LUANA SILVA AND KAI WARNER WIN 2020 MOTHERNEST GREAT LAKES PRO.
BOOMERANG BEACH, GREAT LAKES (Sunday, 23 February 2020): Luana Silva (HAW) and Kai Warner (Narrabeen, NSW) have taken out the 2020 Mothernest Great Lakes Pro in a day of tricky conditions at Boomerang Beach.
Kai Warner’s (Narrabeen, NSW) return from injury seemed to be complete as he took out the Men’s division. Warner remained on point over the duration of the final, nailing a flutter of backside hits to gain the upper hand against Kiwi surfer Elliot Paerata-Reid (NZL). Flanked by a dozen friends and family from North Narrabeen, Warner posted a massive 17.00 two-wave heat total which consisted of two-scores in excess of eight-points and ultimately gave him the edge over his fellow finalist. The win is a change of form for Warner who was eliminated in the first round of the recent 2020 Carve Pro at Maroubra.
“If you asked me if I was going to be here early this week, then I wouldn’t have thought it would happen,” said Warner. “It feels good to bounce back from a dead-last finish in Maroubra. I just wanted to not put too much pressure on myself and try and have as much fun as I could. This has been the funnest week, having a bunch of friends here and cheering us all on, so it makes the win so much sweeter.”
Luana Silva (Hawaii) capped off five days of impeccable heat surfing, taking out the Women’s division. The 15-year-old Hawaiian native employed a mature heat strategy in the final, remaining patient in the heat and waiting for the rare, clean faces on offer. Silva surfed beyond her years in the final performing a barrage of giant snaps that allowed her to gain the edge over the mature approach of fellow finalist and recent Carve Pro champion Sarah Baum (ZAF). The victory is Silva’s second win from as many trips to Australia as she claimed the 2019 Phillip Island Pro back in November last year.
“I feel so good right now. I almost have no words. I just love Australia,” said Silva. “I feel so blessed to have won two titles here and have had such great conditions while I’ve been here. This win is pretty special as my Mum and a few friends were here to watch it in person. I knew Sarah was going to be tough to beat with her winning the last QS event and she posted high scores all event, so I knew I’d have to be on my game to beat her.”
Elliot Paerata-Reid (NZL) put up a valiant fight in the Anzac final against Warner, posting one score in the excellent range, an 8.25, but was unable to find the necessary 8.76 to usurp Warner’s lead. The runner-up finish is Paerata-Reid’s second runner-up finish on the QS with the natural footer finishing runner-up to Liam O’Brien at the Simeulue Pro back in 2018.
“I don’t usually do too well in the Australian comps, so it feels awesome to break the spell here,” said Paerata-Reid. “I would have loved to share a final with Billy [Stairmand] instead of the semis because I look up to him so much but to get a win against him also felt pretty good.”
Sarah Baum’s (ZAF) attempt to claim her second win from as many events fell one spot short as she came runner-up to Silva. The 2020 Carve Pro QS champion remained busy at the beginning of the final at Boomerang and looked almost destined to take her second win on the trot until Silva posted the scores to push her ahead.
“I’m stoked with my start to this year,” said Baum. “I would have loved to go one spot better at this event, but I have no complaints really. I wanted to get busy at the beginning at the heat and see what happened, especially with the higher tide coming through in the final. With Luana being one of the younger girls I wanted to put a bit of pressure on her, but she managed to get a few scores underneath me which allowed her to get the win.”
Photo by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
The elite five-day World Surf League (WSL) Qualifying Series (QS) 1000 rated event will form the second of three stops on the Vissla NSW Pro Surf Series and will take place in the Great Lakes from the 19 February – 23 February 2020.
The Vissla NSW Pro Surf Series was developed for Australian and International surfers to gain ranking points and prize money on the WSL Qualifying Series. The series also creates a NSW coastal road trip for all to explore the variety of waves, visit local communities and enjoy NSW surfing culture.
A live broadcast can be viewed at worldsurfleague.com on Saturday and Sunday.
All event news, images and highlight clips will be housed at nswprosurfseries.com
2020 Vissla NSW Pro Surf Series Event Schedule
Event 1: Carve Pro QS1,000, Maroubra – January 29 – 1 Feb
Event 2: Mothernest Great Lakes Pro, Boomerang Beach – February 19 - 23
Event 3: Vissla Central Coast Pro, Avoca Beach – February 25 – March 1
The 2020 Mothernest Great Lakes Pro will be proudly supported by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW. The event will also be proudly supported by Mothernest, Vissla, Destination Barrington Coast, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Moby’s Beachside Retreat, AirAsia, WSL, and Surfing NSW.
Report by Surfing NSW
FINALISTS DECIDED AT MOTHERNEST GREAT LAKES PRO.
BOOMERANG BEACH, GREAT LAKES (Saturday, 22 February 2020): The 2020 Mothernest Great Lakes Pro saw a giant day of action today with Men’s and Women’s semi-finalists decided after a series of exciting exchanges in fluctuating two-foot conditions.
Luana Silva (HAW) claimed one of the biggest scalps of the event when she eliminated perennial standout Leilani McGonagle (CRI) from the event in the quarterfinals. 15-year-old Silva shone in the quarterfinal - surfing well beyond her years - posting a near-perfect 9.00 wave-score, followed by a 7.75 to amass a 16.75 two-wave heat total and cement a spot into the semis where she’ll meet Freya Prumm (Gold Coast, Qld).
“That heat felt really good,” said Silva. “My round three heat was a bit of a wakeup call as I only got a seven-point heat total, so I really wanted to improve on that. Getting a win over Leilani has boosted my confidence a lot as she’s such a good competitor and someone who is really hard to beat.”
Sarah Baum (ZAF) appeared to still be carrying some of the same momentum that won her the recent Carve Pro QS event at Maroubra, earning herself a spot into the semi-finals. Baum found a handful of punchy lefts in her quarterfinal against Yolanda Hopkins (PRT), which allowed her to perform a barrage of powerful forehand carves. Baum will face Leila Riccobuano (HAW) in tomorrow’s semi-finals.
“I had a goal of getting to the quarterfinals in this event, so to go one heat better now feels great,” said Baum. “I think the result at the Carve Pro gave me a bit of confidence plus the waves where I live in Newcastle have been really good, so I’ve been surfing so much, which would have helped as well I think.”
After a 12 month hiatus from competition due to injury, Kai Warner (Narrabeen, NSW) showed he hadn’t lost any of his flare as he continued to move through heats at the Mothernest Great Lakes Pro. Warner’s best performance came in the quarterfinals when he eliminated event standout Timothee Bisso (FRA) thanks to a near-perfect 9.10 wave score and a 7.00 backup. Warner executed a chain of powerful backside snaps in the heat to get the edge over the Frenchman and earn himself a spot into the semis where he’ll face fellow Northern Beaches surfer Harley Ross (Curl Curl).
Harley Ross - photo by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
“I’ve was injured at the beginning of last year, so I opted to have last year off and start fresh in 2020, so I’m frothing to get to the semis here,” said Warner. “I’m just here trying to have as much fun as I can. There’s a bunch of guys and girls here from Narrabeen at this event, so we’re all cheering each other on and it makes each win so much sweeter.”
Kai Warner - photos by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
Billy Stairmand’s (NZL) love for the Mothernest Great Lakes Pro grew fonder as he solidified himself a spot into the semi-finals; his second semi-final appearance in as many years. Stairmand gained the upperhand against Sam Coffey (USA) in his quarterfinal thanks to an impressive 15.15 two-wave heat total. Stairmand will meet fellow Kiwi Elliot Paerata-Reid (NZL) in the semi-finals tomorrow.
“The swell and wind was pretty wild this morning but it totally turned around and began pumping in that last heat,” said Stairmand. “Growing up at Raglan, I use my backhand all the time so I wanted to use that to my advantage. I came here to try out a bunch of new boards and hopefully get the ball rolling for the QS5000 in Newcastle and the Challenger Series in Sydney. Now that Elliot is in the semis with me, it’s awesome that there’ll definitely be a Kiwi in the final. Elliot actually beat me in the New Zealand Nationals earlier this year, so I definitely want to get the win against him.”
The elite five-day World Surf League (WSL) Qualifying Series (QS) 1000 rated event will form the second of three stops on the Vissla NSW Pro Surf Series and will take place in the Great Lakes from the 19 February – 23 February 2020.
The Vissla NSW Pro Surf Series was developed for Australian and International surfers to gain ranking points and prize money on the WSL Qualifying Series. The series also creates a NSW coastal road trip for all to explore the variety of waves, visit local communities and enjoy NSW surfing culture.
A live broadcast can be viewed at worldsurfleague.com on Saturday and Sunday.
All event news, images and highlight clips will be housed at nswprosurfseries.com
2020 Vissla NSW Pro Surf Series Event Schedule
Event 1: Carve Pro QS1,000, Maroubra – January 29 – 1 Feb
Event 2: Mothernest Great Lakes Pro, Boomerang Beach – February 19 - 23
Event 3: Vissla Central Coast Pro, Avoca Beach – February 25 – March 1
The 2020 Mothernest Great Lakes Pro will be proudly supported by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW. The event will also be proudly supported by Mothernest, Vissla, Destination Barrington Coast, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Moby’s Beachside Retreat, AirAsia, WSL, and Surfing NSW.
Report by Surfing NSW
QUALIFYING SERIES WARRIORS SHINE ON THE THIRD DAY OF THE MOTHERNEST GREAT LAKES PRO.
BOOMERANG BEACH, GREAT LAKES (Friday, 21 February 2020): The Mothernest Great Lakes Pro saw another exciting day of action today as the Men’s top seeds hit the water for their opening heats in a day that was largely dominated by seasoned Qualifying Series surfers.
2018 Mothernest Great Lakes Pro champion Jackson Baker (Merewether, NSW) showed the same skills that won him the event back in 2018, finding punchy rights that were strangely reminiscent of the year he claimed victory. The Novocastrian natural-footer shone in the heat, nailing an array of mature power turns that were bountifully rewarded with a 16.00 two-wave heat total. Baker will join an all international battle tomorrow when he faces Leon Glatzer (Germany), Timothee Bisso (France) and John Mark Tokong (Philippines) in round four.
“It’s good to get my first heat win of the year under my belt to begin the Australian competition leg,” said Baker. “This event is too easy for me to compete in, it’s so close to home and I spend a lot of time up here on day trips and holidays. These little shorebreaks had a bit of push in them, which I think really allowed everyone to showcase their best surfing as well.”
Kyuss King (Byron Bay, NSW) looked like becoming one of the first top seeds to be eliminated from the event as he waited until the final five minutes to strike in his round three heat. Up against the ropes, King needed a solid score to move from fourth to first but was able to find a lengthy and powerful righthander that allowed him to perform a multitude of impressive forehand hits and earn himself a 7.00 wave score that shot him from fourth to first.
“That was a nerve-racking heat,” said King. “It definitely gets the butterflies going in my stomach when I leave my charge to the final minutes, so I’d like to get an earlier start in the next one. I just need to remember to stay positive in situations like that and just focus on my gameplan.”
Sandon Whittaker (Avoca, NSW) used the morning’s wedgey lefts to his advantage, nailing a mix of snappy hits and exciting airs. The Central Coast goofy-foot gained the edge in the heat thanks to a decent 12.30 heat total which allowed him to claim the win. Whittaker will face fellow Australian’s Harley Ross (Curl Curl, NSW), Blake Neka (Cabarita, NSW) and Jamie Thomson (Narrabeen, NSW) in round four.
“I haven’t surfed a heat for some time, so it felt good to come here and begin the event with a heat win,” said Whittaker. “My whole tactic was to nail a few quick turns and some punts as there was sometimes only limited time to perform any manoeuvres. Hopefully, I can get a decent result here that will carry me towards some bigger comps overseas later in the year.”
Jamie Thomson - photo by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
Jordy Lawler (Narrabeen, NSW) appeared to show no sign of slowing down since winning last year’s Vissla Sydney Surf Pro as he put on a razor-sharp performance in his round three heat at Boomerang Beach today. The Narrabeen goofy-footer remained busy over the course of the heat, catching nine waves and performing a bunch of giant backside turns. Lawler finished the heat with a decent 13.50 two-wave heat total to earn himself a spot into round four.
“I had a ball out there for that heat,” said Lawler. “Often the waves don’t get this good on the QS, so I tried to make the most of the conditions out there today by remaining as busy as I could. It’d be awesome to post a good result here and keep the ball rolling into the Vissla Central Coast Pro next week.”
Jordy Lawler - photo by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
Report by Surfing NSW
MALE SURFERS FACE A DAY OF SHIFTING CONDITIONS AT THE MOTHERNEST GREAT LAKES PRO.
BOOMERANG BEACH, GREAT LAKES (Thursday, 20 February 2020): The Men’s divisions of the 2020 Mothernest Great Lakes Pro tore through the opening two rounds of competition, in a day that saw a variety of different conditions.
Timothee Bisso (France) made his journey from Europe worthwhile as he progressed through the second round of the competition. Bisso found a handful of wedgey shore breaks early in the morning that allowed the French goofy-footer to perform a handful of exciting and high-flying aerial maneuvers. Bisso finished the heat with a respectable 11.30 heat total to claim the win and earn himself a spot into the third round.
“I’m super happy to be here. Australia is my favourite country to get fun waves,” said Bisso. “The conditions are fun out there, but I found it hard to stick two turns together. Hopefully, I can improve in round three. I rode a smaller board which was probably a mistake, but I managed to make it work which I’m stoked with. I love this event and want to keep coming back every year.”
Timothee Bisso - photo by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
Following on from their teams final at the recent nudie Australian Boardriders Battle National Final, Alister Reginato (Sunshine Coast, Qld) came up against Central Coast surfer Shane Holmes (Shelly Beach) for the second time in a week. It seemed like the momentum fell in favour of the Sunshine Coast surfer as he proceeded to destroy a variety of long right-handers which saw him rewarded with a decent 16.00 two-wave heat totals. Holmes showed moments of brilliance but was beaten in the dying stages of the heat by Korbin Hutchings who posted a 7.10 wave score and claimed the second progressing position.
“I couldn’t believe it when I saw that I was coming up against Holmesy again,” said Reginato. “He’s always hard to beat, so I just wanted to stick to my own plan and head out the back to get those longer running waves that began to break when the tide started to run out, which thankfully worked for me. The waves changed so much over the course of the morning, but there were some pretty sick ones if you could find them out there.”
Josh Boyle (Gold Coast, Qld) surfed the heat of his life, as the swell increased and the tide ran out. Boyle went ballistic in the second round heat, nailing a barrage of giant forehand hits to post two excellent scores, a 9.40 and a 9.20 which took his two-wave total to a near-perfect 18.60.
“I’m stoked with that heat. It’s the best heat I’ve had in a QS event,” said Boyle. “There were fun two-foot shorebreak peaks this morning now it’s four foot and breaking out the back, so it’s changed heaps. I wanted to make sure I mixed my turns up as much as I could when the swell increased and thankfully the bigger waves allowed us to do that.”
Not to be outdone, Nick Vasicek (Gold Coast, Qld) followed the same trajectory as Boyle in the second last heat of the day, posting a solid 18.05 two-wave total.
Samson Coulter - photo by Ethan Smith/ Surfing NSW
Shane Holmes - photo by Ethan Smith/ Surfing NSW
Koda Killorn - photos by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
Report by Surfing NSW
INTERNATIONAL FEMALES MAKE THEIR MARK ON THE OPENING DAY OF THE MOTHERNEST GREAT LAKES PRO.
BOOMERANG BEACH, GREAT LAKES (Wednesday, 19 February 2020): International women competitors made their mark on the 2020 Mothernest Great Lakes Pro at Boomerang Beach, with surfers battling it out in beautiful two-to-three foot conditions.
Leilani McGonagle (CRI) got the day off to a flying start finding a handful of long tapered walls in the opening heat of the event. The Costa Rican goofy-foot snapped and carved away at a variety of lefthanders in the heat to post a respectable 11.60 two-wave heat total and earn herself a spot into the second round.
Leilani McGonagle - photo by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
“It was really fun out there,” said McGonagle. “We don’t usually get waves that good on the QS, so it’s sick to come here and have some nice sized waves and only have a couple of people in the water. Boomerang is such an amazing spot, so I figured this was the best spot to come and get my feet in the wax again and hopefully gain some momentum for the bigger events in Newcastle and Manly."
Back in Australia for the first time since winning the 2019 Phillip Island Pro, 15-year-old Luana Silva (HAW) showed her snaps and carves had remained as sharp as ever. The Hawaiian natural-footer hammered the punchy waves on offer and as a result, was awarded with an excellent 8.25 wave score that gave her the upper hand against her opposition.
“I’m super stoked to get that first round out of the way,” said Silva. “I wanted to stay busy out there and that’s how I found that eight-point ride. This is my first time in Boomerang and I really like it. My goal this year is mainly to focus on the Junior events and a few QS competitions like this one and then hit the QS full-time next year.”
Luana Silva - photo by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
Prior to this week, Meah Collins (USA) contemplated pulling out of the 2020 Mothernest Great Lakes Pro in favour of directing her focus towards the Challenger Series events in Sydney and New Zealand. However, her decision to remain in the draw was reinforced by her result in her opening heat. No stranger to Boomerang Beach, the Californian native put on an impressive display of massive backside snaps which saw her rewarded with two excellent scores in excess of 8.00.
“I always have first heat nerves, so it feels great to get that heat out of the way,” said Collins. “I love Boomerang and I’m really happy I decided to compete here again. The water is warm and it’s just beautiful and I can’t ask for a better introductory comp for the Australian contest leg.”
Other international standouts in round one included Camilla Kemp (Germany) who posted a near-perfect 9.00 wave score and recent Carve Pro Champion Sarah Baum (ZAF) who locked in an 8.25 wave score.
Tru Starling - photos by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
Jesse Starling - photo by Ethan Smith/Surfing NSW
Report by Surfing NSW