Groms Wow 8x World Champ Steph Gilmore In Bali
Day 3 Of The Rip Curl GromSearch International Final Covered By Sun Bum
An international field of talented young surfers wowed 8x World Champ Steph Gilmore today at The Rip Curl GromSearch International Final, covered by Sun Bum in Bali. Gilmore was on the judging panel when stand-out female Ziggy Mackenzie unleashed some explosive forehand rail surfing in the silky 3ft waves to easily win, signaling her intentions for finals day.
“It was definitely worth the gamble today," said Harrison Mann. "We scored some super fun waves with no one around. The standard of surfing was insane, and today was just a sneak peek of the fireworks we have in store for Friday and Saturday at Pererenan Beach.”
The format of the event mimicked the WSL’s Championship Tour surfer-on-surfer heats, giving competitors a chance to experience what it’s like if they make it to the elite ranks. Considering over two thirds of the existing Championship Tour is made up of previous Rip Curl GromSearch winners, that experience should prove very valuable in the near future.
Other winners in the 16 & under Girls Round 1 included South Africa’s Louise Lepront and the USA’s Eden Wall who, despite missing the seeding round due to volcanic ash in Singapore, displayed zero signs of jetlag against local Indonesian Jasmine Studer.
The 16 & Under Boys field also delivered high-energy action with Dylan Donegan (ESP) nailing a buzzer beater in the dying minutes of his heat to sneak through, while defending champion Lucas Skinner (GBR) posted the highest scoring heat total of the day to secure his spot in the quarter finals.
Round two continued for the Boys in the afternoon with the first eliminations for the event taking place. Dylan Wilcoxen (IND) advanced with some incredible fin throws, while Rory Dace (ZAF) also impressed with proper man carves. In the 16 & Under Girls, Rosie Richardson (AUS) performed some high-impact single turns to advance to the quarterfinals, alongside #RipCurlGromSearchOnline winner Catalina Zariquiey Vegas (PER).
Some incredible matchups have been set up for finals day tomorrow.
