06.30.01
Press Release

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - World Champion Sunny Garcia (Haw) was today defeated in his opening round of the Rio Surf International by wildcard entrant Leonardo Neves (Brz). Defending event champ and world #9 Kalani Robb (Haw) was another upset, losing to #33 Pat O'Connell (USA). Both Hawaiians will now contest the do-or-die second round tomorrow.

Competition took place at Prainha today, 20 minutes drive south of the main Barra da Tijuca site. Hollow 3-4 foot (1.3m) beach break conditions persisted all day, with Prainha's stunning ecological reserve of tree covered headlands providing backdrop.

Guilherme Herdy (BRZ) advances to round 3

Garcia, 31, had a frustrating time against Neves and world #5 Jake Paterson (Aus). The Hawaiian waited in vain for the majority of their match, ultimately needing two scores totaling 13.51 points. He'll now face three-time world champion Tom Curren (USA) first heat tomorrow, in one of the most anticipated clashes of the tournament.

"I blew that heat," said a frustrated Garcia afterward. "I'm stoked we got the prizemoney for this event and it's good to see they're moving locations, but my heat sucked. I seem to be cursed with heats with no waves.

"Looks like I have Tom Curren tomorrow," he continued. "It'll be the battle of the old guys. Now that he's older, maybe I'll have a better chance of kicking his ass. I've surfed against him a lot of times back in the old days and he usually won the close decisions. Hopefully the judges like me more now, so it will be a pretty even heat.

"I have more respect for the older guys on tour than I do any of the young guys," added the world champ. "The young guys have no balls, or know how to go out there and really compete from the heart. The older guys... we started doing this sport for the love of it, we didn't make good money. I love competing and it should be a good heat against Tom. I wouldn't say I'm looking forward to tomorrow, but I am looking forward to surfing against Tom Curren."

Neves, 21, was understandably pleased with today's win. The Brazilian picked off three good lefts before being mobbed by local media once the result was official.

"Sunny is number one," said a disbelieving Neves afterward. "It's so good. The waves came, so I thank God. I've looked up to Sunny for a long time, and now it is possible to surf with him."

Robb, 24, trailed the entire 30-minute clash with O'Connell and Greg Emslie (SAfr), only finding one wave of potential to post a 5.9. He later attributed lack of experience at Prainha to his downfall.

"I sat here all day looking at the waves and watching the surfing," explained Robb. "It's the first time I've ever surfed here, so as much as I want to be down on myself, I haven't even had a chance to really get started yet. Tomorrow I'll have an earlier start and will try and figure it out. I was just caught off guard a little bit today."

O'Connell, 29, on the other hand, picked off one of the best lefthanders of the day to score 9.25 for a series of critical backhand maneuvers and advanced straight into round three.

"That wave came and just stood up before me," explained O'Connell. "I couldn't believe it. I just feel a little bit more on it right now than I have been in awhile. I just want to have fun, and that heat was a lot of fun."

World #8 Mick Campbell (Aus) was responsible for Curren's loss today. The 27-year-old trailed most the heat, with current rating's runner-up CJ Hobgood (USA) further behind in third. Campbell bridged the gap on his second last ride, however, then with less than two minutes remaining secured victory on a smaller inside wave that proceeded to peel down the line and reward him a 7.0.

"It was a real honor to surf against Tom," said Campbell. "That was the first time I've really surfed against him, so to beat him was pretty special. I'm really happy."

Curren, 36, was granted a wildcard into the Rio Surf International thanks largely to his continued crowd appeal over the past decade away from full-time competition. His performance today supporting the enigma, regardless of outcome, since the trademark style had all eyes glued to each ride.

"He's a great surfer and one on my favorites," Curren respectfully said of Campbell afterward. "I was hoping I had him at the end, but he got a good one and his wave was pretty strong. I didn't know where that last one came from. He's hard to beat.

"I shouldn't have fallen off so much," he admitted. "But I was pretty happy with how I went. It's good to be here and be able to watch my favorite surfers and compete with them. I'm happy with my boards and everything is going pretty good. Competing against the top guys is just a great experience.

"Obviously he's number one and it will be really hard," Curren said of facing Garcia. "But I'll be trying my hardest."

Current rating's leader Cory Lopez (USA) continued his dominance of late, after winning last month's WCT in Tahiti. Up against Brazilians Peterson Rosa and wildcard Tadeu Pereira today, the 24-year-old Floridian lead from the onset and entertained the crowd with his aerial antics.

"I'm definitely a little nervous, but I've just got to relax," he said of leading the ratings. "If you're in the lead that's no reason to hold back, you've just got to be on your toes and hope you pull them (aerials) off."

Currently tied for third on the ratings are Andy Irons (Haw), 1999 world champion Mark Occhilupo (Aus) and Flavio Padaratz (Brz). The trio all posted strong wins today, with Irons, especially, signifying his intent with the best display of the round.

Andy Irons (HAW) advances to round 3

Against Australians Beau Emerton and Luke Hitchings, the Hawaiian left his opponents needing a combination of scores after tucking into a deep backhand barrel, escaping, and then executing a critical floater for a near-perfect 9.75. Together with two more great rides, he posted the day's highest total of 25-points.

"It doubled up and had a little crumble to it, but I got in there and it opened up and let me out," explained Irons. "I got a floater in and they (the judges) scored it, so I'm stoked.

"I just wanted to stay out of the 33rd round," he continued. "That was my whole goal for right now. It's a short year, so I'm just taking it contest by contest. Everybody is surfing good, so we'll see how it goes."

Occhilupo, 35, defeated Fabio Gouveia (Brz) and Trent Munro (Aus) by making the most of peeling lefthanders and laying down some of his trademark forehand snaps.

"It was kind of tough," began Occhilupo. "The waves are pretty good, but I was falling a bit since it was my first heat. I had some nerves, and the waves didn't really come to the party at the end, so I was kind of lucky.

Padaratz, meanwhile, overcame Taylor Knox (USA) and Victor Ribas (Brz). The 30-year-old admitted to feeling the pressures of leading the Brazilian charge on tour, and more so now in front of their countryman.

"It's always a bit sketchy to get out of the first heat, especially in a contest in Brazil for me," said Padaratz. "I'm leading the Brazilian surfers on the ratings, so it's a lot of pressure to get out there and represent.

"I've been training a lot," he continued. "A little bit of physical training, but mainly mental training. This year I've been working a lot on my mind and trying to relieve all the pressure and focus on the job that I have to do."

Great Britain's Russell Winter, currently rated last in 45th position, caused an upset when he narrowly defeated world #4 Shane Dorian (Haw) and #13 Michael Lowe (Aus). Winter, 25, chose not to compete in Tahiti last month and placed 33rd in the first WCT of the season in Australia, so todays' win was crucial for his confidence.

"I'm pretty happy," began Winter. "I've had a couple of months break and it seems to have paid off, as I'm feeling more relaxed and happy to be here."

Current #6 Shane Powell (Aus) failed to show for his opening heat this morning after sleeping in, allowing world #36 Marcelo Nunes (Brz) more room to post his first WCT heat win over Damien Hobgood (USA).

"It's good for me because it's my first heat that I win in the WCT," said Nunes. "I'm very happy. Shane Powell did not come, so there were only two guys in the water. It was better and more relaxed, with less hassle. A very important win for me."

Official Round One Heats of the Rio Surf International

H1: Guilherme Herdy (Brz) 22.0; Shane Beschen (USA) 16.2; Joca Junior (Brz) 9.0
H2: Luke Egan (Aus) 18.9; Shawn Sutton (Haw) 13.1; Rob Machado (USA) 12.35
H3: Marcelo Nunes (Brz) 15.5; Damien Hobgood (USA) 14.1; Shane Powell (Aus) 0.0
H4: Mark Occhilupo (Aus) 17.25; Fabio Gouveia (Brz) 14.7; Trent Munro 12.45
H5: Russell Winter (GB) 17.65; Shane Dorian (Haw) 17.4; Michael Lowe (Aus) 14.75
H6: Andy Irons (Haw) 25.0; Beau Emerton (Aus) 14.95; Luke Hitchings (Aus) 12.75
H7: Flavio Padaratz (Brz) 18.0; Taylor Knox (USA) 14.35; Victor Ribas (Brz) 12.5
H8: Leonardo Neves (Brz) 19.75; Jake Paterson (Aus) 17.4; Sunny Garcia (Haw) 8.0
H9: Michael Campbell (Aus) 19.65; Tom Curren (USA) 16.75; CJ Hobgood (USA) 9.8
H10: Cory Lopez (USA) 17.95; Peterson Rosa (Brz) 16.6; Tadeu Pereira (Brz) 6.5
H11: Renan Rocha (Brz) 14.5; Paul Canning (SAfr) 13.9; Paulo Moura (Brz) 9.8
H12: Nathan Hedge (Aus) 19.95; Daniel Wills (Aus) 17.2; Sasha Stocker (Aus) 14.05
H13: Joel Parkinson (Aus) 21.75; Rodrigo Dornelles (Brz) 17.7; Richard Lovett (Aus) 13.0
H14: Pat 'Connell (USA) 21.0; Greg Emslie (SAfr) 15.5; Kalani Robb (Haw) 10.65
H15: Taj Burrow (Aus) 19.85; Shea Lopez (USA) 12.35; Ben Bourgeois (USA) 11.25
H16: Neco Padaratz (Brz) 16.6; Nathan Webster (Aus) 15.5; Armando Daltro (Brz) 13.95

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