Sofia Mulanovich : photo ASP/Covered Images

Honda U.S. Open of Surfing
Presented by O'Neill

ASP 6 Star WQS Mens Event
ASP 6 Star WQS  Womens Event

Lost Pro Junior (ASP grade 2 event - Men)
Target Pro Junior (ASP Pro Junior -Women)

Huntington Beach, California, USA
21 - 30 July 2006

Live Webcast  |  Scores/Results/Photos etc 

SOFIA MULANOVICH WINS HONDA U.S. OPEN OF SURFING         (Spanish report below)  
Lee Ann Curren Wins Target Women's Pro Junior

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 29 July, 2006 : - - HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. - Former Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Women's World Champion Sofia Mulanovich (Lima, Peru) won the Women's Honda U.S. Open of Surfing presented by O'Neill in front of a capacity crowd at Huntington Beach this afternoon.

"I'm so happy," Mulanovich, 23, said.  "It's been my dream to win the U.S. Open since I was very young so it's amazing to finally win it.  I've been surfing this event since I was 14 and I've gotten seconds, and finished third, but I've never won before. I'm stoked." Mulanovich carved comfortably through shifting afternoon conditions to claim the long sought-after title over fellow ASP Women's World Tour competitor, Jessi Miley-Dyer (Sydney, AUS).

"It's such a good contest," Mulanovich said.  "It's in America and all my sponsors are here, so it's great to win one in California in front of all these people on the beach - it's great for your career."

Mulanovich, runner-up on last year's ASP Women's World Tour, has so far this year struggled to regain the form that's seen her sitting at the top of the ratings the past few years.  Though currently no. eight in the world, momentum gained from this win will surely impact her headspace heading into the next ASP Women's World Tour event in Brazil in August.

Jessi Miley Dyer : photo ASP/Covered Images

"For me, once I've won a contest, it's so much easier to get on a roll," Mulanovich said.  "This is my first WQS event this season.  I've been at home training a lot, both physically and psychologically.  To win here is good for my confidence for sure." In addition to the prestige of winning the U.S. Open as well as a swath of World Qualifying Series (WQS) ratings points, Mulanovich was also awarded $4,500 and a Honda AquaTrax jetski for her efforts.

ASP Women's World Tour campaigner and current ASP World Junior Champ, Miley-Dyer looked dangerous all week as she steamrolled towards the finals.  After taking down defending U.S. Open Champ Julia Christian (Carlsbad, CA) in her morning heat, the powerful goofy-footer looked 
poised for the podium. Failing to put together a solid combination of scores in the final, she was forced to settle for a second place showing.

"I got one wave but I didn't get much after that," Miley-Dyer said.  "The conditions changed and Sofia moved down to the rights and I stuck with the lefts I'd been surfing all event which, in hindsight, was probably a mistake." Miley-Dyer's runner-up finish earned her $2,300 and also moved her into first place on the women's ASP WQS ratings.

"I've done all the WQS events this year," Miley-Dyer said.  "I'm not doing too well on the World Tour this season - and since it's my first year, I knew I would be surfing all the qualifying events. I've actually made all the finals now so that's pretty cool, but I hate coming second. I've had three second-place finishes and I'm over it."

Julia Christian : photo ASP/Covered Images

Amee Donohoe (McMasters Beach, AUS) surfed brilliantly throughout the entire event but was unable to find the waves needed to advance past a rampaging Miley-Dyer in the semifinals.  Her efforts still garnered her an equal third-place finish, $1,900 and 1,825 ASP points to move her up three 
spots to eighth on the WQS ratings.

"I'm not too sure but I think I'm in a pretty good spot," Donohoe said of her WQS campaign.  "I'm only counting three events and I've got a third, a fifth and a ninth.  There are a lot of girls doing well though like Caroline Sarran and Mel Bartels - they've got some good results.  There's some really tough competition out there."

Melanie Bartels (HAW) was disappointed in her semifinal elimination at the hands of Mulanovich, but the equal third-place finish puts the passionate 
Hawaiian in a good spot to requalify for the elite ASP Women's World Tour in 2007 (Bartels surfed on the elite tour in 2004 and 2005, but did not requalify for this year's tour).

"I'm not doing very well this season," Bartels said.  "I'm currently fifth (on the WQS) but anything can happen.  I don't feel like I've been surfing to my full potential.  All the girls are ripping.  I'm just taking it contest by contest and heat by heat.  Hopefully one day I make the finals and maybe even win it.  That's what I'm looking forward to." Bartels moved from fifth to fourth on the ratings once results from this event were tabulated.

Lee Anne Curran on Target podium : photo ASP/Covered Images

Also crowning an event champion today was the ASP $10,000 Grade Two Target Pro Junior. Lee Ann Curren (Biarritz, FRA) claimed the title this afternoon edging out her fellow competitors Rosanne Hodge (ZAF), Erica Hosseini (Newport Beach, CA) and Courtney Conlogue (Santa Ana, CA) in one of the closest heats of the entire event.

"I was pretty nervous today because I didn't know if I was going to surf well," Curren said.  "I'm so happy that I won.  The other girls are all very good surfers.  It was hard and it was very close and difficult to find the good waves.  I am trying to surf the WQS events, but I still have one more year of school."

Todays win is Lee Ann Curren's second consecutive Pro Junior win this season. Two weeks ago she won the Buondi Pro Junior in the Algarve in Portugal. Lee Ann is a Roxy team-rider. 

2006 WOMEN'S "WQS" RATINGS  
After Evt #10 Honda US Open of Surfing,Huntington Beach,CA - USA

1	Miley-Dyer,Jessi	AUS	6340
2	Woods,Rebecca	AUS	5995
3	Gilmore,Stephanie	AUS	5875
4	Bartels,Melanie	HAW	5865
5	Sarran,Caroline	FRA	5375
6	Petroni,Karina	USA	5135
7	Gryde,Leilani	HAW	4965
8	Donohoe,Amee	AUS	4850
9	Baldwin,Lindsey	USA	4736
10	Hodge,Rosanne	ZAF	4460
11	Smith,Tammy Lee	ZAF	4103
12	Shields,Sheridan	AUS	3996
13	McGrath,Laurina	AUS	3813
14	Langen,Kyla	USA	3568
15	Beck,Holly	USA	3476
16	Clark,Heather	ZAF	3410
17	Sweeney,Lauren	USA	3373
18	Atherton,Nicola	AUS	3303
19	Beardmore,Sarah	AUS	3263
20	Silva,Jacqueline	BRA	3200
21	Arias,Connie	USA	3170
22	Mayaguchi,Kaori	JPN	2875
23	Hosseini,Erica	USA	2840
24	Brooke,Serena	AUS	2828
25	Goncalves,Claudia	BRA	2780
26	Abubo,Megan	HAW	2755
27	Mayer,Kim	USA	2675
28	Sanchez,Amandine	FRA	2665
29	Quint,Juliana	BRA	2620
30	Almeida,Tais	BRA	2603
31	Noyes,Lyndsay	AUS	2534
32	Mulanovich,Sofia	PER	2500
33	Robb,Nikita	ZAF	2475
33	Naraisa,Suelen	BRA	2475
35	Wooldridge,Kim	AUS	2180
36	Spires,Falina	USA	2155
37	Vindas Diaz,Lisbeth	CRI	2075
38	Hoffert,Sarah	USA	2030
39	Lima,Silvana	BRA	1905
40	Sheppard,Kira	USA	1870
41	Bevilacqua,Claire	AUS	1825
42	Menczer,Pauline	AUS	1783
43	Cornish,Samantha	AUS	1735
44	Wheatley,Jaimee	AUS	1630
45	Ballard,Rochelle	HAW	1525
46	Erickson,Sage	USA	1505
47	Cristina,Diana	BRA	1500
48	Enriquez,Cecelia	USA	1496
49	Guy,Stacey	ZAF	1485
50	Quam,Jenny	USA	1481

Mick Campbell : photo ASP/Covered Images

Honda U.S. Open of Surfing
Presented by O'Neill
ASP 6 Star WQS Mens Event

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 29 July, 2006 : - - The Men's Honda U.S. Open of Surfing presented by O'Neill had no shortage of action as today's Round of 24 was shortened to the final 12 surfers who will battle it out for the title tomorrow.

Bobby Martinez (Santa Barbara, CA), current no. four on the Foster's ASP Men's World Tour, put an end to a potential Ben Dunn (Old Bar, AUS) 
double-event sweep (Dunn will surf the final of the Lost Pro Junior tomorrow) this morning with a commanding win in the opening heat of the  men's event.

With such a phenomenal start to his World Tour season, Martinez has said this will be the only WQS event he will surf this year. The lightning-fast Californian flashed his championship tour form to post a 9.50 out of a possible 10 for a series of high-risk maneuvers including a critical finishing re-entry just moments before shooting the pier.

"Oh man, you definitely don't want to hit them (the pier pillars) and anything can happen when you get close," Martinez said.  "That wave was one of the bigger ones of the morning and I was just doing hits and not really paying attention to where I was going then it just surprised me."

Mason Ho : photo ASP/Covered Images

 

Seventeen year-old Mason Ho continued his improbable run in the senior division after bowing out in the Lost Pro Junior quarter-finals earlier in the contest.  The young Hawaiian looked unfazed by the unfamiliar circumstances and posted an 8.17 ride (out of 10 possible), “shooting” through the concrete pier pilings.  The son of legendary Hawaiian Michael Ho and nephew of former world champion Derek Ho finished first in his heat with 14.67 points.  Brazil’s Victor Ribas captured second place with 12.90 points.

The elated Hawaiian started in the trails last weekend and has now earned a ticket to the round of 12 on Sunday.  “I had to start from scratch without any points,” said Ho.  “If I do well here, I’ll go for the WQS and then maybe the WCT.  I love surfing just as much as anyone else and the big wave spots on the WCT don’t bother me since I surf every day in Hawaii.”. Ho, said. "I've been having so much fun but I'm still trying to keep it on the edge out in the water.  I don't have a game plan. I'm just surfing like I'm skating and skating like I'm surfing - just the basics."

Mike Losness (San Clemente, CA) eliminated former ASP world champion CJ Hobgood as well as local favorite and current world no. nine Timmy Reyes, when he won his round five heat today. "Nobody knows this wave better than Timmy (Reyes).  Of course he's always going to surf well and I think today he just didn't get the right wave, which came in my favor," Losness said. 

"It's good to do well in front of my family and friends since I'm so close to home." Advancing from his round five heat along with former Foster's ASP Men's World Tour surfer, Tim Curran, Losness was the only surfer in the heat without championship tour experience.

"To surf against guys of that caliber.that's the kind of heat you want to make it out of," Losness said.  "If I lost, fine, but I saw the draw last night and thought 'oh crap.' Then I thought about it, and if I want to be surfing with those guys more often, this is where you start.  So I might as well go out there and be confident."

Ventura’s Dane Reynolds won the Boost Mobile Pro Shoot-Out Presented by Hurley with 17.33 points and received an automatic wild-card into the WCT-rated event in Sept. at Trestles.  San Clemente’s Shane Beschen finished second with 13.20 points.

      
Top left Mick Campbell, top right Jeremy Flores, BL Rob Machado, BR Royden Bryson

The Honda U.S. Open of Surfing will complete action tomorrow crowning champions in the Lost Pro Junior, O'Neill U.S. Open of Longboarding and 
the Men's Honda U.S. Open of Surfing

Sofía Mulanovich ganó el US Open of Surfing

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 29 July, 2006 : - - Una vez más nuestra reina de las olas Sofía Mulanovich nos da una inmensa alegría y qué mejor que entregarnos este hermoso regalo en las Fiestas Patrias. En una jornada maratónica, en la que tuvo que participar en un solo día en la cuarta ronda, en los cuartos de final, en la semifinal y en la final con pocas horas de intervalo y dando muestras de encontrarse en un excelente estado físico y anímico, nuestra ‘Gringa’ se llevó merecidamente el US Open of Surfing 2006.

A las 7.30 de la mañana Sofía Mulanovich ya se encontraba en el mar de Huntington Beach, California, tomando parte en la cuarta ronda frente a las australianas Rebecca Woods y Sheridan Shields, a quienes derrotó tras los 25 minutos que dura cada serie con el puntaje de 13.33, escoltada por Woods con 10.50, quien también pasó a los cuartos de final y por la Shields (5.70), que quedó fuera de combate.

Poco antes del mediodía Mulanovich volvía a las aguas californianas para enfrentarse a la brasileña Jacqueline Silva a quien venció por 13.50 a 6.46 y después de menos de una hora ingresaba nuevamente al Océano Pacífico para jugarse el pase a la final contra la hawaiana Melanie Bartels, quien también cayó sin atenuantes por 14.67 a 8.43. Como si esto fuera poco, una hora más tarde estaba jugándose la final frente a la recordada Jessi Miley-Dyer, quien la aguó la fiesta a Sofía en la playa peruana de Asia en el 2005.

Sofia Mulanovich : ASP/Covered Images

Esta vez Mulanovich no dejó escapar la oportunidad para ganar el US Open of Surfing en su tercera participación, ya que en el  2002 ocupó el tercer puesto y en el 2004 el segundo lugar. Sofía obtuvo 13.83 merced a sus dos mejores olas calificadas con 6.33 y 7.50 respectivamente, mientras la australiana Miley-Dyer tuvo una ola de 5.67 y otra de 3.00, sumando 8.67.

Esta victoria le viene en el mejor momento a nuestra Campeona Mundial 2004, ya que en un par de semanas deberá participar en la Cuarta Fecha de la WCT en Brasil y nos encontramos a 16 días del cierre de las votaciones para elegir a la Mejor Surfista Femenina del 2006 para la Revista Surfer Magazine, por lo que les reiteramos una vez más a todos ustedes que ingresen a la página web www.voteporsofia.tk y dele su voto, para que así, de alguna manera, devolverle a nuestra reina todas las satisfacciones deportivas que nos ha brindado.

Autor: Hans – Peter Firbas
Oscar Tramontana / Olas Peru.com

www.aspnorthamerica.org
www.usopenofsurfing.com 
www.bankofthewestbeachgames.com

About ASP:
The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the governing body of professional surfing. Crowning surfing’s undisputed world champions since 1976, the ASP sanctions the following tours: the Foster’s ASP Men’s World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, the World Qualifying Series (WQS) and the World Longboarding, Junior and Masters Championships. The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America. These regions manage all their respective domestic affairs under the guidance of ASP International, which is located on the Gold Coast of Australia. ASP International and ASP North America are committed to the progression of surfing and are dedicated to continuing excellent relationships with their surfers, event operators, sponsors and media. For more information log onto www.aspworldtour.com or www.aspnorthamerica.org.

About Bank of the West Beach Games/Honda US Open of Surfing:
The "2006 Bank of the West Beach Games featuring the Honda U.S. Open of Surfing presented by O’Neill" attracts more than 600 international competitors and features surfing, skateboarding, BMX, FMX and volleyball in world-class venues along with an interactive lifestyle festival spread over 12 acres. All events are open to the public, free of charge. Surfing competition begins on Friday, July 21 and runs through Sunday, July 30. Festival activities, BMX and skate competitions begin on Thursday, July 27 with FMX starting on Friday, July 28. Consumer information is available at www.usopenofsurfing.com and www.bankofthewestbeachgames.com.

www.aspnorthamerica.org
www.usopenofsurfing.com 
www.bankofthewestbeachgames.com

Previous reports:
# 1 : Honda U.S. Open of Surfing to host acclaimed surfers
# 2 : Honda US Open of Surfing presented by O'neill begins 
# 3 : US Open blasts off with int'l stars in the Lost Pro Junior

# 4 : US Open: Lost Pro Junior charges on & action heats up
# 5 : Best of the Best decided at Day 3 of US Open of Surfing
# 6 : WQS kicks off in great conditions at Day 1 of US Open..

# 7 : Experience prevails at US Open, Garcia/Lopez winners
# 8 : Action heats up, Martinez & Garcia advance at US Open 
# 9 : Timmy Reyes translates World Tour form into US Open

# 10 : Reyes Machado Hobgood Martinez advance at US Open

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