Sofia Mulanovich looking like she's on a mission : photo ASP/Covered Images

Havaianas Beachley Classic

ASP WCT Womens Event #6
Manly Beach, Sydney, Australia
9 - 15 October 2006

Live Coverage  |  Results/Photos/Videos etc

REDMAN-CARR ELIMINATED FROM THE HAVAIANAS BEACHLEY CLASSIC

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 10 October, 2006 : - -  COOLANGATTA, Australia – The shock elimination of ASP ratings leader Melanie Redman-Carr (AUS) in Round Three of the Havaianas Beachley Classic has left Layne Beachley (AUS) and Chelsea Georgeson (AUS) on the beach to battle it out for the World No. 1 spot.

Beachley, former six-time world champion, and Georgeson, reigning world champion, disposed of their Round Three and Quarterfinal compatriots in Manly, Australia today and will now meet in Havaianas Beachley Classic Semifinal Two. Event wildcard Stephanie Gilmore (AUS), who sent Redman-Carr packing in Round Three, and former world champion Sofia Mulanovich (PER) will meet in the first Semifinal.

With three former world champions and a wildcard who has beaten every one of them in ASP Women’s World Tour competition still in contention, the business end of the Havaianas Beachley Classic should boast some of the most exciting surfing ever seen in the history of the women’s discipline.

“The semis are going to be tough,” Beachley said. “Sofia and Steph are going to have a corker of a heat and Chels and I will be battling it out for ratings points. We always said this event was going to be crucial, we just didn’t realize how crucial. The fact that Mel lost in the early rounds and Chelsea and I are still up against each other on the same side of the draw makes it that much more exciting.”

Though failing to post performances as explosive as her Round One showing, Beachley used her local prowess to ultimately advance today; first over Jacqueline Silva (BRA) and again to take out Samantha Cornish (AUS).

“I’m really happy, very relieved and completely exhausted,” Beachley said after her Quarterfinal. “I’m just really glad it’s over. Sam is such a tough competitor, she’s obviously consistent and gets great scores and I knew she only needed a 6.0.  I am lucky it closed out with eight minutes to go and that she fell off.”

Layne Beachley : photo ASP/Covered Images

Beachley, who is the brainchild behind bringing an ASP Women’s World Tour event back to Sydney and tacking on an additional US$40,000 worth of prize money to the winnings, seems relieved just to have made it this far.

“I would walk happy with a semifinal finish; I am walking away happy now,” Beachley said. “I walked away from the first round happy to even have this event off the ground. At the end of the week I’ll be happy just to sit back and go, “Wow, I can’t believe I did that! I can’t believe I pulled off the richest event in women’s history.”

Georgeson has indicated that she’ll be disappointed with anything less than a win. “It is a good result and I just have to keep going,” Georgeson said. There are two more rounds to go so hopefully I can do it. I’m pretty fired up so we’ll have to wait and see.” Should she eliminate Beachley in the next round and go on to win the event, Georgeson will take the ratings lead for the first time since winning her first world title in Maui last December.

“You can’t count yourself out or get bummed because Mel (Redman-Carr) won the first three events of the year and Sofia (Mulanovich) won three in a row last year so anything is possible,” Georgeson said. “You’ve got to give it everything you’ve got and never give up." Georgeson eliminated Hawaiian Megan Abubo (AUS) in Quarterfinal Three today.

"Megan and I have had quite a few good battles so I was pretty amped at the start of that heat,” Georgeson said. “I went all out on my first two waves and got some good scores. I didn’t surf so well the rest of the heat, I fell off almost every wave, but because I gave it everything at the start it just happened to be enough."

Mulanovich was elated she did enough to make it out of her first quarterfinal duel in five events. Her victory over Julia Christian (USA) will see Mulanovich surf her first 2006 semifinal.

Chelsea Georgeson : photo ASP/Covered Images

"It’s my best result for the year so far,” Mulanovich said. “I’m in the semis and hoping to make the final, so we’ll see how it goes. I surfed pretty well in the other contests too, but I just kept getting knocked in the quarters. It’s not that I didn’t feel confident in my surfing, it just came down to bad tactics and things like that.”

Mulanovich will meet Gilmore for the first time this year after drawing the wildcard several times in 2005. "I actually haven’t surfed a heat against Steph for a while,” Mulanovich said. “But last year we met in almost every heat! We’ll just have to see what happens.”

After ending Redman-Carr’s Sydney showing in their wave-starved Round Three heat, Gilmore went on to eliminate Rebecca Woods (AUS) in the Quarters.

"I had my own little plan which was to go up the beach and get a quick couple of waves under my belt which worked out well,” Gilmore said. “Luck was on my side and I guess if Bec had more time she might have made it. She got that 7.0 in the last minute, so if she had more time she probably would have gotten me."

Gilmore, who won an ASP Women’s World Tour event as a wildcard last year, and looks likely to qualify for the elite tour next year, has beaten Mulanovich before, but most recent bouts have seen the Peruvian come out on top.

“The year I won on the Gold Coast and then had wildcards into multiple events, I didn’t make it past the third round; Sofia kept beating me,” Gilmore said. It’s going to be a hard heat, she’s been surfing great all week, but I’ll do my best. I’m really hungry to get out there and get some more experience.”

Stephanie Gilmore : photo ASP/Covered Images

Also bowing out of the Havaianas Beachley Classic with equal ninth place finishes were Trudy Todd (AUS), Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS), Claire Bevilacqua (AUS), Serena Brooke (AUS), Heather Clark (ZAF) and Silvana Lima (BRA).

It looks likely that the remaining three heats of competition will be run tomorrow morning and the first-ever Havaianas Beachley Classic winner will be crowned by noon local time.

Contest officials will make an official call at 7am tomorrow, Oct. 11, 2006.

Semifinal Match-Ups:
Heat 1: Sofia Mulanovich(PER) vs. Stephanie Gilmore (AUS)
Heat 2: Chelsea Georgeson (AUS) vs. Layne Beachley (AUS)

Quarterfinal Results: (1st advances to the Semifinals; 2nd finishes equal 5th)
Heat 1: Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 13.00 def. Julia Christian (USA) 9.25
Heat 2: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 15.25 def. Rebecca Woods (AUS) 11.25
Heat 3: Chelsea Georgeson (AUS) 15.25 def. Megan Abubo (HAW) 9.50
Heat 4: Layne Beachley (AUS) 14.25 def. Samantha Cornish (AUS) 14.00

Round Three Results: (1st advances to the Quarterfinals; 2nd finishes equal 9th)
Heat 1: Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 12.00 def. Trudy Todd (AUS) 6.00
Heat 2: Julia Christian (USA) 13.75 def. Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS) 10.00
Heat 3: Rebecca Woods (AUS) 12.75 def. Claire Bevilacqua (AUS) 12.50
Heat 4: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 10.45 def. Melanie Redman-Carr (AUS) 6.25
Heat 5: Chelsea Georgeson (AUS) 15.75 def. Serena Brooke (AUS) 11.50
Heat 6: Megan Abubo (HAW) 16.50 def. Heather Clark (ZAF) 10.00
Heat 7: Samantha Cornish (AUS) 11.50 def. Silvana Lima (BRA) 5.60
Heat 8: Layne Beachley (AUS) 13.35 def. Jacqueline Silva (BRA) 9.25

Layne signs autographs : photo ASP/Covered Images

Havaianas Beachley Classic Quarterfinals Heat by Heat

Heat 4: Layne Beachley (AUS) 14.25 def. Samantha Cornish (AUS) 14.00
Former ASP Women's World Champ Layne Beachley held off veteran competitor Samantha Cornish in the final heat of the Quarterfinals this afternoon.Cornish came blitzing out of the gates securing an 8.25 in the shifting afternoon conditions. Beachley fought back grabbing 7.75 and 6.50 to take the lead leaving Cornish needing a 6.00. The wave never came and Beachley joins fellow semifinalists Sofia Mulanovich, Stephanie Gilmore and Chelsea Georgeson in lineup tomorrow.

Heat 3: Chelsea Georgeson (AUS) 15.25 def. Megan Abubo (HAW) 9.50
Defending ASP Women's World Champ Chelsea Georgeson came screaming out the gates to an early lead in her Quarterfinal heat, sending opponent Megan Abubo packing. Georgeson locked down a 7.25 and an 8.00 within the first five minutes of the heat to race out to a commanding lead. Although Abubo fought back, the waves wouldn't deliver for her and she would settle for an equal 5th.

Heat 2: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 15.25 def. Rebecca Woods (AUS) 11.25  Beachley Trials champ and event wildcard Stephanie Gilmore has just beaten Rebecca Woods on her way to the Semifinals. Gilmore opened up solid on her forehand securing some punchy rights for a combined heat score of 15.25 out of a possible 20. Woods fought back but was unable to find any waves that offered substantial scoring potential.

Heat 1: Sofia Mulanovich(PER) 13.00 def. Julia Christian (USA) 9.25
Former ASP World Champ Sofia Mulanovich took down Julia Christian to advance on to the Semifinals. Mulanovich honed in on the most workable righthanders to lock in a heat total of 13.00 out of a possible 20. Christian was unable to find the scores needed in the wally afternoon conditions.

Havaianas event sponsors : photo ASP/Covered Images

Havaianas Beachley Classic Round Three Heat by Heat

Heat 8: Layne Beachley (AUS) 13.35 def. Jacqueline Silva (BRA) 9.25 Layne Beachley trailed Jacqueline Silva for 25-minutes of their 30-minute match-up. Lucky for Layne, a double-up screamer popped up with five minutes on the clock allowing the six-time world champ to do what she does best, hack the heck out of the wave. She'll now meet Samantha Cornish in the Quarters, but first up it's Sofia Mulanovich vs. Julia Christian.

Heat 7: Samantha Cornish (AUS) 11.50 def. Silvana Lima (BRA) 5.60
Silvana Lima has had a great rookie run and has made the semifinals in the last two ASP Women's World Tour events. Unfortunately, she didn't make it out of her Round Three heat today. Samantha Cornish used her experience and competitive savvy to control her heat against the young Brazilian and break her equal 9th place streak. Cornish will come up against Layne Beachley or Jacqueline Silva in the quarterfinals slated to kick off right after the next heat!

Heat 6: Megan Abubo (HAW) 16.50 def. Heather Clark (ZAF) 10.00
Veteran Hawaiian competitor Megan Abubo blew up in her Round Three heat against Heather Clark. After opening up strong with a 7.25 and a 7.50, Abubo slammed the door shut by blasting away on her forehand and garnering a 9.00 out of a possible 10 for her troubles. Heather Clark never found the waves to really open up on her backhand and was eliminated from competition. In the water now is Silvana Lima and Samantha Cornish.

Heat 5: Chelsea Georgeson (AUS) 15.75 def. Serena Brooke (AUS) 11.50
Defending ASP Women's World Champ Chelsea Georgeson advanced past Australian compatriot Serena Brooke into the Quarterfinals. Georgeson opened up with two solid backhand rides securing a 7.25 and a 6.35. Brooke fought back valiantly blasting on her forehand but was unable to find the scores needed before Georgeson shut the door with an 8.50. In the water now is Megan Abubo and Heather Clark.

Heat 4: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 10.45 def. Melanie Redman-Carr (AUS) 6.25
Beachley Trials winner and current No. 2 on the WQS Stephanie Gilmore has just ousted current ratings-leader on the ASP Women's World Tour Melanie Redman-Carr in Round Three. Gilmore opened up with the day's high 9.25 out of a possible 10 on her opening ride for a series of swooping carves and lip-bashes on her forehand. Following a flurry of waves at the beginning of the heat, the surfers sat around and waited for sets that never came. Redman-Carr's elimination comes as a huge upset and may cause a shift in the ratings depending on how the rest of the event pans out.

Heat 3: Rebecca Woods (AUS) 12.75 def. Claire Bevilacqua (AUS) 12.50
Australian Rebecca Woods squeeked past 2005 ASP Rookie of the Year Claire Bevilacqua in Heat Three of Round Three this morning. Woods opened up strong securing an 8.00 out of a possible 10 on her first ride. Bevilacqua fought back amassing a total heat score of a 12.50 before Woods slammed the door shut with a backup 4.75

Heat 2: Julia Christian (USA) 13.75 def. Jessi Miley-Dyer (AUS) 10.00
Long North American representative on the ASP Women's World Tour Julia Christian was in top form this morning as she dispatched of on-fire rookie Jessi Miley-Dyer in their Round Three heat. Sniffing out the longer righthanders that provided a bit of wall to work with, Christian unleashed on her forehand locking in two scores of an 8.25 and 5.50. Miley-Dyer looked solid on her backhand but was unable to find the score needed to advance.

Heat 1: Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 12.00 def. Trudy Todd (AUS) 6.00
Former ASP Women’s World Champ Sofia Mulanovich started her day off with a Round Three victory this morning over Australian Trudy Todd. Although a quiet heat for waves, the two-to-three foot sets that rolled in were glassy, and the fiery Peruvian smashed them on her forehand for a total heat score of 12.00 out of a possible 20. Todd was unable to find the scores needed to fight back.

Be sure to check out all the Results/Photos/Videos etc
 

- Action from Tuesday -

More photos

Previous reports:
# 1 : Havaiana’s Beachley Classic hosts surf action galore
# 2 : Havaianas Beachley Classic slated to heat up Sydney
# 3 : Richest-ever Women's World Tour event starts Monday
# 4 : Havaianas Beachley Classic CT bodes well for Beachley 

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