NoveNove Maui Aloha Classic

Day 10: After a 5 day break it’s crunch time for the elite of the wave sailing world tomorrow

After patiently waiting for 5 days the world’s best wave sailors are ready to return to action tomorrow as the competition heads towards its climax and it promises to be a thrilling finale to the NoveNove Maui Aloha Classic with a new long period swell — 2.4 metres at 16 seconds — forecast to hit Ho’okipa tomorrow together with strong trade winds.

A recap of how things currently stand

Women’s

Iballa Moreno (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins) has done all she can by winning the single elimination and her fate now falls into the hands of her sister Daida Moreno (Starboard / Severne / Maui Ultra Fins). As things stand Iballa is on course to collect back-to-back world titles, as well as completing a famous hat-trick of Aloha Classic titles, but Daida can recapture her world crown by winning five consecutive heats, which would move her up into third and guarantee her the title. However, fourth place could also prove good enough if someones is able to defeat Iballa twice, which would relegate the reigning world champion to second place. 

In terms of the fight for the final place on the women’s podium Sarah-Quita Offringa (Starboard / NeilPryde / Mystic / Maui Ultra Fins) currently holds the upper hand over Amanda Beenen (99NoveNove / Point-7) and whoever finishes ahead of each other in the double elimination will complete the top three.

Ingrid Larouche (Fanatic / North) will be continuing to sail through the pain barrier as she look to secure her second place overall here, currently ahead of Sarah Hauser (Tabou / Simmer) and Vickey Abbot, however the stage is set for someone to make a great comeback and Fiona Wylde (Starboard / Goya Windsurfing) has the potential to be extremely dangerous if she can gather some momentum — having finished second here in 2014.

Men’s

Morgan Noireaux (JP / Hot Sails Maui) sits proudly at the top of the rankings after winning the single elimination final ahead of Kauli Seadi (99NoveNove / Hot Sails Maui / MFC), Thomas Traversa (Tabou / GA Sails) and Camille Juban (Quatro / Avanti / MFC). However, all eyes will be on Victor Fernandez (Fanatic / North / MFC) from the word go tomorrow with the Spaniard being the only man who can deny Philip Köster a third world title. Fernandez faces a daunting task though as he would need to win eight heats on the bounce — including defeating Noireaux twice — in order to steal the title from Köster’s claws. 

Battle for the Podium

Just like the title race the battle for the remaining place on the prestigious podium sees a two horse race with Alex Mussolini (RRD / RRD) now out of the running. This leaves Jaeger Stone (Starboard / Severne) in command of third place, but with the Australian out of the competition, everything now lies in the hands of Marcilio Browne (Goya Windsurfing / MFC), who finished third here last year. In order for Browne to secure the final place on the podium he too faces a tall task as he would need to win the NoveNove Maui Aloha Classic.

Day 10 saw the AWT fleets in action once more after the conclusion of the Youth’s yesterday — which was won by Jake Schettewi ahead of Tom Juban and Ishi — with the Amateur division taking centre stage alongside the double elimination of the Master’s. 

Amateur’s

Pascal Hardy, who now lives on Maui used his extra local knowledge to see off the challenges of Jake Schettewi — who looks a real talent for the future — and Escario to claim victory in the Amateur NoveNove Maui Aloha Classic.

Master’s Double Elimination:

Sean Aiken (Quatro / Naish) — who competed in the AWT Master’s — was able to win the AWT Master’s and it was perhaps no surprise to see the American come out on top as he defeated Pascal Hardy in the final with Patrick Bergeron completing the podium. 

Richard Foster was the man on the charge through the double elimination as the Brit won three heats in a row before Ferdinando Loffreda (Quatro / Goya Windsurfing) ended his comeback in the battle for fourth and fifth. However, it was perhaps no surprise to see Loffreda advance again as he too competed in the main event.

Grand Master’s 

Yesterday saw the conclusion of the Grand Master’s, which saw Colin Baker win the event ahead of Tom Garcia, Rob Funk and Shoemaker. 

With the forecast looking great for tomorrow the skippers’ meeting has been called for 10:30am with the action commencing from 11am onwards. The current plan is to begin with the women’s double elimination, unless double mast high waves are on hand to greet the competitors. Make sure you tune into www.pwaworldtour.com to follow all of the amazing action live via PWA live stream and live ticker.

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