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Event Package
KUDA HURAA, MALDIVES
Tuesday, September 9
Following a run of delightful down days in paradise, the second round of the Four Seasons Maldives Surfing Champions Trophy unrolled in thoroughly pleasant head-high runners at Sultans this morning, twin fin shredding the order of the day.
Owen Wright, Michel Bourez and Ismail “Smiley” Rasheed took no time to wash off all the fine dining, snorkelling and luxurious living at Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa, opening proceedings with the highest scoring heat of the event so far. Powerhouse Olympians Wright and Bourez were on point from the start, Wright’s DHD (a beefier MF Twin) glued to his feet as he went viciously vertical to collect an 8.50, a 7.50 and the win. Meanwhile Bourez pushed his 6’0” Firewire Tomo to its redline with his opening 7.67 the highlight as he took second, though not without a scare. With only a few minutes remaining Rasheed sat in second, Bourez blissfully unaware that he needed a score. A last gasp 4.77 did the job, and the Tahitian moved on.
Sierra Kerr’s withdrawal saw Craig Anderson and Jesse Mendes move straight to the semis, and for Mendes that meant an all-goofy showdown with Wright. The world tour stalwarts served up no shortage of highlights as conditions clicked, the waves not only more consistent than the opening round but arriving on a more agreeable angle, running down the shallow inside shelf at a perfect pace.
Wright signalled his intent early, earning the first nine-point ride of the event for a series of brutal backhand blasts that could have easily been scored higher. Backing his best wave up with a 5.67 left Mendes chasing a combination of scores. As time ran out the Brazilian paddled into a medium sized wall with an oversized ramp. Mendes went for broke and unleashed a huge backside air-reverse, metres from his opponent. Landing greased, Mendes rode out with a grin as the channel roared. Wright watched from the water, fist pumping. A 7.27 was announced as the siren sounded, the Australian advancing. “That was giant!” said Wright. “Could have been an 8.5, easy. It looked amazing and he stomped it.”
In the second semi brute force beat finesse as Bourez bulldozed his way through a string of sixes, sevens and an eight to account for Anderson, whose effortless lines failed to connect with the sections needed to bank big points at Sultans. “I used to compete against Craig a lot when we were young,” said Michel. “His surfing is still so good, and I’m so happy to reconnect with him here.”
A solid overhead set strafed Sultans to launch the final, with Bourez happy to pounce, spin, and continue his assault on the rippable rights first up, dropping a 7.17 to open the scoring. Wright replied with an 8.17, for another run of repeated backhand blasts. We had a final on our hands, but it was one-way traffic from that point on. Bourez sat deep, hunting sets, while Wright got to work on the wider walls, a tactic that paid off. With time running out the two men went back-to-back on the final set. After Wright blasted his way to a 9.0, Bourez could only reply with a 5.83. Bourez waved the white flag and paddled to the boat still requiring two scores, leaving Wright alone in the lineup, victorious for a second time in two rounds.
“Owen was ripping,” conceded Bourez. “He got that nine, and I thought it was a 10! That’s about as good as you can surf on a twin fin. I don’t usually ride single fins or twins, so it’s a little different, but the competitor is still in here, it doesn’t take much to come out. I’m having fun.”
“I could keep doing this for a while, it’s fun!” laughed Wright. “I love twin fins, I’ve been riding them since I got off tour, and mine went amazing today. Put me in the right spots, with heaps of speed. Not sure how I’ll feel getting back on the thruster to be honest! Hopefully I can make the final, and then there’s the allure of winning the event and getting invited back. One day to go!”
