TAHITI’S POENAIKI RAIOHA AND USA’S EMMY MERRILL ARE THE 2014 ISA WORLD SUP SURFING CHAMPIONS

Day 3 / 6th May 2014 : ISA Press release

The 17 Year-Old Tahitian And 20 Year-Old American Gold Medalists Demonstrate The Arrival Of A New Generation In The Sport.The SUP Surfing in the 2014 ISA World StandUp Paddle and Paddleboard Championship (WSUPPC) concluded today and the Gold Medalists were crowned. Tahiti’s Poenaiki Raioha and USA’s Emmy Merrill are the 2014 ISA SUP Surfing World Champions.

The young World Champions, Raioha, who is 17 years-old and the 20 year old, Merrill, who demonstrated the arrival of a new generation in the sport. Merrill made history in the ISA, as the first women in SUP Surfing to win two Gold Medals since the start of the ISA WSUPPC in 2012.

In one of the most exciting SUP Surfing days in history, the world’s best took advantage of La Boquita’s great waves. The surf condition improved with the best and biggest waves on the Final Day. Contest organizers decided to take a break during the mid-day low tide to allow for optimal conditions during the finals, and the decision paid off, as the action was non-stop in the Grand Final with excellent rides and scores.

“What an incredible day!,” said an excited ISA President Fernando Aguerre. “The level of the final top guys and girls was very intense and very good. We waited for the better conditions by taking a break in the middle of the day and the waves improved and the wind calmed down for the finals.

What a final! A 20 year-old from California and a 17 year-old from Tahiti won the Gold Medals. It’s really a big deal as it shows the coming of a new generation.”

The first Grand Final in the water was the Women’s SUP Surfing, where USA’s Emmy Merrill reclaimed her Gold Medal and the World Championship after posting a total heat score of 13.50 in the Final, the second highest score of the event in the Women’s division. Merrill took advantage of the improved afternoon conditions and earned a 5.83 and a 7.67 to become the two-time ISA World Champion.

“I’m over the moon! It was awesome two years ago to claim the title in the first event and I was stoked about it,” said Merrill. “Last year I couldn’t come back because I was busy with school. I was hoping it wouldn´t be too much pressure on myself to try reclaim the title, but I’m so happy I did.”

The Silver Medal went to France’s Caroline Angibaud (9.27), Bronze to Australia’s Shakira Westdorp (9.23), and Copper to Spain’s Iballa Ruano (5.28).

Next up was the Men’s SUP Surfing Final, the most entertaining heats of the entire contest. Continuing his stellar performances from the first two days of competition, Tahiti’s Poenaiki Raioha is the new Men’s World SUP Surfing Champion. Raioha earned two impressive scores of 8.93 and 8.57 for a total heat score of 17.50, the highest of the entire event. The 17 year-old Tahitian kept great composure at such a young age and handled the pressure of his fellow competitors well. The Tahitian was patient and waited for the best waves of the heat and his strategy resulted in a Gold Medal.

“I’m really happy. This is my first participation in an ISA World Championship, and to be the first one, I’m very stoked!,” said Raioha. “I needed big waves to apply big maneuvers so I was waiting for the right wave to have a good result. When I learned to surf I started with a shortboard, then I moved to a longboard and after, my father introduced me to SUP, and ever since, I’ve been practicing every day after school with my father and my grandfather.”

The Silver Medal went to Australia’s Jackson Close (14.17), Bronze to France’s Antoine Delpero (14.17), and Copper to USA’s Sean Poynter (11.07).

For the full results click here- http://isawsuppc.com/results/

The 2014 ISA WSUPCC will move back to Granada for the SUP and Paddleboard races on Lake Nicaragua. Wednesday will be a transition day and no races will take place. All the action begins with the Technical and Relay Races on Thursday followed by the Women’s Long distance Race on Friday, the Men’s Long Distance Race on Saturday, and the Technical and Relay Race Finals, and Closing Ceremony on Sunday.

Stay tuned and watch the live webcast starting back on Thursday- http://isawsuppc.com/live/ and on SUPboarder here.

Men’s SUP Surfing Results:
Gold Medal- Poenaiki Raioha (TAH)
Siliver Medal- Jackson Close (AUS)
Bronze Medal- Antoine Delpero (FRA)
Copper Medal- Sean Poynter (USA)

Women’s SUP Surfing:
Gold Medal- Emmy Merrill (USA)
Silver Medal- Caroline Angibaud (FRA)
Bronze Medal- Shakira Westdorp (AUS)
Copper Medal- Iballa Ruano (SPA)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20ad1MF90cM

Day 2 / 5th May 2014 : ISA Press release

Excellent performances continued on Monday during day 2 of the ISA World Standup Paddle and Paddleboard Championship

Brazil’s Carlos Bahia was one of the standouts of the day, who will attempt to make the Grand Final through the Repechage Rounds on Tuesday. Photo: ISA/Rommel Gonzales

La Boquita, Nicaragua, May 5, 2014- The 2014 Men’s and Women’s SUP Surfing Gold Medalists will be decided on Tuesday, the Final Day of the SUP Surfing portion of the 2014 ISA World StandUp Paddle and Paddleboard Championship (WSUPPC) in Nicaragua.

SUP Surfing competition continued on Monday, Day 2 of the ISA WSUPPC with excellent performances from the best men and women SUP Surfers in very contestable waves in La Boquita, Nicaragua.

The surf conditions in La Boquita offered long rides, allowing the surfers to perform a variety of maneuvers. The surf remained contestable in the 2-3 feet range, with bigger sets during the favorable high tide in the morning and late afternoon. With the low tide at 12:30pm, contest organizers decided to take a two-hour break, to allow the surfers to take advantage of the best surf on offer.

“Today was one of the most exciting small wave SUP Surfing days in competition I have ever watched!,” remarked an elated ISA President Fernando Aguerre. “Tuesday, the Final Day of the SUP Surfing competition is going to be a spectacular day as the surf is expected to get bigger. The competition has reached its most critical stage, as the new Men’s and Women’s SUP Surfing World Champions will be crowned. I wish the best of luck to all of the competitors.”

Day 2 started with Qualifying Rounds 3 of Men and Women SUP Surfing. The standouts of the round were France´s Jeremy Massiere and Emmy Merrill, from USA.

Massiere, the French National SUP runner-up, posted the highest heat total score of the round, earning 11.40, defeating Poenaiki Raioha (TAH, 9.80), Tamil Martino (PER, 8.80) and Lucas Medeiros (BRA, 6.20).

Merril, the 2012 ISA WSUPPC Gold Medalist posted 11.27, the highest total heat score of the Round, to defeat Iballa Ruano (SPA, 7.83) and Tarryn Kyte (RSA, 6.63).

Up next, the Repechage Round took place and the first competitors were eliminated from the event.

The standout of the round was the 2013 ISA Men’s SUP Surfing Gold Medalist, USA’s Sean Poynter, who managed to post the highest total heat score and individual wave of the event, so far, of 16.40 and 9.33 respectively.

USA’s Sean Poynter. Photo: ISA/Michael Tweddle

“Yesterday was a shock for me, I didn’t link with any waves,” said Poynter. “I wanted to turn it around today, so I put out my best, got some waves under my belt and raised the score lines. I’m not done yet, I still have a lot more surfing to do ahead of me to make it to the final round, but I’m feeling good and looking forward to tomorrow.”

In the Women´s Repechage, the 3-time Australian SUP National Champion, Shakira Westdorp posted the highest heat total score of the round, 11.50, to defeat Costa Rica’s Jenny Kalmbach (4.97) and Holly Bassett (2.37) from Great Britain.

For a full list of results, click here- http://isawsuppc.com/results/

Day 3, will begin with The Morning Show at 7:40am hosted by Beau Hodge and will feature South Africa team members Justin Bing and Tarryn Kyte, followed by the competition with:

2 heats of Men’s Repechage 5 2 heats of Men’s Qualifying 4 2 heats of Women’s Repechage 4 2 heats of Men’s Repechage 6 1 heats of Men’s Qualifying 5 1 heats of Women’s Qualifying 4 1 heats of Women’s Repechage 5 1 heats of Men’s Repechage 7 1 heats of Women’s Repechage Final 1 heats of Men’s Repechage Final Final Women Final Men

Here is the schedule for the third day of the 2014 ISA World SUP and Paddleboard Championship live webcast:

Tuesday, 7:40am Nicaragua Tuesday, 6:40am West Coast USA Tuesday, 3:40pm Western Europe Tuesday, 11:40pm Sydney, Australia

Day 1 / 4th May 2014 : ISA Press release

DAY ONE OF THE 2014 ISA WORLD SUP AND PADDLEBOARD CHAMPIONSHIP SHOWCASES HIGH PERFORMANCE SUP SURFING

The Best Men And Women SUP Surfers From Around The World Have Come Together In Nicaragua

La Boquita, Nicaragua, May 4, 2014- The SUP Surfing competition of the 2014 ISA World StandUp Paddle and Paddleboard Championship (WSUPPC) is underway. Day 1 featured amazing high performance SUP Surfing in the beautiful waves of Nicaragua.

The best men and women SUP surfers from around the world gathered in La Boquita beach. La Boquita is located in the municipality of Diriamba, along the Pacific Coast, just over an hour drive south west of the capital city, Managua.

The wave at La Boquita is sand and rock bottomed beach break that offers long rights and lefts. It allows for the surfers to perform a variety of maneuvers on its open wave faces and is well suited for SUP Surfing.

The surf was in the 2-3 feet range with some bigger sets. The contestable conditions were best during the morning and afternoon higher tide, when the wave’s form is best. During low tide, the rides have more sections and typically are shorter in length of ride. Nicaragua is famous for its usually strong offshore winds that are caused by Lake Nicaragua, but today, the phenomenon was evident in the afternoon when the sideshore winds picked up.

“In just three editions of this World Championship, each year I am amazed by the progression of the sport,” said a jubilant ISA President Fernando Aguerre. “Not only is the equipment getting better, but also the level of performance is incredible. The world’s best men and women SUP Surfers are pushing the boundaries to new levels.

It’s a very special feeling to see all the National Teams cheering on each other and being able to witness the universal camaraderie of the sport. I encourage everyone around the world to share these special moments by watching the live webcast all week long.”

Day 1 of the ISA WSUPPC featured the opening Qualifying Rounds 1 and 2 of the Men’s and Women’s SUP Surfing. The standouts of t the day were Tahiti’s Poenaiki Raioha in the Men’s side and Spain’s Iballa Ruano in the Women’s.

Raioha put on an impressive performance in La Boquita, earning the two highest total heat scores of 14.97 and 14.50. The 17 year-old from Papeete advanced to the next Qualifying round and is one step closer to the final.

Ruano, the 2013 ISA WSUPPC Bronze Medalist, is on a quest for gold, earning the highest single wave score of 8.00 and total heat score of 14.17 in the Women’s division. The Spaniard defeated Mexico’s Karen Jacobson (9.10) and El Salvador’s Josselyn Alabi (3.13).

Today, regardless of the athlete’s placing, no one has lost out of the competition. All the athletes placing 1st and 2nd moved on to the next round and all athletes that placed 3rd and 4th move on to the Repechage Round, where they will get one more chance.

Notable performances of the day included 2012 ISA WSUPPC Gold Medalist Antoine Delpero (FRA), 2012 Australia SUP National Champion Beau Nixon (AUS), and Gold Coast native Jackson Close (AUS), all of whom have advanced to Qualifying Round 3. A huge upset was the loss of defending ISA World Champion, Sean Poytner (USA), who has fallen into the Repechage round, where he will get one last chance at defending his Gold Medal

Other women standouts include South Africa’s SUP National Champion, Tarryn Kytes (RSA), 2012 ISA WSUPPC Gold Medalist, Emmy Merril (USA), and 2013 ISA WSUPPC Copper Medalist, Caroline Angibaud (FRA), all of whom have advanced to Qualifying Round 3.

For a full list of results, click here- isawsuppc.com/results/

Day 2, will begin with The Morning Show at 7:40am hosted by Beau Hodge and will feature Denmark team members Casper Steinfath and Annette Carsing, followed by the competition with:

3 heats of Men’s Qualifying 3
2 heats of Women’s Qualifying 3
5 heats of Men’s Repechage 1
3 heats of Women’s Repechage 2
6 heats of Men’s Repechage 2
3 heats of Men’s Repechage 3
2 heats of Women’s Repechage 3
3 heats of Men’s Repechage 4

Here is the schedule for the second day of the 2014 ISA World SUP and Paddleboard Championship live webcast:

Monday, 7:40am Nicaragua
Monday, 6:40am West Coast USA
Monday, 3:40pm Western Europe
Monday, 11:40pm Sydney, Australia

Watch the live webcast here.