Pro News 2001

Congratulations, Layne Beachley, Women’s World Champion 2001

Beachley Wins Fourth Consecutive World Title

Billabong Pro Maui (Nov 26-Dec 6)
Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Championship Tour (WCT)

Beachley Wins World Crown; Falconer Defends Event Title

The wave at Honolua Bay

Honolulu, HAWAII – (Saturday, November 17, 2001) – – Brazilian Jaqueline Silva confirmed Haleiwa as her golden break today with a win in the Roxy Pro that also took her to first place on the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS) ratings for 2001. Silva won here last at the same time last year, unbeatable with a powerful, sure-footed attack that only looked more polished today. The win earned her US$5,000 and took her from fourth place on the WQS rankings to first, guaranteeing her a spot on the elite World Championship Tour (WCT) in 2002.

In the final with Silva, and placing second through fourth respectively, were Australian pair Lynette MacKenzie and Chelsea Georgeson, and Haleiwa local Megan Abubo. Scores in the final over each surfer’s best three rides showed 18.13 out of 30 for Silva, 13.5 for MacKenzie – who only caught two waves, 12.96 for Georgeson, and 11.9 for Abubo.

Silva was a dynamo from the start of the day, her surfing was fast and precise with a high success rate in her critical maneuvers. Aware of the performance level of her peers, Silva never surfed conservatively and rarely fell. In the final, her top three wave scores were 8.83, 5.3, and 4.0.

"To be a Brazilian and to win two times at Haleiwa is unbelievable. I am so happy," said Silva after the win. "For sure, surfing and winning here last year made it easier for me to do it again today. This year I knew how and where the waves break on the reef, so it was easier for me. The power of Hawaii makes it easier to surf."

When she learned after the presentation that her victory had taken her to first place on the WQS rankings, Silva was ecstatic. "Oh my gosh, this as absolutely unbelievable."

From the 8am outset, waves were in the excellent six to eight feet (full face value) range for all of the women’s heats. The level of performance matched the standard of waves, making each of the day’s heats a battle to the closing horn. The biggest upset of the tournament came in the quarter finals with the elimination of world champion Layne Beachley by MacKenzie and Kate Skarratt (Australia). Beachley appeared to chase the waves more than she rode them. found herself out of position for the larger, higher scoring waves and was forced to make a premature exit from the beach.

While not the champion of the day, one of the best impressions overall was made by Australian rookie Chelsea Georgeson. Making her way through from the very first round, Georgeson was undefeated throughout her progression to the final, but lacked the better rides when it mattered most. En-route to the final, Georgeson accounted for the elimination of Serena Brooke (Australia), Sofia Mulanovich (Peru), Rochelle Ballard (Hawaii) and Kate Skarratt (Australia). Her performance in the Roxy Pro was nothing short of stellar and earned her the tag of "Australia’s future" by the close of the final.

For the highly charged local crowd on the beach, Abubo was the favorite. Born and raised on the waves at Haleiwa, and the star sponsored surfer of Roxy, Abubo had the backing today and made good of it up until the final. A scattered start drove a wedge into her focus and positioning in the final and her fourth place finish was the result.

"I think I lost my rhythm out there because it started breaking in a different spot by the final," said Abubo. "Also, I heard the countdown for the heat and I thought it was the countdown for the end of the last heat, so I didn’t even paddle for the first solid wave that came through. I was just all off after that. I blew every wave I had. I fell on a lot of my turns and I just didn’t have a good game plan going on out there. "But the Roxy Pro has been a great preparation for me going into the final WCT event of the year next week at Honolua Bay (Maui). I haven’t surfed a heat since our last contest in May, so this event gave me the opportunity to get the nervousness and the jitters out and now I feel way more prepared. On looking toward the final WCT event: "I definitely feel that the world title is attainable. I have as good a chance at winning it as anybody else."

Teahupoo, Tahiti (Sunday, May 12th, 2001). Defending three-time world champion Layne Beachley (Aus) today defeated Rochelle Ballard (Haw) in the final of the women’s Billabong Pro Teahupoo event. In doing so, she regained the number one ratings position for the 2001 World Championship Tour (WCT) and collected US$10,000.

Conditions remained 3-4 foot (1.3m) throughout the final rounds of competition at Teahupoo, with quarterfinal action kicking off at midday. Wind and rainsqualls did create slightly bumpy wave faces at times, but competitors still managed to find hollow barrels and execute critical turns.

Beachley, 28, unleashed her fighting spirit today with a string of victories that ultimately generated glory in the Billabong Pro Teahupoo. Facing the daunting prospect of meeting world number six Heather Clark (SAfr) in the quarterfinals, the world champ put on a stellar performance to outscore the South African in what became the best match of the day. Clark led the heat after a superb tube, but Beachley proved her determination and clawed back with a great 7.3 ride at the end.

The Australian then battled defending two-time (2000 & 1998) event champion Keala Kennelly (Haw) in the semis. Lack of barrels hindered her opponent’s cause, and Beachley was able to rack up enough points with committed backhand surfing to join Ballard in the final. Once there, she dominated from the start and never let up. With boyfriend/shaper/coach/mentor and big wave surfing legend Ken Bradshaw (Haw) lending support from the channel, a double rainbow formed overhead as the 2001 women’s tournament concluded in her favor.

"Oh my goodness," began a somewhat shocked Beachley upon the media boat. "It’s still disbelief and complete relief. I vowed three years ago never to come back here, as I was so rattled after my first heat then. I was forced to confront my demons last year, however, because I performed so badly at Bells (the event prior). This year I was just ready to give it all I had after such a poor performance in Fiji (last week).

"I think my biggest hurdle was coming up against Heather in the quarterfinals," she explained. "That was the best performance I’ve ever put on in backhand barreling waves. I’ve always had a problem with my pig dogging (style of backhand tube-riding), and I just taught myself in 30-minutes how to do it, and how to stay focused through it. Then it came to my semifinal with Keala, who’s a specialist here. She’s the better surfer out here, but her wave selection let her down. And in the final I had a feeling that Rochelle was a little too amped, and I was just a little too tired, but I got the better waves and played the patient game and surfed my best.

"That was my intention as I had to redeem myself," she added, when asked about making a mends from her 9th place result in Fiji. "First I had to confront my demons with Teahupoo, then I had to have a win out here. Every other year I haven’t come here to win, but this time I did, to redeem myself and prove I am a deserving world champion. I’m really stoked to have done so well and gotten my confidence back to a point where I’m feeling good again.

"To find myself back in number one on the ratings is just awesome. I was hoping that I would get there, but I didn’t think I had considering how consistent Melanie Redman (Aus) has been. I’m so motivated and so fired up. I’ve got to wait until September now for the next event, but I’m ready to fight for (world title) number four, and I’m fighting hard. It was really disappointing to look at the ratings and find myself in 9th. I hadn’t had a 9th place result since 1997, so I really felt like it was time to get serious and pull my head in and do what I really love to do, which is win."

Ballard, 30, jumped into equal second with Redman on the current ratings after today’s finals berth. Having led the way in women’s barrel riding for many years, making the final at Teahupoo was an extremely satisfying achievement for the Hawaiian. Despite being unlucky against Beachley, she eliminated world number four Maria ‘Tita’ Tavares (Brz) in the semis, as well as Redman in the quarterfinals.

"I’m really glad I was in the final," said Ballard. "I saw a couple god barrels before the final started and I was hoping I could maybe get some, and back them up with some turns. But it just didn’t really happen for me. The wind started howling side-shore and it bumped up the waves. The barrels that I pulled into just shut down on me and made me struggle through the heat. I felt like I did some good turns and had solid rides, but they liked Layne’s turns more. "I’m really excited to have an event at Teahupoo," she continued. "It’s a challenging wave for a man and a women, so for us it’s so exciting because we have such a great leap to take. It’s a challenge in waves like this, so to keep striving forward and meet that every year we come back here… to see the girls charge that much harder and pull in that much deeper and be able to technically ride the barrel, it’s an incredible thing.

Equal third today in the Billabong Pro Teahupoo was Kennelly and Tavares. The Hawaiian found one tube to score 7.5 against Beachley, but fell in another critical barrel and was left needing 7.16 points. It was hard for the 22-year-old to sit and watch a final she’s previously won twice, but as
it unfolded, said the following.

"I’m really sad to lose my title," began Kennelly. "This is the most important contest to me all year and I wanted to win and keep my title. Everybody here knows me as the Teahupoo champion, and it’s bad to lose it, but it happens. The girls are surfing really well this year and all the power to them. "I kept falling off at the very end," she continued. "It’s such a critical thing barrel riding, and you don’t get scored unless you make it. I just got out-turned. I was looking for barrels and the world champion was smacking it (the lip).

"I really wanted to do better in both Fiji (last event, where she finished 5th) and Tahiti. I thought I would at least get a win at one place, you know? But there are still a few events. Sometimes you do well in the events you think you’re going to go bad in, so we’ll see what happens."

Tavares, 25, also placed 5th in Fiji last week, and now holds down equal fifth on the current ratings along with Kennelly and Serena Brooke (Aus). While the Brazilian did overcome 1998 event champion Kate Skarratt (Aus) in this morning’s first quarterfinal, she was unable to find any decent rides against Ballard.

"I waited so long for the waves to come, but I’m happy anyway," said Tavares. "It’s a dream to win this event, but I’ll wait for next year. There weren’t many waves out there and Rochelle got the better ones, but I’m still very happy with a semi finals result."

Official Results Of The Billabong Pro Teahupoo Women
1st Layne Beachley (Aus) 16.75 US$10,000
2nd Rochelle Ballard (Haw) 12.9 US$6,000

Semifinals (2nd place = 3rd; US$4,000)
SF1: Rochelle Ballard (Haw) 13.05 def. Maria Tavares (Brz) 3.9
SF2: Layne Beachley (Aus) 18.65 def. Keala Kennelly (Haw) 15.7

Quarterfinals (2nd place = 5th; US$3,500)
QF1: Maria Tavares (Brz) 14.35 def. Kate Skarratt (Aus) 13.75
QF2: Rochelle Ballard (Haw) 18.25 def. Melanie Redman (Aus) 15.85
QF3: Keala Kennelly (Haw) 13.00 def. Serena Brooke (Aus) 9.55
QF4: Layne Beachley (Aus) 20.15 def. Heather Clark (SAfr) 19.25

Tavarua Island, Fiji (Thursday, May 3, 2001). World number two Megan Abubo (Haw) today defeated world number four Melanie Redman (Aus) to win the inaugural Roxy Fiji Surf Jam. By taking out the first women’s World Championship Tour (WCT) event of 2001, she also secured the current ratings lead and her biggest prize purse of US$10,000.

Perfect 4-5 foot (1.5m) conditions greeted competitors all day, allowing the tournament to run right through from the third round. Unfortunately a slight onshore wind did blow into the lineup just prior to the final, making the hollow lefthanders trickier, but this did little to shadow the event’s climax.

Abubo, 23, opened strongly with two high scoring rides, and then managed to hold down a commanding lead until the 35-minute final was over. Having watched defending three-time world champion Layne Beachley (Aus) eliminated in the third round this morning, and then by disposing of world number three Serena Brooke (Aus) in their semifinal, the Hawaiian was quietly confident.

"I can’t even explain it," said a beaming Abubo on the media boat after the final. "Coming to Tavarua I was just so excited to compete in this event. Surfing one of the best waves in the world, even though we weren’t blessed with swell… I’m so excited cause for me it was like one of the best days at Rockies (one of her local surf spots in Hawaii). I couldn’t have asked for anything more. I was so happy just to make the final. It’s such a good way to start the year. We don’t have that many events, and last year I had a fast start also, so I’m really excited to be on top.

"It was a little glassier at the start of our heat and I knew if I got a good wave and whacked it as many times as I could I’d get a decent score," she explained of her tactics. "I started off pretty well and had two solid scoring waves. I knew I just needed a third, so when I got that last 4.75 I knew she’d need a lot more, as she didn’t catch many at the start.

"I had to spend all last year going head-to-head with Layne," she added, referring to the world champ. "That was a real confidence boaster for me just because she’s so experienced and such a good competitor. There are only five events for the year, and it’d be tough to have to start down there (in 9th). Someone could win the next four events; you never know what can happen. It’s a solid year. We have great waves and I wouldn’t count anyone out until the last event of the year."

Redman, 25, surfed brilliantly during her earlier rounds, but was unable to find the same winning form in the final. The current World Qualifying Series (WQS) leader was anxious to top both ratings simultaneously, but had to settle for a second. Needing an 8.11, she lost her surfboard within the last five minutes, and by then accepting a ride from the water patrol on jets skis back out to her replacement board, was not permitted to catch another scoring ride. She did surf one more, but the judges awarded her no points.

"I didn’t have a good start," admitted Redman afterward. "I was just waiting around for a really good one so I could catch up, or hopefully overtake her, but there just wasn’t any waves. I didn’t know what to do, so I was a bit frustrated. You have to be pretty precise with your surfing here, and I haven’t really had all that much practice in these kinds of waves.

"I would have been stoked to be leading the WCT and WQS ratings," she acknowledged. "I’m a bit disappointed to make it to the final and finish second, but that’s OK, hopefully I’ll do well in Tahiti (next WCT event) and end up first."

Finishing equal third in the Roxy Fiji Surf Jam were Brooke and Jacqueline Silva (Brz). Brooke, 25, picked up where she left off last year to start the 2001 season in third. The Australian had more prior experience at Cloudbreak than any other competitor, but this alone wasn’t enough to bridge the gap created by Abubo.

"My semifinal was basically a shocker," reasoned Brooke. "I was being patient at the start, but then Megan got that one wave which reeled all the way down the reef. I was just waiting for one like that, but never got it. Seemed like every wave I took was fast and closing out. It was hard to read the conditions out there, and I was just out of sync with the good ones. I was kind of unlucky, but I was happy to be in the semis at least.

"This is a good start," she continued. "I’m just going to work my way up from here. We only have five events, so every one is really critical. I haven’t got any pressure on me, I’m in third again, so I’m pretty happy with this. Of course I would have liked to have made the final and won, but I’m
really happy to have gotten this far."

Silva, 21, posted the highest single wave score of the day against Rochelle Ballard (Haw) during their quarterfinal – a near perfect 9-point ride – but was unable to repeat this against Redman the following round. Nonetheless, the Brazilian made a huge jump up the ratings from 13th position and was thrilled by her result.

"I got really good waves, but I fell too many times," said Silva. "Mel found some high scores and progressed to the final. I’m very happy, though, as this equals my best result ever, and I hope to go even better in the next contest."

Beachley, 28, who was eliminated by Silva and Ballard, collected her worst result in four years today. "Basically my wave selection was what let me down," explained a disappointed Beachley afterward. "I happened to hit the reef a couple of times on the inside and was just a little shaken. It’s bad luck, I guess. I was a little unprepared for what the conditions had to offer out there and just didn’t do enough.

"It’s been the worst start I’ve had in four years," she continued. "I usually don’t allow myself to get anything less than fifth, and now I have a ninth for the first time since 1997. I’m incredibly disappointed. I’ve got to make a mends for it in Tahiti (next week) for how I started here and try and get my confidence back up. Right now I’m pretty shattered."

Official Results of the Roxy Fiji Surf Jam
1st Megan Abubo (Haw) 17.75 – US$10,000
2nd Melanie Redman (Aus) 12.65 – US$6,000

Semifinals (losers finish equal 3rd with US$4,000)
SF1: Melanie Redman (Aus) 17.15 def. Jacqueline Silva (Brz) 16.0
SF2: Megan Abubo (Haw) 19.4 def. Serena Brooke (Aus) 11.0

Quarterfinals (losers finish equal 5th with US$3,500)
QF1: Melanie Redman (Aus) 17.25 def. Maria Tavares (Brz) 10.2
QF2: Jacqueline Silva (Brz) 18.5 def. Rochelle Ballard 17.75
QF3: Megan Abubo (Haw) 15.9 def. Keala Kennelly (Haw) 9.5
QF4: Serena Brooke (Aus) 18.55 def. Heather Clark (SAfr) 18.35

Bells Beach, Victoria, Australia (Easter Sunday, April 15, 2001). Current world number 10 Neridah Falconer (Aus) today became the first goofy-footer in history to win the SunSmart Classic. Up against three other World Championship Tour (WCT) surfers, she took out Australia’s only 6-Star World Qualifying Series (WQS) tournament by a commanding margin.

Perfect 4-6 foot (1.5-2m) conditions greeted competitors throughout the preliminary rounds this morning, but unfortunately a slight onshore wind arrived as the final four paddled out, messing up wave faces.

Current world number 12 Lynette MacKenzie (Aus), number eight Rochelle Ballard (Haw), and number six Heather Clark (SAfr) fought to find their share of open-faced Bells Beach walls, but in the end it was to no avail. Falconer, 29, dominated and left all her opponents in need of a combination of good rides.

"I feel pretty relieved as I’ve been coming here for so many years," said an emotional Falconer
afterward. "I’ve made the final before and so many semis, it’s a relief to finally win it. I always wanted to win Bells. Coming second and third before… it’s all too much. I’m so happy.

"I just tried to get my three waves, that’s all you have to do," she explained. "There were some lulls and it changed a lot from how it was in the semis, with the tide and wind. I just tried to block everything else out and it all came through for me."

MacKenzie, 26, finished runner-up, but like Ballard and Clark, couldn’t find the waves necessary to take the coveted crown. Her performance in the quarterfinals remains the best of the tournament, however, as she amassed a total of 24.5 out of a possible 30 points.

"I’m feeling pretty happy," said MacKenzie. "A little bit disappointed I didn’t get any good waves out there, but that’s the way it goes. Just stoked to make the final after all these bloody years (laughs). "It was a bit choppy and crumbly compared to earlier," she added. "I just couldn’t get it together. I had fun out there this morning though, so that’s the main thing. I’m feeling pretty focused and think it will be an exciting year."

Ballard, 30, picked off the largest wave of the final and was eager to finish better than her runner-up place in 2000, but lack of good rides plagued her final effort.

"It was really about trying to get the wave that stayed open so you could do some good turns on," reasoned Ballard. "I only got one of those and that wave was so big my board was skipping all over the place. I was just really stoked to be in the final. We’ve had great waves for the whole event. I’m stoked for Neridah. There was some good surfing throughout the entire event. I am a little disappointed for myself as I felt really good this contest, and I really, really, really wanted that Bell."

Clark, 29, surfed great leading up to the crucial match, but she had to laugh afterward, as the ocean just didn’t help her cause.

"I had a good quarter and semifinal, and thought I was going to have a good time out in the final," she said. "But I didn’t actually get one wave that I did one turn on (laughs). If I went for a turn I fell straight off. Neridah got all of the bombs. Lynette got a couple of inside ones and Rochelle had a few, but I was out of rhythm the whole time."

Current world number two and defending SunSmart Classic champion Megan Abubo (Haw) finished equal fifth today. Despite a commanding win in her quarterfinal, the Hawaiian bowed out to Clark and Ballard in the second semifinal.

Current WQS leader and world number five Melanie Redman (Aus) also placed fifth. She looked set to reach her third consecutive WQS final of 2001, but was ultimately stopped by Falconer and MacKenzie in the first semi. Current world and three-time SunSmart champion Layne Beachley (Aus) was a shock quarterfinal elimination today.

Official results of the SunSmart Classic Final Day
1st Neridah Falconer (Aus) 19.34
2nd Lynette MacKenzie (Aus) 11.00
3rd Rochelle Ballard (Aus) 10.00
4th Heather Clark (SAfr) 4.75