Team Australia : photo ISA/Watts

Team News

International Surfing Assn
La Fae, Salinas Equador
28 March - 5 April 2009

Team Australia wins fourth Quiksilver ISA Junior Champs

Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 6 April, 2009 : - - In a dramatic come from behind victory, Team Australia was crowned the 2009 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Champions today in Salinas, Ecuador. Dean Bowen (Gerroa, NSW) and Tyler Wright (Lennox Head, NSW) won individual gold medals for U/18 Boys and U/18 Girls to push Team Australia over the line for a fourth consecutive team gold metal.

The largest crowds ever seen at a junior surfing event packed the beach to witness a thrilling conclusion to the contest which saw 264 athletes from 28 countries boil down to just four surfers from each division. Today's final was a triumph for Australia who found itself relegated to sixth place in the standings only two days ago.

“It comes down to the fact that all of our kids have the real Aussie pride,” said Australian coach Mark Richardson. “At the world juniors, there are so many good surfers and there is a lot of pressure.” “But when the pressure comes on, our kids step up. They've got big, big hearts. They stayed positive and they didn't give up.”

Bowen was knocked into the repercharge rounds earlier this week, losing to Costa Rican Carlos Munoz, Brazilian Thiago Guimaraes in round three.

In a test of endurance, Bowen battled his way through seven elimination rounds before making it to the finals, impressing the 12 member judging panel on his way to taking first in all but one of his heats. His final match opponents, Brazilian Miguel Pupo, French surfer Maxime Huscenot and Hawaiian Dylan Goodale, all came through the qualifying rounds.

In the Boys Under 18 final, Bowen took the lead catching the first wave, working the left point with huge frontside turns all the way to the shore. Bowen's next scoring wave solidified his lead. Pupo made an attempt to move into first with two back-to-back waves and a combined score of 15.06, but Bowen held the lead.

With eight minutes still on the clock Bowen sealed the final with a huge 9.10 leaving Huscenot and Goodale way behind and needing a combination of 17.61. Huscenot's last wave featured a huge free falling floater on the outside section and pulled him up into third but with time running out, but he couldn't find the second wave he needed to win. In the end, Pupo won silver, Huscenot bronze and Goodale copper.

“I feel on top of the world,” said an emotional Bowen after the win. “This is by far the biggest win of my life.” “I trained for this contest all year which started as the NSW State Champion and then the Australian Champion and now I am the World Junior Champion.”

“I cannot believe we won. I would like to dedicate this win to my late mother whom I lost when I was nine years old, and to my father who is recovering from knee surgery back at home.” In the Under 18 Girls Final, Australian Tyler Wright was up against 2008 ISA World Junior gold medalist Australian teammate Laura Enever, USA surfer Courtney Conlogue and Hawaiian Alessa Quizon.

After charging through the main rounds through all eight days, Wright came out of the gates firing on all cylinders, posting the first big score of the final and holding on to first for the entire 30 minutes. USA surfer Courtney Conlogue stayed on Wright's heels, also posting big scores, but in the end was left needing almost nine points to overtake Wright.

Coming in from the water on the shoulders of Australian teammates and wrapped in the Aussie flag, Wright poured water over herself to cool down from an exhausting and intense final. “This is so awesome,” said Wright. “I have waited one year for this result after placing second last year” “On the top of my 2009 goal list was to become the World Junior Champion and to reach it is just amazing”

“Every heat this year in Ecuador has been a hard. There are so many good competitors here from around the world. I knew I had to just focus on my own game out there in the water and not worry about the others.” “We hit rock bottom the other day and it didn't look as though we would be in the medal rounds, but we pulled together as a team. The support we've given each other has been amazing.”

As winners of the Under 18 Boys and Under 18 Girls, Dean Bowen and Tyler Wright will also receive entry spots in the 2010 Quiksilver and Roxy Pro Gold Coast Trials, an Association of Surfing Professionals World Tour event.

Final country placing went to:
1st: Australia
2nd: Hawaii
3rd: Brazil
4th: USA

- Advertisement -


Pre-release 30% online discount expires mid-April

www.surfingaustralia.com

What's your take on this?
Post your thoughts: SV Forum

New Survey: Map Surfing’s future 

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

New! B2B News ASBE-Surf   |  Receive News-Alerts

Steve Robertson

Team - Surfersvillage