: 2nd
- Vans US Open of Surfing: 2nd
- Swatch Women’s Pro Trestles: WINNER
- Roxy Pro France: 5th
- Cascais Women’s Pro: WINNER
- Target Maui Pro: 5th
Target Maui Pro Final Results:
1 - Carissa Moore (HAW) 18.23
2 - Tyler Wright (AUS) 14.03
Target Maui Pro Semifinal Results:
Semifinal 1: Carissa Moore (HAW) 15.67 def. Courtney Conlogue (USA) 11.93
Semifinal 2: Tyler Wright (AUS) 17.76 def. Bianca Buitendag (ZAF) 9.74
Target Maui Pro Quarterfinal Results:
Quarterfinal 1: Carissa Moore (HAW) 12.20 def. Johanne Defay (FRA) 9.50
Quarterfinal 2: Courtney Conlogue (USA) 13.67 def. Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 13.03
Quarterfinal 3: Bianca Buitendag (ZAF) 15.97 def. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 15.33
Quarterfinal 4: Tyler Wright (AUS) 17.03 def. Lakey Peterson (USA) 16.30
Comments
Well done Steph.
Bad luck Sally and Tyler, but great to see you both up there.
Yes I second that Zen. Steph has proven to be an amazing/consistent competitor over a long period. Fell sorry for Sally tho, maybe next year.....
Can't see it happening Rab - Sally's style is aweful compared to Stef, Tyler, Carissa and Courtney....the top half of her body doesn't move and arms wave everywhere. Too stick thin I reckon.
Yep I hear at Maddog. That said she's been runner up 5 times now? She's either getting closer or further away. For her sake I hope she claims one....
Runner up 3 times I think...she finished 4th this year.
Anybody else think maybe Honalua Bay event a bit wasted on the girls? Courtneys 10? couple unko reos and a cut back, cmon! Tuberides being avoided everywhere at a break that tubes all the time, no wonder the future of professional surfing is so uncertain when the best of the best is just average. Who is watching that boring shite?
True Mike, beautiful wave and natural amphitheatre.
I'd love to see a mens event there in addition to the ladies.
Not sure if the locals would embrace it though.
Fuck Mike you must be good. "A couple of unco reo's " you must be kidding!! What I saw were some critical hacks on a very solid, sucky slightly bumpy wave. The girls are ripping & the standard is constantly improving.
How do you expect them to get to your lofty worthy standards surfing shit waves?!?
I reckon Mike has a point. I love to watch Steph, Tyler and Carissa surf (although I reckon Carissa stoops too far forward on her bottom turns), but the rest of them are sometimes difficult to watch. I found it pretty frustrating with the number of missed sections and over-balancing, and bogging on turns. Reminded me a lot of when I go for a surf... and I don't expect anybody to watch that...
Those three are certainly the most consistent of the Women (although I'd add Courtney in there as well) however I've seen some stellar heats from Malia Manuel, Lakey Peterson, Johanne Defay and Nikki Van Dijk this year too.
If you watch Cortney's 10pt ride there was no decent barrel to be had on that wave. What more could she have done?!? A rodeo clown??
Agreed it was a good wave well surfed. Not sure about a 10, though. While it was big, I don't think it had 10 point scoring potential.
As I said, there were moments of pretty good stuff, amongst a lot of pretty average stuff
Agreed Kaiser. No different to the men's contests the vast majority of the time. Humans aren't perfect robots, that's the beauty of men & women surfing waves that are sometimes perfect, always different & sometimes ordinary....
Imagine how boring any sport would be if everything was completely perfectly all the time & results were so predictable........
Was a great wave and surfed well, but I saw plenty of room for the turns to have been bigger and harder; can't be a 10. Imagine if the Heat was against Carissa or Tyler, and they put everything into some layback turns like they do occasionally, on a set later in the heat. No room to move.
Well if a 10 is the merit of a perfect ride then is that as good as they can do then ? if it was a mens heat the same performance would have scored maybe a 6? So much for equal rights?more like a handicap in golf. I watched several gaping open mouthed competitors turning out in the flat while it tubed off above them. Waves even the most poo stanced of the Brazillian pros could have squeezed some kind of tube ride out of . is that why they dont send the girls out at pipeline anymore perhaps(too many wasted waves) ? i dont claim to rip rab but i can claim to have been tubed at honalua bay and it was a lot more crowded than a 2 man(woman )heat and having the luxury to be able the pick of set waves without 200 waiters from lahina frothing around you.
So Mike it sounds like you are comparing the women's to the men's standards? Basically saying that if the women don't ride the wave to the same standard/skill/same maneuvers etc as the men they should be judged accordingly. I think the the women would he the first to admit that they don't surf at the same level. Therefore IMO I think the women are judged differently.
At your local club comps are the men judged at the same standard as the ASP men? I very much doubt it and for obvious reasons.
Comparing the women to the men is not right. Just because the women are not surfing to the standard either you do or to the standard of the ASP men is irrelevant.
Stu, does Swellnet have access to any ASP judging staff for clarification on the way the men's & womens are judged? It would be an interesting topic to get to the bottom of. Case in point being Courtney's 10pt ride. To hear the facts of the matter would be insightful I reckon.
Mike you are currently watching the best of the best in regards to the womens surfing. I suppose if you are not happy watching it due to the poor standards being set then it's probably best not to watch, otherwise just appreciate it for what it is.....
I saw a few waves ridden by the girls at Snapper this year and they smashed it. Bianca Buitentag. (?) was absolutely belting it on her backhand.
I wouldnt normally bother watching any asp at all with the odd exception of classic day at great surfspot or interesting heat (curren at jbay) but was sucked in by the "watch courtneys sick 10" and figured she must have double barrelled one thru the cave at h bay, wont make the same mistake again
I disagreed Courtney brained that wave and given the context of the waves on offer during the day deserved the 10.
Plus standard been set with 10s for turns only for the blokes too.
I don't think the judging would be any different, criteria the same, maybe you have to do a little less for the higher score, so scalability is higher. It's not like gymnastics where the chicks can also do triple flick flacks into a double backie as good as the blokes. I mean Carissa is the only one consistently doing an air reverse.
Wouldn't it make more sense to be comparing the women surfing in the competition with the surfing of other women in the competition?
Why would you compare them to men? There were no men in the competition. Why would you compare them across the different tours? They are different tours. It makes no sense.
Maybe Clif, but women more often than not tend to compare themselves to men in many other facets of life when it suits them.
Disclaimer: I am not a mysogynist and I love, respect and adore all women.
Regardless, isn't it about comparing people in that contest with other people in that contest? That's the point of the contest ain't it?
Exactly, someone needs to speak some sense in these comments. Zen...there's no merit in applying a broad stereotype for all womenfolk - one which involves a questionable premise - to this particular contest. If you knew for certain that all the Top 16 women endorsed your POV then you'd have the basis for an argument, till then it's logically flawed no matter how much you love, respect and adore women.
Nailed it, Courtney did all she could on that wave and put in big turns on the most critical part of the wave.
There was no barrel to be had, just a big foam ball to get a head-dip on, the turn was where the points were scored.
As others above have noted, you can't compare the women's to the guys regarding scoring potential.
Sorry guys, up early, shitty day and shittier surf. Maybe this arvo.
I should have put more thought into my comment. I really am alluding to what Rabs said above and should have left the stereotypes out. Are women judged to a different standard or criteria? No doubt Courtney smashed that wave but a 10? I think it's open to conjecture. I personally don't think it was a 10, in my eyes it was surfed well but not perfectly but I think that's more of a reflection of the scoring system than Courtneys ability.
When women do take on men on equal terms, especially in male dominated sports, the results are telling, i.e. Annika Sorenstam, Pauline Mencer (back in the day) or even Steph at that expression session thingy at the Quik pro. On the same token, a woman will kick a mans bottom seven ways to Sunday when it comes to gymnastics as mentioned above. Again, that is telling. My question is, is womens surfing judged on a different criteria to mens? I like watching womens surfing and they do from time to time pull out the big moves but sometimes (often) I've sat there watching a beautiful wave surfed so poorly it's almost cringeworthy. Maybe I'm the only person out there in Webland who's felt that way, who knows?
You know sometimes it seems we've come full circle and men are almost made to feel ashamed if they have an opinion on issues/aspects that concern women. Women can bash the shit out of men (metaphorically) but if a man holds a dissenting opinion they are almost instantly branded the right hand of the devil.
Congrats to Steph, it was a well deserved title.