The ASP Women’s Word Tour kicks off this weekend with the Roxy Pro on Australia’s Gold Coast. Just enough time then to cram in those all-important female-surfing facts...
$110,000...
That’s the total prize fund for the first event in the 2011 Women’s World Tour schedule, the Roxy Pro, held on Australia’s Gold Coast from February 26 to March 9. The fund for the Men’s equivalent tournament, the Quicksilver Pro, totals $425,000 – kerching!
2...
At the age of 19 and during her sophomore year as a pro surfer, Australian Sally Fitzgibbons was ranked ASP World No. 2… “I had a really exciting year in 2010 and learned so much,” says Fitzgibbons. “I was happy with my consistency last year and finishing at World Number 2 is something to be proud of. I will carry the confidence from that into the upcoming season.”
$50,000...
Only 18 years old and having just completed her first full professional season, Hawaiian Carissa Moore is currently ranked third best in the world. This comes on the back of 11 NSSA National Titles and her victory at the 2010 US Open of Surfing, where she won the richest prize purse in women's surfing history, $50,000 – an impressive haul that surely bodes well for a successful 2011 season… “Going into my first year, I had the hopes of winning a world title," says Moore. "Before it all started, however, my dad and I took a good look at all the distractions I had with graduation, family, friends, life in general and tried to be realistic. We went into it with the ‘Try my best, perform my best and try to finish with a solid placing’ approach. The good news is: this next year, I have no more school. And I'm really excited for a fresh start.”
167...
Despite having her wisdom teeth removed during her recent off-season, Sally Fitzgibbons managed to find time to get some practice in and teach a certain sports star – with 167 career titles to her name – how to ride the waves… “I've really enjoyed my off season at home,” says Fitzgibbons. “I managed to get all my wisdom teeth pulled out in my time off and spent some time at Snapper when the cyclone swells hit. I surfed and trained up and down the South Coast and I taught one of my heroes, tennis star Martina Navratilova, how to surf.”
2004...
Having won three out of six World Championship Tour events, Sofia Mulanovich finished the 2004 season as World Champion, the first Peruvian to achieve such a feat. Since then, she’s been a regular top-five finisher in ASP Women’s World Tour events and was inducted into the Surfers Hall of Fame during its 10th Anniversary celebrations in 2007 for the major impact she’s made on the sport – simply put, this (slightly elder) surfing stateswoman remains a powerful presence and a constant threat to the championship crown.
7...
The Roxy Pro will be the first of seven ASP Women’s World Tour events, continuing with the Rip Curl Women's Pro in April and concluding with Rip Curl Search in a to-be-confirmed venue in November… “My motivations to start the season are as always: that I love competing and surfing with the World's Best and that I want to be World Champion,” says Sally Fitzgibbons. “My goals will be to keep improving my surfing through the year, to win a few events would be amazing and soak up all the excitement that comes with being on the World Tour. I want to enjoy my travels and explore along the way, I'm hoping to find some waves that I haven't yet surfed. I'm really excited for the upcoming event as I like watching everyone and the new rookies and seeing who's switched on for a great year.”
Want more?
- Catch the Roxy Pro Gold Coast via live webcast
- Visit the official ASP World Tour site
- Sally Fitzgibbons’ official site
- Sofia Mulanovich’s official site
- Carissa Moore’s official site
- Go to RedBull.com’s surfing section
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