Strong Team Performance Boosts Peru into the Lead of the Team Points Ranking, Host Chile Nipping at Their Heels
An intense day of critical heats transpired on the third day of action at the 2015 Iquique Para Todos ISA World Bodyboard Championship, bringing the competition one step closer to the Finals set for Sunday.
Team Peru put on a strong overall performance that boosted them into the overall lead in the Team Points Ranking with 6,335 potential points. Six of their seven athletes remain alive in the competition, including two, Miguel Rodriguez (Open Men) and Cesar Bauer (Dropknee) that have solidified their spots in the Grand Final of their respective divisions. Team Chile is nipping on the heels of Peru, in a very close second place with 6,310 potential points.
Click here to see the team point rankings.
On the men’s side of the action, heats in the Open, Junior and Dropknee Divisions ran at la Punta 1, with finalists being decided in Open and Dropknee. Peru’s Miguel Rodriguez came out victorious of a tight Open Men Main Event Final with a heat total of 16.87, barely edging out the 16.57 heat total of the home team hero, Chile’s Alan Muñoz. France’s Amaury Lavernhe and Chile’s Matias Diaz were relegated to the Repechage Round where they will try to scratch back into contention for a Gold Medal in the Grand Final.
Miguel Rodriguez ecstatically spoke about his performance that earned him a spot in the Grand Final.
“I am extremely happy. I was lucky enough to find some really good waves and make it to the Final. Competing against my idols, Amaury Lavernhe and Alan Muñoz, was incredible for me.”
The Dropknee Main Event Final was as closely contested as the Open Men’s, with another Peruvian, Cesar Bauer (11.33), barely surpassing Venezuela’s Luis Rodriguez (11.26) to place first in the heat and earn a spot in the Grand Final. Daniel Alves (BRA) and Martin Mouradian (FRA) did not advance through the heat, but will continue their quest for Gold in the elimination Repechage Rounds.
The female competitors left their mark on Friday’s competition, as France’s Anna Cécile Lacoste earned the first female 9-point ride of the competition in the Main Event Semifinals. Lacoste kept her strong form in the Main Event Finals placing second, advancing to the Open Women Grand Final along with the winner of the heat, Brazil’s two-time ISA Gold Medalist, Neymara Carvalho.
Venezuela’s Yuleiner Gonzalez could not find her rhythm in the Main Event Final and placed fourth in the heat. Gonzalez, who was not discouraged since she has another chance to advance in the Repechage Round, spoke about the importance of this competition in the international Bodyboard community.
This ISA World Championship is really important because it gathers the best athletes and countries of the sport. I am very proud to represent my country of Venezuela in this contest. We hope that one day we will get Bodyboarding all the way to the Olympics.”
ISA President Fernando Aguerre chimed in after the third day of action in Iquique.
“We are officially set for a weekend full of action, drama, emotion and of course high performance Bodyboarding. Tomorrow we will see athletes competing for a spot in the Grand Final the hard way, through the Repechage Rounds. Get ready for a historic weekend of bodyboarding.”
The second to last day of competition is all set at the 2015 Iquique Para Todos ISA World Bodyboard Championship, as the first Gold Medals will be awarded on Saturday in the ISA Aloha Cup Final.
Watch previous days’ webcast on demand: http://isaworlds.com/bodyboarding/en/live/
For a full list of today’s results, visit: http://isaworlds.com/bodyboarding/en/results/
The fourth day of competition will get underway at 8am on Saturday morning at la Punta 1 in Iquique, Chile with the following heats:
8 am 2 Heats Repechage Open Men Round 6
8 am 2 Heats Repechage Dropknee Round 2
9:20 am 1 Heat Main Evento U-18 Boys Round 3
9:40 am 1 Heat Repechage U-18 Boys Round 2
10 am 1 Heat Repechage Open Women Round 2
10:20 am 1 Heat Main Evento U-18 Girls Round 2
10:40 am 1 Heat Repechage Dropknee Round 3
11:00 am 1 Heat Repechage U-18 Boys Round 3
11:20 am 1 Heat Repechage Open Women Round 3
11:40 am 1 Heat Repechage Open Men Round 7
12:30 pm 1 Heat ISA Aloha Cup Final
The remaining contest schedule will be as follows:
- Saturday, December 11 – Sunday, December 13 from 8am-1pm – Competition at La Punta 1
- Sunday, December 13 – Final day of competition, Awards Presentation and Closing Ceremony
All times in Chile Standard Time.
For live action, photos, videos, news and event info, visit: www.ISAworlds.com
