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Pozo leverede i går forhold der gjorde det muligt at gennemføre første runde, som blev vundet af Victor Fernandez, som besejrede Phillip Köster. De to forhåndsfavoritter gik da også i finalen, hvor de fik lov at kæmpe. Denne gang til Victors fordel, som nu fører Pozo stævnet. Flere af de lokale sejlere har gjort det rigtigt godt i Pozo, ved at tage flere af kanonerne ud. En af overraskelserne var Kauli Seadi der røg tidligt ud, da Ben Proffit slog ham ud. Læs nedenstående tekst, der b. la beskriver Kaulis dårlige start.

Danske Kenneth Danielsen sejlede også nogle fine runder, og tog flere sejlere ud. Mødet med Ricardo Campello var dog lidt for stor en mundfuld. Ricardo fyrede nogle af hans velkendte hop af, høje og meget flotte.

Nedenstående tekst, video og billeder fra PWAs hjemmeside.

A return of the relentless winds in Pozo allowed for a full day of sensational world tour competition with a single elimination completed for both the men’s and women’s fleets, and the first two rounds of the double down for the men. Competitors were maxed on 4.5s early in the morning enabling the competition to start on schedule at 09:30, and run right through to the early evening.

Men

King Of Pozo

Three times Pozo champion, Victor Fernandez (Fanatic, North, MFC) stole the show from local lad, and 2009 Pozo champion, Philip Köster (Starboard, NeilPryde, Dakine) in an epic showdown of world-class talent.

Fernandez flew through his early round heats taking the scalp of many past world champions, including the former overall world champion, Kevin Pritchard (Starboard, Gaastra, Dakine) in the third round. Top contender from Tenerife, Dany Bruch (Patrik, Severne) who put up an excellent fight, and was on fire busting out his trademark one handed back loops with copious amounts of style, but couldn’t quite match Fernandez’s double forwards. He then beat fellow team mate, and former freestyle world champion, Marcilio Browne (Fanatic, North), who’s riding was no match for Fernandez, before going on to meet Köster in the final.

Köster’s jumping wowed the crowds throughout the day, with whoops and cheers coming from every angle when he launched into orbit. His stalled doubles were some of the most impressive jumps ever seen in world cup competition, making him without doubt the standout jumper of the day. However, in the final he failed to match the insane jumps that had pulled him through his heats earlier in the day, and Fernandez was almost on a par with huge faultless doubles of his own. Fernandez was also milking waves for all they’re worth, flying round 360s, and adding takas with ease. Köster almost caught up, and could have claimed the final if only he’d nailed some technical turns along with his awesome double taka, allowing Fernandez to claim the crown on the narrowest of victories with a 3-2 decision.

Standouts Of The Single

Aside from Fernandez and Köster, there were plenty of other sailors that showed real promise throughout the early rounds. The first of these was Jonas Ceballos (Mistral, Simmer) who took down the young hotshot Alessio Stillrich (Fanatic, North) by sailing a calculated heat, timing the waves to perfection in order to bust out his best moves in the right conditions. Stillrich had moments of glory, but Ceballos’s experience shone through and won it for him.

Britain’s Ben Proffitt (Simmer) was the next sailor to perform to an exceptional standard. He took down Frenchman Jules Denel (Exocet) after a display of port tack prowess, to go head to head with former wave world champion, Kauli Seadi (JP, NeilPryde, MFC). Many thought that this would be the end of Proffitt’s game in Pozo, but the Brit hit it hard and destroyed the Brazilian sensation. To be fair, Seadi’s day didn’t start off in the best manner, being stopped by the police on the way to the beach. He then failed to perform to his usual high standard, and an on form Proffitt took full advantage. Following that heat, Proffitt almost took down Köster too with a 2-1 decision favouring the Pozo champ. Watch out for Proffitt in the double!