2006 Roxy Pro winner Melanie Redman Carr and Layne Beachley : photo ASP/Tostee
Roxy Pro
presented by Samsung
ASP WCT Womens Event #1
Snapper Rocks, Gold Coast Australia
28 February - 11 March 2007
Live Coverage | Results/Photos/Videos etc
Beachley Heads ‘Back to Work’ at Roxy Pro presented by Samsung - Stephanie Gilmore’s Long Awaited World Tour Debut
Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 6 February, 2007 : - - Snapper Rocks, Queensland, Australia -- The most formidable women's surfing line-up in years is just one reason why Layne Beachley (Manly, NSW, AUS) is excited about going ‘back to work’ and aiming for an incredible eighth ASP women’s world title at the season-opening Roxy Pro presented by Samsung in Queensland later this month.
Beachley has made no secret of her intention for an eighth crown and is well aware of how demanding the 2007 tour is shaping up to be. If rampaging rookie and local favourite Stephanie Gilmore can’t stop Beachley claiming the event like she did in fairytale fashion in 2005, fans can bet a host of exciting new qualifiers like Melanie Bartels (Oahu, HI) Caroline Sarran (Capbreton, FRA), Roseanne Hodge (East London, ZAF) and Amee Donohoe (Central Coast, NSW, AUS) will be giving it their best.
If not, there’s the likes of defending Roxy Pro winner and world rated number two Melanie Redman-Carr (Dunsborough, WA, AUS) who held Beachley off at the final siren at Snapper last year. Also her established rivals in the form of 2005 world champion Chelsea Georgeson (Gold Coast, Qld, AUS) and 2004 world champion Sofia Mulanovich (PERU).
A focused Beachley is not underestimating the challenge but rather looking forward to the new surfing levels expected when the season commences on February 27th at Snapper Rocks. The seven time world champion certainly has the runs on the board at the Gold Coast event, having won the 2003 Roxy Pro and last year finishing runner-up to Redman-Carr.
No-one was surprised when Beachley, 34, came back for an unprecedented seventh ASP women’s world title at the end of 2006. Beachley has proven she is in it to win it, having won six back to back world crowns from 1998 to 2003.
“I am really excited about going back to work this year,” said Beachley. “It is going to be one of the most competitive seasons on tour that I have ever experienced and I am looking forward to being challenged and also teaching these young up-starts a thing or two.”
Nineteen year old Gilmore showed again why she is the biggest threat this season with her sensational back-to-back victory at the recent Roxy Pro WQS event at Phillip Island, Australia. The stylish natural footer is the only person in surfing history to have won two world tour events as a wildcard.
Beachley knows only too well the danger that Gilmore poses having lost to her in the final of her own world tour event at Manly last year and the fact that “Happy Gilmore’ is debuting at her local Snapper Rocks break hasn’t gone unnoticed.
“Steph is a phenomenal surfer and has already proven herself as an exceptional competitor, especially against seasoned professionals like myself or former world champions,” said Beachley. “I believe Steph will always be a threat to a world title whether it, be mine or someone else's. She is hungry, determined, focused and has a strong desire to win. She knows Snapper better than anyone so she will definitely be the one to beat out there.”
As the surfing world looks to these established faces and the new look field who are all capable of the dizzying repertoires that seemed so foreign to women when Beachley’s era began, Australia’s Queen of the waves certainly knows she has experience on her side.
“It takes that ability and a lot more to win a world title and hold onto one though,” added Beachley “At the end of the day it will come down to the surfer that wants it the most and can deal with an enormous amount of pressure. It is going to be a very interesting year. I will be watching with anticipation and looking forward to seeing how Steph deals with the pressure.”
Beachley will also be watching out for her more established opponents in the form of Georgeson and Jessi Miley-Dyer (Bronte, NSW, AUS) regarding both as serious world title threats. Georgeson, who turned on some of the best surfing seen at the recent Roxy Pro WQS, is known for her formidable back-hand attack at Snapper Rocks.
“Chelsea has had a taste of it (a world title) and definitely wants more,” said Beachley. “I honestly feel that she is the most versatile surfer on tour. I also think Jessi Miley-Dyer will be a challenger this year. She started slow but gained confidence and consistency throughout last year.”
It all adds up to some explosive surfing action from the world’s top 17 female competitors at the opening ASP Women’s World Tour event, the USD$80,000 Roxy Pro presented by Samsung. The tournament will be staged in conjunction with the USD$300,000 Quiksilver Pro presented by Samsung. Both tournaments have waiting periods from February 27th to March 11thth.
The worlds top 45 men and top 17 female surfers will descend on the Gold Coast this month and all fingers will be crossed for a cyclone swell so the now world famous “Super bank” stretching from Snapper Rocks all the way through to Kirra can crank up the action.
Both opening world tour events are mobile, granting access to some of the best surf breaks on the planet. The tournament will be based at Snapper Rocks, yet can travel from Stradbroke Island to Duranbah Beach on the Qld/NSW state border in search of optimum conditions.
Venues such as Snapper Rocks, Greenmount, Kirra and Burleigh will hold priority, with visions of long, right-hand barrels filling competitors' minds in the lead up. All spots offer great viewing for spectators to soak up the phenomenal surfing assured to take place. With US$380,000 prize money on offer, as well as an early ratings lead for the eventual winners, all focus will be on the Gold Coast as the dream tour gets underway.
About Roxy
Roxy is a brand of Quiksilver, Inc. (NYSE:ZQK), the world's leading outdoor sports lifestyle company, which designs, produces and distributes a diversified mix of branded apparel, wintersports and golf equipment, footwear, accessories and related products. The Company's apparel and footwear brands represent a casual lifestyle for young-minded people that connect with its boardriding culture and heritage, while its wintersports and golf brands symbolize a long standing commitment to technical expertise and competitive success on the mountains and on the links.
The reputation of the Company’s brands is based on different outdoor sports. The Company's Quiksilver, Roxy, DC and Hawk brands are synonymous with the heritage and culture of surfing, skateboarding and snowboarding, and its beach and water oriented swimwear brands include Raisins, Radio Fiji and Leilani. The Rossignol, Dynastar, Lange, Look and Kerma brands are leaders in the alpine ski market, and the Company makes snowboarding equipment under its Rossignol, Dynastar, DC Shoes, Roxy, Lib Technologies, Gnu and Bent Metal labels. The Company's golf business includes Cleveland Golf, as well as Never Compromise putters and Fidra apparel. Gotcha is the Company's surf-based European brand addressing street fashion.
The Company's products are sold in over 90 countries in a wide range of distribution, including surf shops, ski shops, skateboard shops, snowboard shops, proprietary Boardriders Club shops, other specialty stores and select department stores. Quiksilver's corporate and Americas' headquarters are in Huntington Beach, California, while its European headquarters are in St. Jean de Luz and St. Jean de Moirans, France, and its Asia/Pacific headquarters are in Torquay, Australia.
Previous reports:
# 1 : Coming soon
# 2 : Coming soon
# 3 : Coming soon
# 4 : Coming soon
www.roxy.com
www.quiksilver.com
www.aspworldtour.com
More Australasian Surfing News available here
Check the latest Australasian Surf Reports and Forecasts
New! B2B News ASBE-Surf | Receive News-Alerts
ASP International
Wayne Dart
darty@aspworldtour.com
Melissa Buckley
melissa@aspworldtour.com
Mandy McKinnon
mandy.mckinnon@bigpond.com
Johnathan Jenkins
jj@qsilver.com.au
WCT Contests - Surfersvillage
