Day 5: Pro Men and Women Podiums
Photo: Swift slashing his way in the semifinals
With the swell still pumping, the schedule for Day 5 included finishing the Men’s and Women’s Single Elimination final and getting right into the Pro Men’s Double Elimination bracket. The first heat of the day was Heat 21 of the men’s semifinal round with Siver, Browne, Noireaux, and Swift. The horn went off promptly at 11:00 AM and Swift caught an over mast high set wave to get on the board. Siver blew up on another set wave and was seen standing on his board waving while a huge clean up set took him out again until he got a jet ski ride back in to grab another rig. Noireaux got the next bit of action, followed by Browne who charged hard off the lip and finished the wave strong to land an 8.25. After another less than ideal wave from Morgan, an active Browne scored another wave well over mast high. Swift patiently got back in in it with some proper slashing in the most critical sections of the wave for a 7.5 to keep him in the running. Siver finally made it back out and caught a nice medium sized wave and threw his signature 360 after a nice air off the lip to score a clutch 9.43. Morgan finally put up a contestable score with three good hits on an inside wave. Browne reaffirmed his top spot in the heat with an 8.5 just before Siver got a two turn wave to jump into second. A couple of bombs then rolled through with Browne doing an incredible forward rotation off the lip, possibly by accident, but was not able to pull it out. The heat wrapped up with the Goya boys, Borwne and Siver, advancing.
Photo: Levi Siver’s 360
The second semifinal had Kevin Pritchard, Kai Lenny, Bernd Roediger, and Graham Ezzy. Bernd, determined to strike first, grabbed an inside wave and finished it with a goiter for a 9.43 and put him immediately in control. Pritchard grabbed a bomb on the outside and rode it from Green Trees into the channel, but unable to do much work on it. Lenny had the next strike, aggressively punching the lip, and scoring an 8. Kai got another one and went off the lip to put him into first place. Bernd struck late on the next one, which was enough to put him back into first place. Lenny’s next good score was a two-hit small wave that landed him a 7 to jump back into first. Pritchard finally got what he was looking for going full top to bottom on a set wave finishing with a massive boot in the end bowl for an 8 to put him within striking distance. Bernd broke down on a late critical hit and got picked up by the ski. With Lenny and Roediger leading, Pritchard caught a wave at the buzzer and road it well to move 0.25 points ahead of Lenny to make it into the final!
Photo: Bernd Roediger attacking the lip late
Coombs moved right into the women’s semifinal in sequence with Hauser, Larouche, Howard, and Junko. Hauser was able to put together an 8 point ride early to put her in command. Laruche and Junko both got on the board getting in striking distance in large mast high waves and light wind. After Howard got a score, Junko picked off a massive set wave and rode it right through the channel landing her an 8.62 and first place. The heat finished with Hauser in first and Junko in second.
Photo: Howard finding a clean face
The next semifinal women’s heat had Wylde, Crisp, Ward, and Offringa. Wylde struck first with two good hacks on a logo high wave followed by Sato on a nice Point wave. Arutkin got on the board, but immediately went on the rocks. Wylde got a second logo high wave and finished it with a critical aerial, scoring a 9.5 to control the heat, but also took her turn on the rocks. Sato snuck in a second score with 4 minutes left to advance to the finals along with Wylde.
Photo: Wylde attacking the lip!
Back to the men, Browne, Siver, Pritchard, and Roediger were already on the water for the Single Elimination finals. Ho’okipa was in a good shape and set the stage with decent wind, mast high set waves, and an open channel. Browne picked up right where he left off getting a quick score. Siver followed him with radical gouging turns and an air to get an 8.25. Bernd continued his pattern of throwing down on his first wave catching one at Green Trees and finishing it in the channel with a goiter to get a 9. Pritchard, not to be outdone, was on the last wave of the set and scored a respectable 8.12. After another round of exchanges, Browne’s consistent slashing landed him in the first place position. Siver got munched by the lip of a set wave and broke down again, calling for a second rig. As he got towed in, Browne and Pritchard exchange massive 8+ point rides with some aggressive off the lip rides. The next exchange had KP setting up a point wave producing two strong top to bottom turns and then punted a classic tweaked air off the lip. He finished the wave with one more hack to earn him a 9.45 to slide into first place! Bernd keept looking for another goiter or a taka, but could not put it together, and Siver did not come up with a big score he needed. The heat finished with Kevin Pritchard on top, Browne second, Siver third, and Bernd in fourth. Congratulations to Kevin and all the Pro men on their single elimination bracket.
Photo: Browne going inverted on this Ho’okipa bomb
The action continued as Coombs went straight into the Women’s final with Hauser, Wylde, Junko, and Sato. Hauser got things going again with a solid 8.5 point wave. Wylde had the next good scoring opportunity and laid down 3 good hacks for a 7.38. Sato got on the board next, but it was Junko with the better score after her to put her with a 7.12. Wylde responded with a clean logo high wave to put her into first place, with Hauser in second. Junko pulled out a pair of 7 point waves as the heat progressed to put herself in second and give her a shot at the top spot. Hauser stepped it up on a nice set wave to score a 6.12 and put herself into first place. The heat finished with Hauser winning, Junko in second, Wylde in third, and Sato respectably in fourth. Congratulations to Sarah and all the women on their performance.
Side note: after the heat finished it was apparent that Wylde was injured. After a trip to the hospital, it was determined that she broke three bones in her foot. Tour director, Sam Bittner, reported that Fiona is in good spirits and we wish her a speedy recovery.
Photo: Hauser looking comfortable on her way to the top of the podium
The rest of the day saw the Pro Men’s Double Elimination get underway. As the wind lightened and a couple of rainbow inducing squalls rolled through, Coombs was able to get through 4 heats. The standout of the Double so far is Josh Angulo who went on a tear in Heat 24 advancing alongside Guadagnino, as Faurot broke down and just missed the cut. Heat 25 had Taboulet advancing alongside Antoine Martin, who impressed the Ho’okipa onlookers charging hard in the most critical sections. After getting delayed for lack of wind once, Heat 26 saw Polakow advancing alongside Robby Naish, ahead of Casey Hauser and Morisio. With light air, this heat saw all riders struggling to make it out at some point during the heat. Lastly, Heat 27 had strong winds with a rain squall coming through allowing the Gorge sailor, Brian Metcalf-Perez to advance with Kevin McGillivray ahead of Connor Baxter and an absent Josh Stone.
Photo: KP continued to charge hard with confidence
With another swell expected to come in overnight, we should see more epic Ho’okipa conditions once again. It is likely that the Men’s Double and the Women’s Double will continue if the waves are big, but one should not rule out seeing the Masters division finish their final and maybe dip into the Amateurs if the conditions allow.
- Skippers Meeting: 10 AM
- First Possible Start: 11 AM
FROM THE PWA PRESS OFFICE
The world’s best sailors took Ho’okipa to pieces again on finals day of the 2016 NoveNove Maui Aloha Classic as the sizeable swell and trade winds continued, although there were a more than a few victims along the way as Ho’okipa’s infamous rocks took more than its fair share of victims today, after not fulfilling their quota yesterday. After an intense set of finals, Kevin Pritchard (Starboard / Ezzy / MFC) and Sarah Hauser (Tabou / Simmer / MFC) sit proudly at the top of the event rankings after the single elimination.
Kevin Pritchard reeling down-the-line
Women’s
Sarah Hauser used her big wave knowledge and experience to her maximum advantage today as she consistently selected the biggest waves she could find, while effortlessly negotiating her way back out, which as the downfall of many others today with the channel frequently closing out. The New Caledonian beauty combined stylish bottom turns with fluid top turns to earn wave scores of 8.5 and 6.38 points to earn victory in the single elimination and she was clearly delighted with her efforts — as this also puts her on course to win the AWT title.
Sarah Hauser
Japan’s Junko Nagoshi (Quatro / Goya Windsurfing) secured second place on the podium as she consistently attacked the lip to be rewarded with two 7 point waves by the judges, while her fellow compatriot Motoko Sato (Starboard / Severne) completed the top four.
Junko Nagoshi
Top seed, Fiona Wylde (Starboard / Sailworks) won her semifinal in style.
Fiona Wylde airing into the final
But after a bright start to the final, things, unfortunately, ended sourly with the 19-year-old landing an aerial awkwardly, which resulted in three broken bones in her foot. Wylde has finished the last two seasons in second place and even after sustaining a serious injury she stills currently holds third place. Everyone from the PWA would like to wish Fiona a speedy recovery.
A sad end to the day
Men’s
Kevin Pritchard produced a buzzer-beater in the semifinals to book his place in the final at the expense Kai Lenny (Naish / Naish Sails / MFC) by just quarter of a point. Pritchard looked to initially struggle slightly with wave selection in the semifinal but got things together just in the nick of time with his last two waves to advance.
Pritchard performs a last minute escape
In the final KP continued to consistently pick out the biggest bombs he could find and with his timing now he in sync he unleashed several trademark super late hits off the lip to keep himself firmly in contention. The 40-year-old saved his best wave until his penultimate effort as he opened with two raking turns before tweaking a sick aerial, before jamming another solid hack in the pocket to earn 9.45 points, which saw him overtake Marcilio Browne (Goya Windsurfing / MFC) and with almost no time to respond KP earned a hard-fought victory in the single elimination as his fearless approach paid off.
Kevin Pritchard tweaked aerial
Marcilio Browne finished second in the final, which now means the Brazilian is guaranteed third place in the overall rankings as he leapfrogs Thomas Traversa (Tabou / GA Sails) and Jaeger Stone (Starboard / Severne / SWOX / Shamal Sunglasses). Browne almost earned a perfect score in the final after landing a massive aerial straight into a gouging rail turn, but couldn’t quite sail away from an air taka to complete the wave. The 2013 world champion was leading for much of the heat, but was unable to put the contest to bed with a couple of air game crashes off the end bowl, which left him vulnerable and with 6 minutes to go Pritchard turned the tables. However, Brawzinho will still be delighted with his efforts and still has a shot at the Aloha Classic title in the double elimination.
Brawzinho going critically late
Browne also wins the award for wipe out of the day after almost replicating Boujmaa Guilloul’s emergency exit yesterday.
Marcilio Browne holds on
Levi Siver’s (Quatro / Goya Windsurfing / MFC) day began less than ideally as he broke a mast on his opening wave in the semifinal after bouncing out on his bottom turn and getting sucked over the falls on a set wave.
Levi Siver in trouble
Luckily for the American, Diony Guadagnino (AHD / Loft Sails / MFC) was on hand, as he has so many times over the last four days, to supply Siver with a new set of gear and the American soon responded with a 9.43 point wave as he combined a vert snap in the pocket before stalling and waiting for the wave to steepen up again before executing a perfect frontside 360. Siver went on to win his semifinal before finishing third in the single elimination.
Levi Siver aerial
Bernd Roediger (Naish / Naish Sails / MFC) was in superb form in the semifinals and he opened his account with one of the waves of the day as he linked two slashy cutty’s straight into a textbook goiter to earn 9.43 points, which set the 20-year-old firmly on the road to winning the second semifinal. In the final, Roediger, made another flying start as he quickly racked up a 9 point wave after linking two or three snappy turns before somehow wrestling a goiter free of the whitewater when it looked for all the world as though he should crash. Over the remainder of the heat, Roediger didn’t look quite as relaxed as he had done throughout the contest and seemed to try and force the issue a little more and eventually finished the single in 4th place.
Bernd Roediger mid goiter
Double Elimination
After a one heat break, the men’s double elimination began and the first four heats were completed. Josh Angulo (Angulo / S2Maui) was the standout sailor in the opening heat as he earned two waves in the excellent range with a combination of ultra late hits off the lip and aerials.
In the same heat, Loick Lesauvage (Goya Windsurfing / Shamal Sunglasses) was unlucky as after a strong first wave the 16-year-old got caught out on the inside and with no immediate caddy he, unfortunately, ended up on the rocks.
Antoine Martin (JP / NeilPryde / MFC) won Heat 25 ahead of Julien Taboulet (Goya Windsurfing / MFC). For a while there was some discrepancy of an interference by Martin against Zane Schweitzer (Starboard), but after much discussion, it eventually led to nothing.
Antoine Martin goes massive
Martin and Taboulet will now face the legendary figures of Jason Polakow (JP / NeilPryde) and Robby Naish (Naish / Naish Sails) in the next round after they safely passed through Heat 26 – even after a brief meeting with the rocks.
Sometimes even the greats can’t evade the Ho’okipa rocks – Jason Polakow, top, Robby Naish, bottom.
Meanwhile, Bryan Metcalf-Perez (JP / S2Maui) claimed a comprehensive victory in Heat 27, while Kevin McGillivray (Tabou / GA Sails) claimed the remaining qualifying place in the next round despite his board and rig separating.
The wind and waves are set to continue tomorrow and the skippers’ meeting will once again be held at 10am with the action commencing from 11am (GMT-10) onwards. Make sure you tune into www.pwaworldtour.com to follow all of the epic action as it happens via the PWA live stream.
To stay up to date with all the latest developments from Maui — including the live stream, elimination ladders, entry list, images and live ticker simply click HERE and scroll to the bottom of the page.
Result Women’s Single Elimination Maui Aloha Classic:
1st Sarah Hauser (Tabou / Simmer / MFC Hawaii)
2nd Junko Nagoshi (Goya Windsurfing)
3rd Fiona Wylde (Starboard / Sailworks)
4th Motoko Sato (Starboard / Severne)
5th Ingrid Larouche (Fanatic / Ezzy)
5th Alice Arutkin (Fanatic / NorthSails)
Result Men’s Single Elimination Maui Aloha Classic:
1st Kevin Pritchard (Starboard / Ezzy / MFC)
2nd Marcilio Browne (Goya Windsurfing / MFC)
3rd Levi Siver (Quatro / Goya Windsurfing / MFC)
4th Bernd Roediger (Naish / Naish Sails / MFC)
5th Robby Swift (JP / NeilPryde / Maui Ultra Fins / SWOX)
5th Kai Lenny (Naish / Naish Sails / MFC)
7th Morgan Noireaux (JP / Hot Sails Maui)
7th Graham Ezzy (Tabou / Ezzy)
9th Alex Mussolini (RRD / RRD Sails)
9th Camille Juban (Quatro / Simmer / MFC)
9th Leon Jamaer (JP / NeilPryde)
9th Ricardo Campello (Patrik / Point-7 / MFC)
