Malia Manuel Makes ASP History as Youngest Ever U.S. Open Champion
Pictured: Malia Manuel, 14, made history today as the youngest competitor ever to win the Honda U.S. Open of Surfing pres. by O’Neill.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, California (Saturday, July 26, 2008) - Malia Manuel (Wailua, HI), 14, has claimed the GO211 LIVE featuring the Women’s Honda U.S. Open of Surfing presented by O’Neill over fellow finalist Coco Ho (North afternoon both young Hawaiians making ASP history as the youngest finalists ever at the Shore, HI), 17, in two-to-three foot (1 metre) surf at Huntington Beach Pier this U.S. Open.
The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS) 6-Star event saw some incredible performances today, but none as impressive as the young Hawaiians taking down some of the biggest names in professional surfing.
“I’m so stoked right now,” Manuel said. “My sponsors gave me the wildcard into this event and I was just happy to be here. To get to surf against some of my heroes and to be in the Final with my friend Coco (Ho) is just something I would have never dreamed of.”
Sticking to her game plan throughout the event, Manuel started strong in the opening moments of the Final, securing two lengthy righthanders to post solid scores while her opponent struggled to find her footing in the challenging afternoon conditions.
“There weren’t many waves out there this afternoon which was too bad,” Manuel said. “I just got lucky that a couple linked up for me and I was able get some scores under my belt.”
Manuel issued huge upsets today, defeating former ASP Women’s World Champion and 2006 U.S. Open Champion Sofia Mulanovich (Lima, PER) in her Quarterfinals heat before posting a dominating heat win over current ASP WQS ratings leader Sally Fitzgibbons (Gerroa, AUS) as well as an impressive win over Ho en route to becoming the youngest U.S. Open Winner ever. Continue reading ‘Malia Manuel is Youngest Ever U.S. Open Champion’