This year will mark the first time in history that the ASP World Surfing Awards will be webcast and broadcast LIVE around the world, with the sport’s robust international audience able to enjoy the entirety of the official crowning of the 2011 ASP World Champions.

This Thursday will see historic moments in the crownings of the iconic Kelly Slater (USA) 40, awarded an unprecedented 11th ASP World Title, as South Pacific phenom Carissa Moore (HAW), 20, is awarded her first. Slater and Moore represent the youngest and oldest ASP World Champions in the history of the sport. These two stars will be joined on stage by an array of other awards winners across a variety of categories including new awards voted for by the fans and the surfers themselves.

Sal Masekela will return to host the evening, which will feature a number of entertainment acts including Grammy-Award winners Wolfmother, the Vernons and many more.

The 2012 ASP World Surfing Awards will be webcast LIVE via Youtube as well as streamed via broadcast partners. For the first time in history, a limited number of tickets will be available to the public.

While tickets are limited, a small number are still available for purchase via http://www.aspworldsurfingawards.com

2012 ASP WORLD SURFING AWARDS RECIPIENTS:ASP World Champion: Kelly Slater (USA)
ASP Women’s World Champion: Carissa Moore (HAW)
ASP World Runner-Up: Joel Parkinson (AUS)
ASP Women’s World Runner-Up: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS)
ASP World Rookie of the Year: Julian Wilson (AUS)
ASP Women’s World Rookie of the Year: Tyler Wright (AUS)
ASP Men’s Breakthrough Performer of the Year: TBA
ASP Women’s Breakthrough Performer of Year: TBA

ASP World Junior Champion: Caio Ibelli (BRA)
ASP Women’s World Junior Champion: Leila Hurst (HAW)
ASP World Longboard Champion: Taylor Jensen (USA)
ASP Women’s World Longboard Champion: Lindsay Steinriede (USA)
ASP Masters Champion: Nathan Webster (AUS)
ASP Grand Masters Champion: Iain Buchanan (NZL)

ASP Men’s Entertainer (Fan Vote): TBA
ASP Women’s Entertainer (Fan Vote): TBA
ASP Men’s Underrated (Fan Vote): TBA
ASP Women’s Underrated (Fan Vote): TBA

ASP Surfers’ Surfer (Men’s Peer Vote): TBA
ASP Heat of the Year (Men’s Peer Vote): TBA
ASP Manoeuvre of the Year (Men’s Peer Vote): TBA

ASP Surfers’ Surfer (Women’s Peer Vote): TBA
ASP Heat of the Year (Women’s Peer Vote): TBA
ASP Manoeuvre of the Year (Women’s Peer Vote): TBA

ASP Peter Whittaker Award: TBA
ASP Lifetime Membership Award: TBA

For more information, log onto www.aspworldtour.com

You finished runner-up in the world title last year and made the last two finals. Did you take a lot out of last year? I guess, sure. You can only take confidence out of finishing second in the world. A world title is still my goal and I’m still right in the mix, and finishing runner-up I should take a lot of confidence out of that going into this year. And anything could happen now – that’s my attitude – anything could happen because it’s surfing after all.

Did we see the best of your surfing at the back end of last year?There’s always room to improve your surfing but some of the best stuff happened when it became mathematically impossible for me to win the world title. The favourite parts of my surfing happened at the back end. My surfing at the back end of last year felt free spirited, felt so good, it felt kinda right. I’d been putting a lot of pressure on myself up till that point but as soon as it lifted my best surfing happened. I had an open-minded end of the year, and this year I’m going to take that attitude with me. It’s not like I’m going in totally unprepared – I’ve been doing a lot of work on my surfing – but I’m going into 2012 with an open mind.

Is all the hype being directed at the new generation of young guys on tour a blessing in disguise for older guys like yourself?Absolutely. I’m sure it takes a lot of pressure off Kelly and the older established guys. Those young guys are unbelievable with what they’re doing and their surfing is worthy of the hype, but I’m happy for them to have it. I think we all went through that when we were younger, the whole hype thing it comes and goes, but I guarantee this year or next year the Medinas, the John Johns, the guys coming through like Yadin, they’ll break the Top 10 and be there quite a while.

How is your surfing evolving to deal with those guys?There are probably a few points in my surfing that are still evolving, my aerials I suppose, but the thing is everyone has their strength and weaknesses and that’s the beauty of the mix of guys on tour. I think with the waves we’ll get on the tour this year, the stops we have, we might see some of the young guys discover they have a few weaknesses at certain places. Those guys are pretty good all round, but when you go to a new break you’ve got to get your head around it, and we haven’t seen either John John or Medina at the start of the year yet so it’s a little uncharted for them. J-Bay, Bells, we haven’t seen them there yet. Tahiti, Fiji, you know John John will probably be really good there. But it’s till their first time surfing an event there and you have to learn the wave while surfing it in a heat which is a different thing altogether.

Are you predicting a tough year for the judges?For sure. I would have hated to be a judge down at the Australian Open at Manly. That was a really hard event to judge; it was tiny and every wave guys were throwing air reverses. It was hard to pick what air reverse was better than the other. This year on tour the judges will have it a bit easier at places like Cloudbreak and where good surfing wins heats and it’s pretty easy to say what that is, but at beachbreaks when it’s smaller and the surfing tightens up and there are more tricks and airs they’ll have to really have it sorted out, because sorting one air from another becomes really technical.

For the first time in a long time there is no clear world title favourite. Would you agree?Definitely. There are guys who aren’t being talked about that much. Everyone talks about Kelly and some of the younger guys, but everyone seems to have forgotten about Jordy Smith in that equation. Jordy is a dark horse. A lot of people are talking about Owen because he went from strength to strength last year. He will be up there, and Julian Wilson is surfing amazingly and the thing is he really wants it. You can tell. And then you have the usual suspects. Mick has been training really hard and surfing really hard, and I’m sure Taj’s name should be in there too.

Does the world title keep you awake at night like it used to?I sleep like a baby. I sleep fine. If the world title happens, it happens. If I’d never have given it my all I’d definitely be thinking about it too much, but over the past three years I’ve given it everything I’ve had and that’s all I can do. World title or not I sleep fine…unless the kids wake me up.

And the one big change to your regime this year is no Luke Egan on tour with you as coach.Louie has given me so many awesome insights over those three years, so much knowledge and so many good ideas. He’s got so much confidence and insight into me and my equipment, what I can ride and when I should be riding it and what works for me. But I’ve got all that stuff in my black book now, all the stuff he’s shown me and we’ve worked on, so while I owe him a big debt of gratitude I reckon I’m ready to go out there on my own and see how I go.

Have you tweaked your boards at all for 2012? Anything radically different?At Manly I was riding this little JS Rock ‘n’ Roll model with a little swallow tail. He shaped one for himself six months ago and I stole that off him and loved it, and he’s developed that board to the point where I can surf it in heats if the waves are small and fun. I prefer to ride a normal shortboard in perfect six foot waves, but we’re going to get heats this year where the surf might be pretty average so I know I’ve got a really good groveller if that happens.

You mentioned the intensity of the past three years and how hard you’ve gone at the world title, and you mentioned how liberating it was at the back end of last year once that world title dream was gone. How much of that mindset are you taking into this year?I just don’t want to go back into how hard I was training there for a while. Some weeks I was training more than I was surfing, and this year I’ve tried to flick the switch and swap them around and do a lot more surfing. I probably won’t go into the new season with exactly the same head space I had at the back end of last year – I want to surf smart and I don’t want to be blasé about it – but I definitely want to take some of that freedom I had late last year and channel it.

And onto Snapper, you’ve hardly surfed there at all over summer because there’s been no sand. What are your thoughts on what we’ll see there later this week?There’s been no sand at Snapper at all, but a week is a pretty long time out there when they start pumping. There are little waves there but I can’t see it being epic Snapper. A week out it needs a lot of help. But D-Bah has a great bank on the wall and that’s pretty much where I’ve surfed all summer, but in a perfect world I’d love to see a big six foot east swell and have the contest down at Kirra like we did down in ‘09. If we got a good day down there it’d be amazing.

What do you think Kelly will do this year? Have you thought about it?No, not really. He’ll surf at Snapper but beyond that who knows. It’s always good to have him there, but if he decides to walk away I’m sure he’s going to find some good waves somewhere else.

And Dane’s got the wildcard at Snapper.He’s by far the most exciting surfer in the world right now and I’m really interested to see how his surfing has evolved in the past year because we haven’t seen that much of him. I just hope he doesn’t evolve too much in a heat against me like he did last time!

If you could surf a man-on-man heat at Snapper with one guy on tour, who would it be?I’d love to have a heat with Kelly. I’ve never surfed a heat against him at Snapper. I surfed against him at Burleigh once but I’ve never surfed man-on-man with him at Snapper, so that’d be cool.

And give me the name of one guy who will surprise us on tour this year.Brett Simpson. I really like the way he surfs and he’s hard to beat. It took him a year or two to mature into the tour, but he looked great at stages last year and I’m interested to see how he goes this year.

For more on JOEL PARKINSON, check out JoelParko.com and his ASP WORLD TOUR PROFILE

The question on everyone’s mind at the moment is “will Kelly put in a full year at the elite level of competition to defend his throne?”

Historically coy when discussing his annual plans, Slater’s commitment status of “full-time” to the ASP World Title Series traditionally rests upon his performance at the opening event of the season, the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast presented by Land Rover – an event he’s won on three previous occasions (2006, 2008, 2011).

“There have been years when this approach has been a little frustrating but it’s also sort of a wildcard way of deciding,” Slater said. “I’ve had good success on the Goldy and this year should be fun again. I can’t wait to be there. I’m undecided as to whether I’ll apply full time (to the 2012 ASP World Title Series). That’s probably no secret. I’ll go by feel and whatever feels right internally, I’ll stick with that.”

While considered a “citizen of the globe” due to his extensive travels, Slater’s primary residences during this past offseason have been Southern California and the North Shore of Oahu. With an abundance of swell hitting both locations throughout December, January and February, the iconic natural-footer has had plenty of opportunity to ready for the opening event of the year at Snapper Rocks.

“I usually finish prepping for the start of the year by surfing Rincon,” Slater said. “It’s easy to tune in boards quickly there to know what you’re dealing with. I’ve been scoring a lot of surf last few weeks. Probably more water time than normal. I haven’t been riding shortboards a lot though, focusing on mostly barrels and not necessarily performance so I’ll have to tune in to what I’ll have to do in Oz.”

Although having recently turned 40, Slater feels few, if any, physical deficiencies and generally believes he is a stronger all-around surfer and competitor than he was when he first commenced his touring back at age 20.

“I have a few nagging injuries but overall I’m pretty good,” Slater said. “I hurt my ribs pretty badly a couple weeks back but they should be okay by Snapper time. I do feel a little bit of issue there, but I’m planning on being healthier and stronger in the coming years. I’m much better all around now than when I was 20. Probably the hold back is the overall desire to improve day to day. I focus more on enjoying my surfing than expanding day to day, but I still get kicked into gear when I see what everyone is working on and doing. Being in the environment on tour with the guys gets you going pretty quickly.”

The 2012 ASP Top 34 will see a historic age disparity of 23 years between the oldest surfers at the elite level and the youngest. As a new generation of surfers readies to do battle on the ASP Dream Tour, Slater is excited to see how performance levels will continue to soar as well as the how the dynamics of the 2012 ASP World Title race unfold.

“Of course I’m excited to see guys like Dane (Reynolds) and Kolohe (Andino) and Gabriel (Medina) and Julian (Wilson) and Miguel (Pupo) and Josh (Kerr),” Slater said. “Then the usual suspects: Joel (Parkinson), Mick (Fanning), Taj (Burrow), etc. We’ll surely be hearing talks of ASP World Title threats within weeks and it’ll be fun to watch it pan out and see who steps up to the plate and who has trouble dealing with it. It’s always an interesting start to the year.”

The Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast will run from February 25 through March 7, 2012 and will be webcast LIVE via http://quiksilverlive.com/progoldcoast/2012
Running in conjunction with the men’s event will be the Roxy Pro Gold Coast presented by Land Rover, the opening event in the ASP Women’s World Title season.

For more information, log onto www.aspworldtour.com

“ASP Africa is both honoured and proud to be associated with an event like the Mr Price Pro Ballito,” ASP Africa Operations Manager Colin Fitch said. “Based on the fact that we had more than seven days of perfect surf that was never under three meters in 2011, I am convinced that we will see many more of the world’s top surfers fighting for a place in this year’s 96 man field.”

2011 ASP World Tour rookie and Mr Price Pro Ballito runner-up John John Florence secured the first official entry. The standout performer in 2011 is hoping he can return home with the spoils in 2012 after the Hawaiian’s barrel riding affinity resulted in a plethora of perfect scores

“I really enjoyed the waves in Ballito,” Florence said. “They’re a lot like the barrels at Backdoor (the Banzai Pipeline in Hawaii), it’s big and round and maybe a little bit faster and longer but I felt really comfortable in that kind of surf so I’m really looking forward to surfing in Ballito again,” added Florence.

Defending champion Californian Patrick Gudauskas shared similar sentiments after his victory, “This is definitely the best event I’ve ever competed in and maybe the best one I’ve ever watched. It has been flawless for a whole week and we’re all psyched to be surfing in Ballito.”

With a number of refinements to the ASP Prime Tour in 2012, the event could prove critical for surfers hoping to cement their place among the World’s Top 34 surfers in 2013.

Scheduled at the season’s critical halfway mark, the increase in available equal ninth place finishes (from four to eight) as well as ratings points (1034 to 1300 for an equal 17th and 3120 to 3320 for equal fifth), will give surfers more opportunity to climb the ASP One World rankings ladder by competing in this event.

Featuring only the Top 96 surfers in the world, South African competitors must be rated within the top 96 in order to earn their place into this prestigious event.

Leading the local field are elite ASP World Tour campaigners Jordy Smith (Durban), the 2010 Mr Price Pro Ballito Champion, and Travis Logie (Durban) who finished runner-up to Australian Chris Davidson in the 2009 edition of the event.

ASP Tour veteran and multiple national champion Greg Emslie from East London leads the way for the six wildcard entries yet to be announced.

ENDS

Pictured: 2011 Mr Price Pro Ballito runner-up, Hawaiian John John Florence, is one of the top contenders for this year’s edition of the event at Willard Beach from July 2-8
Photo: Kelly Cestari / Mr Price

Issued on behalf of:

ASP Africa
Contact: Colin Fitch – Operations Manager
Tel: 021 534 5738
Email: colin@aspafrica.com

Compiled by:

Kirstin Scholtz
Email: kirstin@aspworldtour.com

Distributed by:

Life’s a Beach Communications
Tel: +27 (0) 21 783 4965
Mobile: +27 (0) 82 423 1964
Email: lifesabeach@mweb.co.za

Matt Banting (AUS) went back-to-back at the Australian Open of Surfing after claiming the Pro Junior division title yesterday and today winning the blue ribbon ASP 6-Star division. Banting battled hard in the Final against American Evan Gieselman (USA), with both surfers going for broke in the small, but fun surf. The 17-year-old from Port Macquarie took to the air and landed some massive air-reverses that saw him post some big scores and claim the USD$25,000 1st prize and 3,500 ASP World Tour ratings points.

“This has been the best week of my life!” Banting said. “I’m so happy, this is the best feeling I’ve ever had! I’m shaking so much I can hardly talk. Evan (Gieselman) is a really good surfer, he was blowing up for the whole final, I was really scared. I was just lucky to start off well with a couple of good waves. I just want to thanks my Dad and Mum for supporting me, I love them!”

Evan Gieselman (USA) scored his best ever result at an ASP 6-Star event with his runner-up finish at the Australian Open today. Gieselman took down some big names on the road to the Final with his lethal aerial game, but fell just short in the Final losing by just over one point.

“It was a good match-up, it was really fun surfing against Matt,” Gieselman said. “I really want to congratulate him, he surfed really well, and found a couple of good rights that let him do a couple of airs. I would have loved to have won, but 2nd is a great result. I’m doing the whole ASP Star Series this year and I’m looking to qualify for the ASP World Title Series at the end of the year, so this is a great start for me.”

Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) defeated Sofia Mulanovich (PER) in the final of the ASP 6-Star rated Australian Open Of Surfing, both surfers posted decent scores, but Fitzgibbons timed her turns to perfection to take out the event and claim the USD$8,000 winners cheque. Fitzgibbons has been in fantastic form all event, being rewarded by the judges for her ability to link turns together with her trademark smooth style. This week at the Australian Open Of Surfing Fitzgibbons notched four of the top 10 wave scores and two of the top three heat totals, proving that she was the inform surfer of the event and that she’s not being hampered by her wrist injury.

“It’s unbelievable!” Fitzgibbons said. “I was just focusing on working through my boards and going through some heats and before I know it I’m in the final. Sofia (Mulanovich) is such a tough competitor, I knew she’d be able to get the score needed, so it was a nervous wait at the end there. To win in front of this crowd, with so much support feels amazing! Then to have won the US Open and then the first ever Australian Open back to back is a special achievement.”

Highlights and photos available via – www.australianopenofsurfing.com

IMPORTANT EVENT INFO

The cigarette and alcohol-free event is expected to welcome more than 100,000 people to Manly, the location of the very first World Surfing Championships in 1964 and the first Australian beach to legalise day-time swimming in 1904.

Destination NSW, along with major event partners Hurley and Billabong, expect the Australian Open of Surfing to inject more than $6 million into the local community.

The Australian Open of Surfing is made possible with the support of the following event partners: Destination NSW, Events NSW, Manly Council, Sony, Blackberry, Monster Energy, Fuel TV, Channel [V], The Manly Daily, Surfing World, Reef, Skullcandy, ASP Australasia and Surfing NSW.

Matt Banting (AUS) is on fire this week at the Australian Open Of Surfing after advancing to the Final of the Pro Junior division on the weekend and today defeating ASP World Title Series surfers – Jordy Smith (ZAF) and Matt Wilkinson (AUS).

“I’m rapt! I’m really happy with my surfing right now,” Banting said. “I’ve made the final of the Pro Junior, and I’ve been surfing every day since then so I feel like I know the waves pretty well here. It’s great to have a heat with those guys, let alone win, they’ve been my heroes since I was a little kid.”

Joel Parkinson (AUS) advanced to the round of 16 with a solid heat win this afternoon alongside Kolohe Andino (USA) who finished 2nd. Parkinson was looking sharp both in the air and on the open wave face and finished the heat with a big air-reverse.

“It’s crazy sitting in the water and looking back at a packed out beach,” Parkinson said. “The surf is small but we’re all dealing with the same conditions, I actually caught some fun ones. I’m a bit of a momentum builder, I don’t want to surf my best heat in the first or second round, I want to try and peak towards the end.”

Mitch Crews (AUS) continued to impress at the Australian Open Of Surfing, racking up another heat win to advance to the round of 16, the first man-on-man round of the contest. Crews managed to find some long right-handers and belted out some big turns.

“It’s fun, it’s tiny, but you can still generate speed in the pocket,” Crews said. “I saw that Ace (Buchan) went into the lead at the end there and it fired me up, then I got a good wave and tried to go big to take the lead back off him. I’m frothing.”

Tomas Hermes (BRA) looked right at home in today’s challenging conditions, finding a few nice waves and going big with a couple of clean airs.

“The waves are like where I’m from in Brazil,” Hermes said. “It’s feels great to win the heat because this contest is so hard and full of really good surfers. This event is huge, just like the US Open, it’s great to be here in Manly.”

Keanu Asing (HAW) advanced to the next round after finishing 2nd to an in-form Jesse Mendes (BRA). Asing’s powerful carves and huge inverted airs have been impressing the judges and the masses of onlookers on the sand.

“To make this heat feels so good, especially after losing first round in Brazil last week,” Asing said. “Our heat got lucky we probably had the best waves of the afternoon, so it was great see some nice waves and good surfing. Every heat at this contest is a tough one, I’m just going to keep doing what I’ve been doing and hopefully go a lot further.”

The last heat of the day saw an upset with the number 2 seed, Taj Burrow (AUS) eliminated by Granger Larson (HAW) and Peterson Crisanto (BRA).

Tomorrow the Australian Open Of Surfing will see Men’s ASP 6-Star action and will also feature skating competitions and demos, music concerts, athlete signing sessions and much more. The event is free for the public to view in person and live on the internet via australianopenofsurfing.com

IMPORTANT EVENT INFO
The cigarette and alcohol-free event is expected to welcome more than 100,000 people to Manly, the location of the very first World Surfing Championships in 1964 and the first Australian beach to legalise day-time swimming in 1904.

Destination NSW, along with major event partners Hurley and Billabong, expect the Australian Open of Surfing to inject more than $6 million into the local community.

The Australian Open of Surfing is made possible with the support of the following event partners: Destination NSW, Events NSW, Manly Council, Sony, Blackberry, Monster Energy, Fuel TV, Channel [V], The Manly Daily, Surfing World, Reef, Skullcandy, ASP Australasia and Surfing NSW.

Laura Enever (AUS) was looking like exiting the event with a 5th place finish in her Quarterfinal against Pauline Ado (FRA), she was left needing a decent score as the ocean went flat in the last five minutes. But Enever waited patiently and with a mere 14 seconds on the clock she stood up on a nice looking left-hander and launched into a series of sharp turns, easily netting the required score.

“There was a part of me thinking this might be the end,” Enever said. “But then I thought – it’s never over, you can catch a wave with one second on the clock and get the score. I knew I had to find something and when that wave popped up and I though this is it, this is the one. I’m excited to be into the Semis and to be able to surf on Finals day this weekend.”

Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) faced off against Lakey Peterson (USA) in Quarterfinal 2, which was a rematch of the Final of the US Open in August last year. Fitzgibbons took the heat on both occasions and will now match-up against Laura Enever (AUS) in the Semifinals this weekend.

“It’s a good feeling to be through to the Semis for the first event of the year,” Fitzgibbons said. “It’s exciting to be here at the first Australian Open, and to be able to compete so close to home, I’ve got all my friends and family up here supporting me. I busted up my wrist just before Christmas and I’m just getting back in the water now, I’ve got a wrist guard on for support, but it doesn’t hinder me too much.”

Malia Manuel (HAW) and Joanne Defay (FRA) finished Quarterfinal 3 tied on 11.67 (out of a possible 20) for their two wave heat total. When there’s a tie the surfer with the highest single wave score wins, and in this case it was Manuel who won with a 6.67 (out of a possible 10) to Defay’s 6.00.

“That was too close for comfort right there,” Manuel said. “She needed a 6.01 right at the end and got a 6.00, it was so close! Halfway through the heat a rip popped up right in the middle of the lineup and it made it hard for me to get a back-up score. I really admire the European surfers, they’re such a tight-knit crew and they’re all surfing great.”

Joel Parkinson (AUS), runner-up to the 2011 ASP World Title took out the opening heat of the round of 96 and progressed to the next round alongside Sydney up-and-comer Cooper Chapman (AUS) who finished second. The lead changed multiple times between the four surfers in the heat, but it was the veteran ‘Parko’ and the young gun Cooper who progressed.

“It’s been a while since I’ve surfed a four man heat, so I was nervous,” Parkinson said. “I was expecting to hear ‘Parkinson you’re in fourth place’ over the loud speaker. But it’s a good feeling to go out there and catch a few waves. I’ve been waiting all week for my heat and it’s good to get it out of the way, and start 2012 with a heat win.”

Evan Geiselman (USA) and fellow American Kolohe Andino (USA) took top honours in the last two heats of the day thanks to a couple of massive aerials. Both surfers scored waves in the 9-point-range and are looking good heading into the round of 48.

Tomorrow the Australian Open Of Surfing will see both Men’s and Women’s ASP 6-Star action and will also feature skating competitions and demos, music concerts, athlete signing sessions and much more. The event is free for the public to view in person and live on the internet via australianopenofsurfing.com

IMPORTANT EVENT INFO

The cigarette and alcohol-free event is expected to welcome more than 100,000 people to Manly, the location of the very first World Surfing Championships in 1964 and the first Australian beach to legalise day-time swimming in 1904.

Destination NSW, along with major event partners Hurley and Billabong, expect the Australian Open of Surfing to inject more than $6 million into the local community.

The Australian Open of Surfing is made possible with the support of the following event partners: Destination NSW, Events NSW, Manly Council, Sony, Blackberry, Monster Energy, Fuel TV, Channel [V], The Manly Daily, Surfing World, Reef, Skullcandy, ASP Australasia and Surfing NSW.

The Moskova Trials will be held on 24th February and the winner will take her place in the main draw of the Roxy Pro.

Andersen, from Huntington Beach, California, last competed in 2004 as a wildcard for the Roxy Pro following her retirement in 2003. Oozing style and grace with great power, she was a fierce competitor capturing four consecutive World Titles from 1994-97.

One of the superstars of professional surfing, Andersen said she felt privileged to be given the opportunity to again paddle out in the World Tour season opener at Snapper Rocks.

“It’s really a great opportunity to get back into something I love and to surf Snapper again with the girls and really feel a part of the event again,” Andersen said.

“Every year I come and I barely get a wave, this year I’ll be able to get out in the water and perform and have some fun. I’m excited. I’m always excited to come to Australia. I really consider it a second home.

“The Roxy Pro is such a great start to the competition year. It’s a big perk to be involved. I really hope everyone enjoys the event. I can’t wait to get my feet wet and to catch some Aussie waves.”

While it may be six years since Andersen last competed, the competitive urge still burns fiercely.

“I really missed the Tour when I first stopped competing, but now there’s so many things in my life that keep m e busy – being a Mum and watching the kids grow up, I couldn’t live without that now.

“But when I’m free surfing every day, it’s always like a part of me is hungry to compete for waves. That never dies within. It always lives on; for me and I’m sure other girls. You’re always wanting to try to get better and to get the best wave, and always competing with the boys for waves.”

Andersen is a keen follower of the women’s World Tour and is amazed by the depth on this year’s tour giving it high praise.

“You couldn’t ask for a better pool of talent. It’s the best in the history of the sport – it definitely won’t be a let-down watching these girls compete this year,” Andersen said.

“There are a lot of exciting new rookies and some older, experienced girls. There will be some great battles. I’m really looking forward to seeing it all .

“When you’re a World Champion you’ve got to stay on top so Carissa’s going to be hard to beat but the other girls are really pushing it and raising the bar. If it’s not herself then everyone on the tour. The rookies are hot, I’ve known a few since they were really young – Malia Manuel and Lakey Peterson – there’s some great younger talent. Both Sally and Steph are going to be pretty hungry. There are so many girls who could do it.”

Andersen’s return is expected to generate plenty of excitement for competitors and spectators alike.

“I think that Lisa has paved the way for so many of the girls in this generation who want to surf with power and grace, and be sexy in the water and be feminine on the land and I think she was the first female to gain that respect from the men in such a male dominated industry,” said four-time ASP Women’s World Champion Stephanie Gilmore.

“She still rips. I’ve hung out with her a little bit recently and she is surfing so well. I’m sure she’ll do really well.”

Both the Quiksilver Pro and Roxy Pro events will be webcast live on QuiksilverPro.com.au, RoxyPro.com.au, Youtube, Facebook and the Quiksilver iPhone app as well as exclusively telecast on Fuel TV. For all the action, interaction, heat alerts, competitions and the latest information visit quiksilverpro.com.au or roxypro.com.au.

The 2012 Quiksilver and Roxy Pro presented by Land Rover is supported by Events Queensland, Corona, Telstra, Schick Hydro, Peters Drumstick, Red Bull, Olympus Cameras, Vegemite SurfGroms, Lipton Ice Tea, Sharpie, VX Sport, Surfing World magazine, Coastalwatch, Gold Coast Airport, Gold Coast City Council, Connecting Southern Gold Coast, World Surfaris and Fuel TV.

Important Details:• 2012 Quiksilver and Roxy Pro presented by Land Rover is scheduled for 25th February – 7th March and will be webcast live on quiksilverpro.com.au, roxypro.com.au, Youtube, Facebook and the Quiksilver iPhone app as well as exclusively telecast on Fuel TV
• The Moskova Trials will be held on Friday, 24th February with the winner to join surfing’s elite in the main event
• The waiting period for the contest starts on 25th February. A decision on whether or not to run the contest is made on the day after assessing the conditions. The same goes for each day in the waiting period. Surfing action normally gets underway by 8am
• Contest Hotline: +61 7 55993587 updated @ 7am (AEST) daily.
• Get more info at quiksilverpro.com.au or roxypro.com.au

Eric Geiselman (USA) landed at Sydney airport this morning and two hours later was in a heat against 1999 ASP World Champion Mark Occhilupo (AUS). Geiselman didn’t let the jet-lag slow him down, the young Floridian won the closest heat of the day scoring a 13.90 (out of a possible 20) heat total, with Hawaiian Keala Naihe (HAW) finishing 2nd on 13.20 and Occy eliminated in 3rd place with 13.06.

“I have a lot of respect for Occy,” Geiselman said. “The conditions were tough out there so I’m stoked to come away with the win. I’m from Florida so these waves are similar to home, you can get moving out there, but it’s all about wave selection.”

Dayyan Neve (AUS) former ASP World Title Series surfer came out of retirement for the Australian Open Of Surfing which is being held at his local beach. Neve won a spot in the event after finishing 2nd in the trials which featured surfers from the North Steyne and Queenscliff boardriders clubs.

“I couldn’t find a wave out there, I was thinking that all my family and friends came down here to watch me lose,” Neve said. “But then I got a good one with two minutes on the clock and got the score. I was nervous before the heat, it’s been a while since I’ve done any comps other than boardriders. Now I’m off to put on my suit and go to work.”

Luke Cheadle (AUS), another Manly local impressed the judges with a variety of manoeuvres including a big air-reverse to put an exclamation mark on a great heat.

“It was a slow start, a couple of the other guys got some scores and I was stressing,” Cheadle said. “But I stuck to my game plan to sit on another bank and wait for the good waves and it paid off. I got a couple of good score and the pressure was off, then at the end of the heat that left came through and I did a safety turn and pulled off an air.”

Pauline Ado (FRA) had a happy 21st birthday after she advanced to the Quarterfinals at the Australian Open Of Surfing today.

“I’m pretty happy right now,” Ado said. “I was scared for a while because I didn’t have a good start to the heat, but then about halfway though I good my good score. The waves are really hard on the high tide, but it feels great to make the heat. I was excited and nervous before the contest because it’s been so long since we have had a competition.”

Malia Manuel (HAW) also advanced to the Quarterfinals thanks to some solid surfing. 2012 is Manuel’s first year in the ASP Women’s World Title series and is using the Australian Open Of Surfing to get prepared for the first event on the Gold Coast in just under 2 weeks.

“It was tricky out there today,” Manuel said. “I’m just happy to get a couple and make it through. This is my first event of the year and it’s nice to get in that rhythm again. This is my first time in Manly and I’m happy to be here, it’s great that Hurley and Billabong have put on such a great event for us.”

Tomorrow the Australian Open Of Surfing will see both Men’s and Women’s ASP 6-Star action and will also feature skating competitions and demos, music concerts, athlete signing sessions and much more. The event is free for the public to view in person and live on the internet via australianopenofsurfing.com

IMPORTANT EVENT INFO
The cigarette and alcohol-free event is expected to welcome more than 100,000 people to Manly, the location of the very first World Surfing Championships in 1964 and the first Australian beach to legalise day-time swimming in 1904.

Destination NSW, along with major event partners Hurley and Billabong, expect the Australian Open of Surfing to inject more than $6 million into the local community.

The Australian Open of Surfing is made possible with the support of the following event partners: Destination NSW, Events NSW, Manly Council, Sony, Blackberry, Monster Energy, Fuel TV, Channel [V], The Manly Daily, Surfing World, Reef, Skullcandy, ASP Australasia and Surfing NSW.

Laura Enever (AUS), the Sydney Northern Beaches local showed that a six month break from competition hasn’t slowed her down, posting a massive 17.60 (out of a possible 20) in her opening heat of 2012. Enever finished 10th in the world in her rookie year competing for the ASP Women’s World Title last year, and has been working hard in the off season to improve on that for 2012.

“This are the best waves I’ve ever had at Manly!” Enever said. “It’s been a long time since my last heat last year, so I started to prepare early this year because I remember how fast it all goes. I guess that preparation has paid off because I felt good, I had a clear mind and felt like I was surfing well, so I’m stoked to start the year off that way. It’s also great to have the hometown support with friends and family here on the beach.”

Lakey Peterson (USA) went from 4th place to first in the last 5 minutes of her opening round heat at the ASP Women’s 6-Star Australian Open Of Surfing today, thanks to two impressive rides. This was Peterson’s first heat since her Runner-Up finish at the US Open in August last year.

“This is actually where I leant to surf when I was 5-years-old at Manly Surf school,” Peterson said. “I love coming back here because it’s where I stood up on my first wave and it brings back great memories. That heat was scary, I was never in the right spot, but I’m stoked to get the score. I’m just hoping I’ve had my bad start, and that it’s all up from here.”

Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS), runner-up to the 2011 ASP Women’s World Title was on point for her first heat of 2012. Surfing with an injured left wrist didn’t hamper her performance, as she posted the highest heat total of the day – 17.83 (out of a possible 20).

“It’s great to be here in Sydney for the Australian Open!” Fitzgibbons said. “It’s been a while since I’ve been in the water because of my wrist, so it’s great to be getting back into it. This is a great warm-up for the first ASP Women’s World Title event on the Gold Coast. The wrist is feeling good, I’ve got a little guard on it to help stand-up and duck dive. It’s mending slowly and I’m expecting that it should be alright by the Roxy Pro.”

Coco Ho (HAW) used her powerful and stylish approach to claim an easy win in her opening heat at the Australian Open Of Surfing today. Ho is excited to be back in Australian for the start of the 2012 ASP World Tour leg.

“It feels amazing to be here and have our first event of the year be one of this magnitude, it’s huge!” Ho said. “I’m so excited for this first event, my adrenaline is going and I’m psyched for the whole year. I’m lucky that during the downtime a lot at the action was at home in Hawaii, I also took some time off to go snowboarding. But since then I’ve been training and working hard to get ready for 2012.”

Bianca Buitendag (ZAF) caused the upset of the day eliminating Tyler Wright (AUS), 2011 ASP Women’s Rookie Of The Year Tyler Wright. Buitendag scoured the line-up and found the best waves of the heat and surfed smooth and sharp.

“The conditions were quite tricky in that heat,” Buitendag said. “The tide is really high right now, the waves looked great earlier, but they’re a bit of a gamble at the moment. This is my first year competing after finishing school and I’m looking forward to just surfing my brains out and trying to get some good results.”
Bethany Hamilton (Kauai, Hawaii) was eliminated in a tight heat this morning. Hamilton surfed strong, but was out of sync with the ocean and was unable to find the waves that offered the most scoring potential.

Tomorrow the Australian Open Of Surfing will see the start of the Men’s ASP 6-Star rated event and will also feature skating competitions and demos, music concerts, athlete signing sessions and much more. The event is free for the public to view in person and live on the internet via australianopenofsurfing.com

IMPORTANT EVENT INFO

The cigarette and alcohol-free event is expected to welcome more than 100,000 people to Manly, the location of the very first World Surfing Championships in 1964 and the first Australian beach to legalise day-time swimming in 1904.

Destination NSW, along with major event partners Hurley and Billabong, expect the Australian Open of Surfing to inject more than $6 million into the local community.

The Australian Open of Surfing is made possible with the support of the following event partners: Destination NSW, Events NSW, Manly Council, Sony, Blackberry, Monster Energy, Fuel TV, Channel [V], The Manly Daily, Surfing World, Reef, Skullcandy, ASP Australasia and Surfing NSW.