An intense final day at Hookipa

29/10/2024

Monday's final day of the Aloha Classic Playa Surf Grand Final saw a number of twists and turns due to a fickle wind. While Sarah Hauser and Bernd Roediger won the 2024 event, the world titles went to Sarah-Quita Offringa and Marcilio Browne.

Grey skies and shifting winds were the order of the day on Monday at Hookipa for what is already the final day of the Aloha Classic Playa Surf Grand Final. The competition resumes in round 5 with qualifiers Robby Swift, Camille Juban and Victor Fernandez. Thomas Traversa and Arthur Arutkin bowed out, leaving the way clear for the favourites to continue. The men's quarter-finals began with a sudden drop in the wind, but Marcilio Browne came out on top. The battle for second place was intense, with Liam Dunkerbeck narrowly missing out thanks to an impressive 360, eliminating one of the favourites, Antoine Martin, in the process. Morgan Noireaux secured his qualification, while Takuma Sugi came within a hair's breadth of Levi Siver and Julien Flechet, all three of them tied on points with their fourth wave of the series. The men's semi-finals saw Marcilio Browne and Liam Dunkerbeck win in winds that remained light at times, while Bernd Roediger and Camille Juban secured their place in the final. In the last four of the day, Bernd Roediger set the spot alight with his trademark goiters to win this Aloha Classic ahead of Marcilio Browne, Liam Dunkerbeck and Camille Juban. Browne claimed his fourth world title and third in a row, while Victor Fernandez, still going strong at the age of 40, took the runner-up spot. Marino Gil takes third place on the annual podium, ahead of Marc Paré and Morgan Noireaux.

The women's draw got underway with a tense quarter-final. Lina Erpenstein, in her quest for a world title, secured her place in the semi-finals by dominating her opponents. Pauline Katz also secured her ticket, beating Marine Hunter and Maria Bahrens. In the semi-finals, Sarah-Quita Offringa did what it took to win her heat ahead of Coraline Foveau, securing not only a place in the final but also a new World Wave Champion title. Sarah Hauser, with her knowledge of the spot, dominated her semi-final, followed by Pauline Katz. In the women's final of the day, Sarah Hauser triumphed thanks to her mastery of the Hookipa waves, which she knows by heart, ahead of Sarah-Quita Offringa. Coraline Foveau completed the podium ahead of Pauline Katz. ARU-91 took her 25th world title, ahead of Lina Erpenstein and Alexia Kiefer Quintana in the annual rankings.