Italo Ferreira earned the day’s high heat total at the Mahalo Eco Festival in Itacare today.
ITACARE, Bahia / Brazil (Wednesday, Oct, 16, 2013) - Competition continued for the second day of the ASP 4-Star Mahalo Surf Eco Festival presented by Skol at Praia da Tiririca in Itacare, Bahia, Brazil. Contrary to yesterday’s conditions, the Round of 96 was held under stormy skies, heavy showers and waves in the 2-3 foot range (1 meter). Italo Ferreira (BRA) continued his noteworthy performance by scoring the event’s highest heat total for the second day in a row by earning a 17.40 (out of a possible 20 points).
“I’ve been really happy with my performance so far and I’m thankful for finding such good waves during my heats,” said Italo Ferreira. “I did good yesterday (Tuesday) and today as well. Even though conditions have deteriorated, I was able to get two good scores to win my heat. I was trying to go for some airs on the lefts, but the wind changed and opted for some backside airs on the rights. I hope to maintain my form in the next heats.”
Local surfer, Iago Silva (BRA) was able to qualify alongside Noe Mar McGonagle (CRI) into the Round of 64 and will battle the event’s top seeds for crucial ASP World Ranking points and U$95,000 in prize money.
“It feels great to qualify into the next round because all of the surfers are so talented. It especially feels good to accomplish this at home and in front of my friends and family,” said Iago Silva. “I will definitely maintain my focus and expect to use my local knowledge if conditions get smaller, as the forecast suggests.”
Similar to the first day of action, Tom Cloarec (FRA) and Kanoa Igarashi (USA) were some of the few foreign surfers to advance into the next round.
“It’s my first time to Brazil and I’m really enjoying myself here in Itacare,” stated Kanoa Igarashi. “The waves are a lot of fun and the people are great. So far it’s been a great trip. It’s hard to face so many good Brazilian surfers in conditions like this, but I tried to pick my spots in the lineup and I’ve been doing well in my first event in Brazil.”
Jihad Khodr (BRA), Leonardo Neves (BRA), Victor Ribas (BRA) and Renato Galvao (BRA) are all former Brazilian national champions that are competing in the 2013 Mahalo Surf Eco Festival and all have qualified into the Round of 64. Renato Galvao advanced in dramatic fashion by defeating Scott Weinhardt (USA) in the final minute of their heat.
“Conditions are tough,” said Renato Galvão. “I saw Jihad (Khodr) surf great earlier in a heat, but he was getting low scores because the waves weren’t helping out. Wave faces were really choppy, but I was lucky enough to catch a good left to advance into the next round.”
Competition continues tomorrow when the 32 top ranked athletes competing at the Mahalo Surf Eco Festival will hit the water.
The Mahalo Surf Eco Festival presented by Skol is produced by Dende Produções and sponsored by Mahalo, Petrobras, Bahiatursa and the City of Itacaré and is supported by Backdoor, the Tourism Institute of Itacaré, the Bahia Surf Federation and the Itacaré Surf Association. The event is approved by the ASP South America as a 4-Star event and is transmitted live on the internet: www.surfecofestival.com.br
