After a nailbiter of a final between the nine time World Champ, Kelly Slater (USA) and the 2008 rebooted Chris Ward (USA), Joel Parkinson was declared the winner of this year’s Van’s Triple Crown of Surfing title. Joel put in an admirable performance throughout the entirety of the Triple Crown.
Joel made it to the Semifinals of the Reef Hawaiian Pro at Haleiwa, where he fell into a nightmarish heat, completely devoid of waves. Finishing his heat with a total wave score of 3.90 wasn’t enough to push Joel past Jihad Khodr (BRA) who finished with a 4.83 and Dusty Payne (HAW), with a 4.27.
Joel again made it to the Semifinals at the O’Neill World Cup of Surfing at Sunset Beach. His midrange wavescores were not enough to top heat winner Jordy Smith (ZAF) and fellow Aussie, Tom Whitaker.
At the Billabong Pipeline Masters, Joel peaked early, with a perfect heat score of 20 out of 20 in Round 3. When competition resumed, he had a less successful run, falling to an on-fire Timmy Reyes (USA) in Round 4. The early dimissal meant that Joel was left playing the waiting game, to see if he would win the Triple Crown title. Towards the end of the event, the only man who could stand in his way was Chris Ward. With Chris fighting his way straight through to the Final, the Triple Crown title was his for the taking, if only he could win the event. Unfortunately for Wardo, he had his final heat against the virtually impossible to beat once he’s on a roll, Kelly Slater. Needless to say, Slater took the Pipe win and Joel took the Triple Crown win.
Log on to the Triple Crown website for complete event coverage, along with photos, videos and heat sheets.
http://triplecrownofsurfing.com/
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