OP Pro Hawaii

ASP 6 Star WQS Mens Event
ASP 6 Star WQS Womens Event
Haleiwa, Oahu, Hawaii
12 - 22 November 2006 

Men:-         Live Coverage   |   Results/Photos/Videos/etc
Women:-   Live Coverage   |   Results/Photos/Videos/etc

PERU'S MULANOVICH OFF TO AN EARLY VANS TRIPLE CROWN LEAD AFTER OP PRO HAWAII WIN

Sofía Mulanovich es la nueva campeona en Hawai   |   Espanol 
Peruana vence em Haleiwa e Jacqueline Silva garante vaga no WCT 2007    |    Portuguese

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 16 November, 2006 : - - Haleiwa, HAWAII -  Former world champion Sofia Mulanovich (Peru) returned to the winner's dais at Haleiwa today after posting a victory in the Op Pro Hawaii, the first event of the annual Vans Triple Crown of Surfing. It was Mulanovich's first win since the US Open at Hungtington Beach in July.

The 23-year-old, from Lima, had her work cut out for her today, clashing with the hottest rising talent from around the world in smooth but small North Shore surf. Despite the red-hot challenge from rising stars Stephanie Gilmore (Australia) and Tais Almeida (Brazil), and an equally accomplished tour veteran Jacqueline Silva (Brazil) in the final, Mulanovich made light of the 35-minute heat that turned on some of the most consistent three- to four-foot surf of the day.

Posting top scores of 8.17 and 7.67 for a two-wave total of 15.84 out of a possible 20 points, Sofia had the heat well and truly sewn up by its midpoint. Second-placed Gilmore needed a near-perfect 9.01 point ride if she was to steal the win. Gilmore's total was 13.6 points; Almeida 12.46 points, and Silva 10.0 points.

Jacqueline Silva : photo ASP/Covered Images

Mulanovich earned $4,500 for the win and has taken an early lead on the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing Series ratings which is worth an added $10,000 for the top performing female surfer over all three events. Second-placed Gilmore earned $2,500 and finished second overall on the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS) ratings, earning herself a berth on next year's elite World Championship Tour (WCT).

The Op Pro Hawaii was the final WQS event of 2006. Almeida, who placed third, earned $2,200, and Silva earned $2,200. Silva's result today will more than likely ensure her a requalification for next year's WCT; her final qualification is dependent upon the performance of a few ladies above her on the WCT rankings.

I really worked for it," a worn Mulanovich said, having surfed through four rounds today. "I hussled out there. All the heats were really tough and all the girls I came up against surfed so well. "I really like surfing my backhand and the lefts were definitely getting better in the final - more consistent. I'm super stoked to win this event. I love it here, I love surfing Haleiwa, and Hawaii's the place to win!"

For Gilmore, her result today is yet another in what has been a sterling maiden year. With a chance to win a wildcard into the next event at Sunset Beach, she has had an envious season for a rookie 18-year-old.

Layne Beachley : photo ASP/Covered Images

"I was going for whatever came my way," said Gilmore. "But being from the Gold Coast, I always feel more confident on the rights. But I'm working on my backhand and Hawaii's the perfect place to do it." The highest scoring rides today were left-handers. "Sofia found all the great waves out there. "I felt really nervous at the begin but after making the final there was no pressure and I'm so happy."

The top local finisher today was 13-year-old Malia Manuel of Kauai. In her first professional event, Manuel was stunning to watch as she commandeered her way through to the quarter finals before losing to six-time world champion Layne Beachley (Australia) and Silva. Beachley lost in the semi's to Silva and Almeida.

Australian Jesse Miley-Dyer placed third in the quarter finals but earned enough points to end the year at first on the WQS rankings, qualifying for her first WCT season in 2007. Based upon the final WQS ratings, the following girls have definitely qualified for the 2007 WCT tour: Miley-Dyer, Gilmore, Melanie Bartels (Hawaii - who placed =13th today), Rebecca Woods (Australia, =9th today), Mulanovich, and Amee Donohoe (Australia, =17th today).

The following ladies have a good chance of qualifying, but their fate is in the hands of the final WCT rankings by the end of the Triple Crown: Caroline Sarran (France), Jacqueline Silva (Brazil), and Rosie Hodge (South Africa). Mathematically, Hawaii's Leilani Gryde could also qualify, though it is an outside possibility.

The Op Pro Hawaii, at Haleiwa, is the first stop on the annual Vans Triple Crown of Surfing Series that runs in its entirety from November 12 to December 20, on Oahu's famous North Shore in Hawaii. The Op Pro Hawaii is a 6-star World Qualifying Series event for both men and women, collectively offering $155,000 and critical points towards qualifying for the elite World Championship Tour of 2007. The Op Pro Hawaii requires three more days of competition to run to completion, and will resume tomorrow, surf-pending.

- Action from today -

2006 WOMEN'S "WQS" RATINGS WQS After Evt #14 OP Pro,Haleiwa-Hawaii 

1	Miley-Dyer,Jessi	AUS	8575
2	Gilmore,Stephanie	AUS	8145
3	Bartels,Melanie	HAW	6910
4	Woods,Rebecca	AUS	6745
5	Mulanovich,Sofia	PER	6720
6	Donohoe,Amee	AUS	5945
7	Sarran,Caroline	FRA	5665
8	Silva,Jacqueline	BRA	5575
9	Hodge,Rosanne	ZAF	5470
10	Gryde,Leilani	HAW	5355
11	Abubo,Megan	HAW	5215
12	Clark,Heather	ZAF	5110
13	Petroni,Karina	USA	5105
14	Almeida,Tais	BRA	4878
15	McGrath,Laurina	AUS	4713
16	Atherton,Nicola	AUS	4595
17	Shields,Sheridan	AUS	4593
18	Baldwin,Lindsey	USA	4553
19	Langen,Kyla	USA	4155
20	Beck,Holly	USA	4075
21	Redman-Carr,Melanie	AUS	3965
22	Smith,Tammy Lee	ZAF	3945
23	Mayaguchi,Kaori	JPN	3875
24	Bevilacqua,Claire	AUS	3855
25	Goncalves,Claudia	BRA	3790
26	Brooke,Serena	AUS	3675
27	Lima,Silvana	BRA	3665
28	Naraisa,Suelen	BRA	3585
29	Wooldridge,Kim	AUS	3560
30	Hosseini,Erica	USA	3535
31	Beardmore,Sarah	AUS	3470
32	Quint,Juliana	BRA	3440
33	Cornish,Samantha	AUS	3435
34	Ballard,Rochelle	HAW	3430
35	Sweeney,Lauren	USA	3373
36	Mayer,Kim	USA	3350
37	Christian,Julia	USA	3265
38	Noyes,Lyndsay	AUS	3200
39	Vindas Diaz,Lisbeth	CRI	3175
40	Arias,Connie	USA	3170
41	Sanchez,Amandine	FRA	3165
42	Kennelly,Keala	HAW	2535
43	Quam,Jenny	USA	2500
44	Robb,Nikita	ZAF	2475
45	Georgeson,Chelsea	AUS	2470
46	Guy,Stacey	ZAF	2415
47	Wheatley,Jaimee	AUS	2410
48	Cristina,Diana	BRA	2400
49	Hoffert,Sarah	USA	2360
50	Spires,Falina	USA	2280
51	Menczer,Pauline	AUS	2183
52	Beachley,Layne	AUS	2088
53	Tavares,Maria Tita	BRA	2000
54	Todd,Trudy	AUS	1985
55	Sheppard,Kira	USA	1870
56	Schimitz,Bruna	BRA	1600
57	Gomez,Anali	PER	1510
58	Erickson,Sage	USA	1505
59	Luana,Papa	GLP	1460
60	Ashley,Anastasia	HAW	1440
61	Clegg,Amanda	AUS	1438
62	Enriquez,Cecelia	USA	1416
63	Bobb,Ashley	USA	1413
64	Taniguchi,Erina	JPN	1385
65	Oakley,Rebecca	AUS	1363
66	Moore,Carissa	HAW	1340
67	Conlogue,Courtney	USA	1264
68	Abgrall,Marie Pierre	FRA	1255
69	Manuel,Malia	HAW	1250
70	Fitzgibbons,Sally	AUS	1210
71	Stewart,Amy	AUS	1170
72	McGregor,Lauren	AUS	1119
73	Smith,Carly	AUS	1110
74	Hiroe,Tahara	JPN	1100
75	Werneck,Marina	BRA	1090
76	Mason,Arini	NZL	1083
77	Santos,Monik	BRA	1075
78	Ado,Pauline	FRA	1060
79	Mayer,Brigitte	BRA	1000
80	Hagiwara,Mizuki	JPN	950
81	Caton,Charlotte	FRA	925
82	Lopes,Andrea	BRA	915
83	Blanchard,Alana	HAW	905
84	Maroussem,Tamarys de	ZAF	900
85	Pereira,Francisca	BRA	880
86	Emory,Jessica	AUS	850
87	Guimares,Juliana	BRA	833
88	MacKenzie,Lynette	AUS	811
89	Chudleigh,Tarryn	ZAF	790
90	Johnston-Maritz,Sarah	ZAF	780
90	Baum,Sarah	ZAF	780
92	Nicholl,Amy	USA	772
93	Whitney,Ayla	AUS	710
94	Matthews,Jessica	ZAF	700
94	Mentasti,Tasha	ZAF	700
94	Souza,Krisna de	BRA	700
97	Davis,Mischa	NZL	693
98	Francis,Ashley	USA	680
99	Gonzalez,Maria	PRI	663
100	Leith,Lexi von der	USA	650

Previous reports:
# 1 : Op Pro Hawaii '06 kicks-off Vans Triple Crown of Surfing 
# 2 : Op Pro Hawaii postponed due to flat conditions on Day 1
# 3 : Op North Shore Makahiki Festival sees a huge turnout..
# 4 : Tsunamis makes waves for Op Pro Hawaii opening day 

www.Op.com
www.makahikifestival.com
www.triplecrownofsurfing.com/op.html

About Ocean Pacific (Op)
Founded more than three decades ago, Op was the first surfboard manufacturer to offer a full range of products for surfers both in and out of the water. Today, through sponsorship of world-class sporting events, athletes, artists and musicians, and manufacture of goods ranging from apparel and footwear to fragrances and accessories, Op, a division of The Warnaco Group Inc. (NASDAQ: WRNC), caters to an ever-growing worldwide youth culture by remaining true to its mission: to create quality products with authenticity and style. For more information, log-on at www.op.com.

About Vans
Vans, Inc., a subsidiary of VF Corporation (NYSE: VFC), is a leading lifestyle brand for the youth market. Vans® collections, which include active and performance footwear, apparel and accessories, snowboard boots and bindings and the Pro-tec® line of protective gear, are sold in the United States through 150 company owned stores and factory outlets as well as independent retailers. Internationally, Vans sells its goods in approximately 50 countries through a network of distributors, sales agents and foreign offices. Vans supports and promotes the action sports lifestyle through such events as the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing™, the Vans Warped Tour™, and the Vans Cup at Tahoe™.

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