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Words and Photos by Greg Weatherall

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Another epic day in South Africa, for the Billabong Pro at Jefferys Bay, with Super Tubes providing an amazing playground for the surfers to battle it out in front of a huge local crowd.  The swell was around for another day, and with light offshore winds for the majority of the heats, those watching on the beach and around the world on the web cast were treated to a truly world class show. The Red Bull crew were a huge part of the final day of competition, with Bruce, Andy, Fanning and Adriano all still in contention at the beginning of the day.  Brucey got to surf the first heat of the day and got some of the biggest waves seen at J-Bay in quite some time, but Fanning the eventual runner-up, got the better of him. Andy boosted some huge airs, showcasing more of his free surfing prowess, than his usual competition style surfing.  He rounded out the event in fifth place, not quite what the 3x world champion was looking for, but still a solid result.  Adriano De Souza continues with his best season on the World Championship Tour. The rising star of the of the 2008 season, put his current 6th place ranking, down to consistently making it to the quarters and semi's, his fast, smooth style is getting solid recognition from the judges, the crowds and his fellow surfers.

Last season Fanning had a stare of confidence and determination that saw him take out the world title. The event in J Bay, along with the Quiky Pro at Snapper, are the only two times this season, Mick's had that same look in his eye and the result followed. Fanning was the man to watch throughout the contest, posting high score after high score, crushing the majority of his opponents on the way to the finals. He faced off against eight time world champ, Kelly Slater in the finals.  Slater has been untouchable all season, not loosing a single heat to a WCT competitor.  Mick Fanning, gave it his best shot, but struggled to get the waves that converted into high scores rounding out the event at J-Bay in second place.

Red Bull Surfers & The Current 2008 ASP World Tour Rankings
1 Kelly Slater
2 Joel Pakinson
3 Bede Durbidge
4 Mick Fanning
5 Taj Burrow
6 Adriano de Souza
7 C.J Hobgood
8 Andy Irons
19 Bruce Irons
26 Ben Dunn
34 Royden Bryson
39 Tiago Pires

Last January 19 of the world’s leading junior surfers were invited to the Red Bull WQS Selection Camp held in Australia. After an intensive selection phase only four made the cut into Red Bull Rising, Red Bull's high performance program. The surfers that made this unique elite athlete surfing development team were Brazilian Wiggolly Dantas, the Hawaiian Gavin Gilette, Clint Kimmins from Australia and Frenchman Tim Boal. The fifth surfer, Michel Bourez from Tahiti was nominated through a wild card due to his outstanding talent.

Story By Cassio Cortes
Brazilian Peterson Crisanto defeated Tahitian Tamaroa McComb twice during the ISA World Junior Surfing Championship’s Under 16 competition on his way to the grand final, but unfortunately for the Red Bull athlete, the Tahitian picked up his top form in the final heat, and won in a very tight final.
    Tamaroa began with an 8.10 that slotted him into first place. Peterson scored a lesser 6.20. A few minutes later, the Tahitian scored a near-perfect 9.10 after having executed a huge off-the-lip, followed by five big maneuvers that took him all the way to the beach. Not to be defeated, the Brazilian then scored a high but insufficient 7.54, which left him searching for a very difficult 9.66.
    Crisanto very nearly got the score when he pulled off two stylish roundhouse cutbacks, a tailslide 360 and two off-the-lips onto the sand, which gave the Brazilian a 9.62, just 0.04 below what he required. With this score, he needed precisely 7.92, which unfortunately he never quite found. Still, it was a career-best result for Crisanto.
Boys Under 16 ISA World Junior Championships Results
Gold: Tamaroa McComb (TAH)
Silver: Peterson Crisanto (BRA)
Bronze: Matty Costa (HAW)
Copper: Ian Fontaine (FRA)