Team Australia proud winners of all the titles : photo Steve Robertson

Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships

International Surfing Association
Papenoo, Tahiti
2 - 14 December 2004

Scores/Results/Photos etc.
(Scroll down for final day's photos)

Day 7: Australian trio James Wood, Stephanie Gilmore and Matt Wilkinson claim World Surfing Titles.
Revamped USA team secure second on overall international rankings.

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 13 December 2004: - - Three Australians, James Wood (U/18 boys), Stephanie Gilmore (U/18 girls) and Matt Wilkinson (U/16 boys), have claimed a trifecta of world junior surfing crowns by winning their respective divisions in the world’s most prestigious junior surfing contest, the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships, held at Tahiti’s Papenoo Beach. More than 170 surfers representing 24 nations competed in the annual event that culminated today in solid four-foot waves following six days of non-stop surfing action.

Wood, a former U/16 Quiksilver ISA World Champion (2002), surfed a total of seven heats in the week long event to claim his second ISA world title for Australia, emerging victorious in today’s blue ribbon U/18 boys final ahead of the undisputed cream of world junior surfing; emerging USA star Jeremy Johnston, 2003 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Championship runner-up William Cardoso (Brazil) and defending event champion Ben Dunn (Australia).

The 18 year-old natural footer, hailing from the world famous point break of Lennox Head on Australia’s East Coast, established an early lead in the 25 minute encounter by picking off a series of good scoring rides and executing clean, fast backhand maneuvers, building on his form of past days while all three of his opponents struggled to find any sense of rhythm in the peaky conditions.

Johnston, who re-qualified for the final via the repercharge after losing to Cardoso on day four, showed plenty of flair, punctuating his rides with innovative fins-free vertical re-entries but the American’s waves lacked length of ride. Cardoso, another clear-cut event standout, lacked the explosive form of his earlier rounds stumbling on three occasions and finding himself stuck behind the white water on his best waves while Dunn, the event favorite, waited an agonizing 15 minutes for his first scoring ride before also stumbling.

When the final hooter sounded, Wood thrust both fists into the air with joy and fell from his surfboard into the water as a deafening roar exploded from his Australian team mates and friends watching from shore. The final two-wave combined heat score for Wood of 12.87 was just less than two points ahead of Johnston on 11.34 and well clear of Cardoso and Dunn on 8.74 and 6.32 respectively.

“I can’t even explain how good it feels to win,” explained Wood afterwards, draped in a national Australian flag. “When I came to Tahiti my goal was just to survive to the final day and now this. It’s the best result I’ve ever had, I’m just so stoked.”

“Before I paddled out my plan was to get a good, quick wave under my belt and sit away from the other guys and it worked. No one really caught a wave for like 10 minutes, there wasn’t much going on, but surfing can be lucky like that. Sometimes luck goes your way, sometimes it doesn’t. That was a close one and today I got lucky.”

Click on images to enlarge:

An amazing effort from Team Australia, winning all individual divisions, the Tag Team final and the overall highest placed team of the event! Together as a team at the ceremony they stand proud! (Click on image to enlarge)

Great effort from Team Hawaii throughout this event and they took a well deserved 2nd place in the teams Final behind Australia today! (Click on image to enlarge)

The final event of this years Quiksilver ISA World Junior championships was the under 18 Boys final and Team Australia took a clean sweep of all divisions with James Wood (Lennox Head NSW) bringing home the under 18 title - In 2002, Wood was the World under 16 champion! All individual winners, Stephanie Gilmour (Kingscliffe), Matt Wilkinson (Copacabanna Central Coast) and Wood come from NSW! (Click on image to enlarge)

Australia's Stephanie Gilmour was a proud winner of the Girls under 18 final - all week the standard from the girls has been amazing and expect to see many of these girls become champions of the sport for many years to come. (Click on image to enlarge)

Australia's Matt Wilkinson (NSW Central Coast, Copacabanna) surfed a sensational final, taking the win in the Quiksilver World Junior Championships with an outstanding 9.8 ride on this wave. (Click on image to enlarge)

Stephanie Gilmore, fourth in last year’s Quiksilver ISA World Junior Championships, was the second Australian to claim a world title for her country with Gilmore reaching the winner’s dais two consecutive years running. The 16 year-olds awesome victory today was a case of ‘sweet revenge’ after an interference penalty cost her possible success in last year’s event.

Surfing with the polished, powerful and confident style that marked the Australian an outright contender from her first appearance at Papenoo, Gilmore outclassed a spectacular field including finalists Karina Petroni (USA), Erica Hosseini (USA) and fellow countrywoman and defending Quiksilver ISA World Junior girls champion Jessi Miley-Dyer.

Petroni, the USA’s undisputed girls standout, set the pace in the 25 minute ‘Australia versus USA’ decider with a huge, sweeping frontside cutback on one of the larger right hand waves of the day, the American sealing the ride with a confident closeout floater in front of Papenoo’s river mouth to lock in the final’s highest individual wave score of 8.00 points.

Gilmore stuck to her guns, however, clawing back with two solid scores of 7.17 and 6.60, surfing critically on her backhand after finding two excellent shaped left handers. Petroni and Gilmore, both good friends after meeting at a surfing event in Australia seven years ago, spurred each other on during the final with the Australian ultimately getting the upper hand as time ticked away.

Gilmore’s win today comes just 12 days after being crowned the U/18 Australian girls champion, a result which secured her qualification in the 2005 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships scheduled for Huntington Beach in October.

“I’ve been dreaming about winning this contest since last year and I’ve been working toward it the whole time, now to finally do it feels amazing!” explained Gilmore. “My mum, my auntie and my grandma, they came over for the week to support me and mum was crying as I came out of the water, as mum’s do. And to surf against Karina and get first and second, it couldn’t have worked out any better.”

Click on images to enlarge:

French surfer Joan Duru lead for most of the final after an early excellent 8 point ride, then Australia's Matt Wilkinson scored a sensational 9.8 ride to take the win in the under 16 final. Still a fantastic effort from Duru, best ever performance at this event by a French surfer finishing 3rd! (Click on image to enlarge)

Brazil always performs well and today they finished 3rd overall - William Cardosa was exceptional all week, in the final of the under 18's he finished a well deserved 3rd position. (Click on image to enlarge)

Last years under 18 world champion, Jessi Mylie - Dyer looked unstoppable throughout the event, winning every heat up until the final - when luck deserted her with the waves - she finished 4th overall but was a key part to Australia's great Team victory. (Click on image to enlarge)

 

Team USA performed fantastic, finishing a close second to Australia overall and Tanner Gudauskas was exceptional all week, eventually finishing 4th in the under 16's final (Click on image to enlarge)

 


Finals Day of the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Championships, Unfortunately Jordy Smith (South Africa) did not defend his title, despite some mighty air moves he fell just short of making the semi finals - He give all for his nation in the teams final today! (Click on image to enlarge)

Matt Wilkinson, surfing in the U/16 boys against fellow Australian Julian Wilson, France’s Joan Duru and another USA finalist, Tanner Gudauskus, sealed the trifecta for the dominant Australian team by clinching the U/16 boys division.

Representing his country for the first time at International level, Wilkinson, from Copacabana on Australia’s east coast, locked in the highest individual wave score of the entire event – a near perfect 9.83 – en-route to his win today.

“When the announcers called out my score, I was freaking out,” explained Wilkinson. “It was the highest wave of the event and I was almost more scared after I got that wave than before. I was paddling back out thinking, ‘I can’t lose this now!’ I didn’t want anyone to get another wave. I was telling myself, ‘I’ve almost done it!’”

Australia’s awesome showing at the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships, which included two surfers in each of the three division finals, secured them an easy win on the overall teams points race ahead of the USA in second, defending teams champions Brazil third, Hawaii fourth and South Africa fifth.

The USA’s strong showing today carries huge significance for the ‘red, white and blue’ however, with the former surfing super-power restructuring their entire national selection process following a disappointing tenth place finish at last year’s meet.

“We showed up and proved to everyone that we’re back,” explained head coach Peter Townend. “We finished tenth in Durban (in 2003), now we’ve now jumped to second ahead of defending champions Brazil. If you consider most of the other teams have been structured together for years we were at a bit of a disadvantage. I think the amount of team spirit we were able to rally together in a short amount of time is a compliment to our kids. We came here saying we were going to go home with a medal, and we’re leaving with three. That’s saying we’ve made the right choice!”

With the ISA being recognized as the world governing authority for surfing by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the world’s largest governing sporting body, the ISA World Junior Surfing Championships proceedings emulate that of the Olympic format with medals being awarded to all finalists this afternoon in the event’s closing ceremony.

Results & 2004 Champions:

Under 18 Boys final:
1, James Wood (Australia)
2, Jeremy Johnson (USA)
3, William Cordoza (Brazil)
4, Ben Dunn (Australia)

Under 18 Girls final:
1, Stephanie Gilmore (Australia)
2, Karina Petroni (USA)
3, Erica Housseini (USA)
4,Jessi Miley-Dyer (Australia)

Under 16 Boys final:
1, Matt Wilkinson (Australia)
2, Julian Wilson (Australia)
3, Joan Duru (France)
4, Tanner Gudauskas (USA)

Tag Team:
1,  Australia
2, Hawaii
3, Brazil
4, South Africa

Team Rankings (top 10 from 24 nations based on total accumulated points)
1st Australia
2nd USA
3rd Brazil
4th Hawaii
5th South Africa
6th France
7th New Zealand

Scores/Results/Photos etc.

Previous reports:
# 1 : All ready for Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Champs
# 2 : PT Townend to coach the USA Junior Surf Team in Tahiti
# 3 : Costa Rican Junior National Team departs for ISA Tahiti
# 4 : Irish Junior Surf Team set off for the World Junior Champs

# 5 : L’Equipe de France Espoir aux Championnats du monde
# 6 : Selecção Portuguesa Junior no ISA World Junior Champs
# 7 : Opening Ceremony Quiksilver ISA World Junior Champs
# 8 : ISA Tahiti: Jordy Smith commences a strong title defense

# 9 : Airini Mason rounds out first Day with only win for Kiwis
# 10 : Costa Rican team first day in World Junior Contest Tahiti
# 11 : Irish team off to a slow start at ISA World Junior Champs
# 12 : Rivalries heat up at Quiksilver ISA World Junior Champs

# 13 : McMillan leads Kiwi team's charge at ISA World Champs
# 14 : Championnat du Monde Espoir Tahiti 2004 reportage J2
# 15 : South Africans continue to impress at ISA World Juniors
# 16 : Fergal Smith has top Irish performance at ISA Champs.

# 17 : Jordy Smith top scores in Round 2 at ISA World Juniors
# 18 : Mason/Santorik take NZ into ISA Junior Worlds 1/4 finals
# 19 : Tahiti: Ireland's Britton/Smith in final repercharge round
# 20 : Résultats un peu en demie teinte pour l'equipe Francais

# 21 : South Africa's Jordy Smith top-scores Day 3 at Papenoo
# 22 : Von Rupp is Germany's sole ISA Champs team-member
# 23 : Seven nations eliminated at ISA World Junior Champs
# 24 : NZ pair team up to progress in boys U/18s at ISA Juniors

# 25 : Ireland bow out of ISA World Junior Champs with pride
# 26 : Four days in & Costa Rican team hanging in at Champs
# 27 : Time brasileiro manda bem no ISA World Juniors Tahiti
# 28 : South Africa still in the top three after day four at Tahiti

# 29 : Costa Rica team eliminated at ISA World Junior Champs
# 30 : World’s best fighting it out at ISA World Junior Champs
# 31 : NZ Girls Make a Statement at the World Junior Champs
# 32 : Joan Duru en 1/2 final a Champonnats du Monde Junior

# 33 : Molecada solta o pé em  World Junior Championships
# 34 : ISA: Defending World Champ eliminated/Finals Sunday
# 35 : South African Jordy Smith eliminated at World Champs
# 36 : Kiwi girls finish Quiksilver ISA World Champs campaign

# 37 : Tahiti absent des finales de World Junior Championnats
# 38 : James Wood new Quiksilver ISA World Junior Champion
# 39 : Aussies papam tudo em World Junior Surfing Champs
# 40 : Podium historique pour Joan Duru/la France a Papanoo

The ISA (International Surfing Association) was first established in 1964 as the ISF. In 1976 it became the ISA and today represents over 50 national surfing federations from five continents.

The ISA is recognized by the IOC (International Olympic Committee) as the International Federation for all wave riding sports. Its two main events are the ISA World Surfing Games, held every other year since 1964, and the ISA World Junior Surfing Championships held every other year since 1982. The first World Junior Surfing Championships were won by American Tom Curren.

During the 90’s the ISA also run the ISA Pro Junior Tour, a junior tour with prize money, but in 2003 the ISA decided to consolidate all ISA junior events into an annual event with the inaugural annual ISA World Junior Surfing Championships being held in Durban, South Africa.

Surfing America will host the 2005 ISA World Junior Surfing Championships scheduled for Huntington Beach, California in October. The next World Surfing Games (open men, open women, longboard and bodyboard) will be held in California in 2006. The elective Executive Committee of the ISA is presided by Fernando Aguerre with the ISA Headquarters located in San Diego California.

For full information: 
www.isasurf.org  
www.surfingaustralia.com.au  
www.quiksilver.com 

More Australasian Surfing News available here
Check the latest Australasian Surf Reports and Forecasts

Steve Robertson
stever@surfingaustralia.com.au  
Mob: +61(0)407-706-874

JJ – Quiksilver Media Manager
jj@qsilver.com.au  
Mob: +61(0)421-384-431

ISA Headquarters
surf@isasurf.org  
Tel: (858) 551-5292 Fax: (858) 551-5290

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