Lima dominates at Billabong Girls Easter Surf Festival.
Silvana Lima : photo Jake White/Surfing Queensland (Click image to enlarge)
Billabong Girls Easter Surf Festival
Surfing Queensland Maroochydore QLD 15 - 18 April
Brazil’s Best: Silvana Lima Dominates At Billabong Girls Easter Surf Festival
Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 17 April, 2006 : - - World Championship Tour (WCT) rookie Silvana Lima has blasted her way into the Semi Finals of the Billabong Girls Easter Surf Festival on the Sunshine Coast. The 21-year-old was on fire in today’s Quarter Final, posting a combined two wave total of 14.15 to easily defeat Sally Fitzgibbons (Gerroa), Amee Donohoe (MacMasters Beach) and Nicola Atherton (Bronte).
The powerful natural footer reveled in the strong southerly winds and small 1m waves at Alexandra Headland on day three of the four day Easter Surf Festival to post the rounds top heat score. Lima recently moved from Brazil to the Gold Coast in order to facilitate her professional surfing career and is currently rated fifth on the Association of Surfing Professionals world rankings.
Starting as favourite for tomorrow’s final day of competition Lima will have to overcome 15-year-old Fitzgibbons, Lauren McGregor (Coolangatta) and fellow WCT competitor Serena Brooke (Coolangatta) in order to win the event.
Former World Tour professional Pauline Menczer continued her impressive form today with an easy win over Cronulla’s Lyndsay Noyes, Central Coast surfer Melissa Sherringham and Kiwi Mischa Davis. Locking in a 7.50 early in the heat, the 1993 world champion led from the outset backing up her top score with a 5.75 to secure victory.
Menczer has been the inform surfer of the event and despite not competing at the elite level for over a year, the 35-year-old will be hard to beat in tomorrows final rounds.
Gold Coast surfer Airini Mason (Tugun) also secured a Semi Final berth after winning her Quarter Final against West Australian Sarah Beardmore, local surfer Linda Fisher (Caloundra) and the USA’s Jenny Quam.
Scoring two mid range waves of a 5.50 and a 5.25, Mason led for the majority of the 20-minute exchange with Beardmore’s heat high wave score of a 6.75 not enough to take the win from the 16-year-old.
ASP Australasian Junior Series leader Mason along with Beardmore will both surf in tomorrow’s second Semi Final against Menczer and Noyes.
Sunshine Coast surfers Rebecca Oakley (Noosa) and Linda Fisher were both eliminated from today’s Quarter Finals.
Oakley struggled to find any high scoring rides in her heat today, finishing in fourth position. The goofy footer was looking to secure her best ever WQS result by progressing through to the Semi Finals.
The 1 Star Rated World Qualifying Series event will finalise tomorrow along with the Seniors, Masters, Pro-Junior, Under 18, Under 16 and Under 14 divisions.
With the swell expected to increase slightly over night and strong southerly winds likely to persist, the preferred venue will again be Alexandra Headland.
The Billabong Girls Easter Surf Festival is supported by Vodafone, Sea FM, Surfing Australasia and Surfing Queensland.
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