TERESA BONVALOT WINS FIRST EVENT OF 2015 EURO PRO JUNIOR
3rd April 2015
(Top photo Teresa Bonvalot by WSL / Masurel)
Praia de Caparica, Almada in Portugal came alive with the finals of the first Caparica Primavera Surf Fest powered by O’Neill in two-to-three foot waves at the beautiful white-sanded beach of Caparica. Teresa Bonvalot just 15 years old has taken out the inaugural event her second win in a week.
Organizers made full use of the remaining swell on offer to complete this first edition of the event in playful conditions. Europe’s best under-20 surfers put on an exciting show for the crowds enjoying another picture-perfect Spring day in Caparica.
A slow start to the women’s final quickly let way to an exciting series of exchanges, with Bonvalot taking a serious advantage and a near-perfect 9.80 out of 10 for a combination of major maneuvers on her backhand.
“When I saw that wave coming I knew it was mine and I concentrated on just surfing it well, didn’t think of scores or the pressure of the situation,” Bonvalot explained. “It was a great wave and I’m super happy I was lucky enough to be in position.”
Ranked third overall last year on the European Junior series, Bonvalot takes an early lead this season and will have the rest of the region’s talents trying to overtake her comes the next event in Espinho.
“I feel great ! This is my first win on the Junior series so I’m really happy,” Bonvalot added. “The waves were good and it was really fun. All my family was here and I had a great support crew”
Despite her best efforts, Keshia Seelow-Eyre (PRT) 19, could not recover from Bonvalot’s big blast and eventually had to settle for second place. Netting a career-best result in Caparica, Seelow Eyre integrates the ranking’s top spots for the first time and will look to confirm her new-found form when the Junior tour reconvenes in June.
“I’m really happy, that was my first final ever on the Junior series,” Seelow Eyre stated. “It’s always good to get a good result in the first event cause then you loosen up a bit and tend you get better. I really want to qualify for the World Juniors, I was bummed to miss out last year on my homebreak but hopefully I’ll get there this time !”
The road to the final for Seelow Eyre was sparked with great performances including defeating Guadeloupe’s Kim Veteau (GLP) 17, who came in as the event favorite.
CAPARICA PRIMAVERA SURFFEST WOMEN’S FINAL RESULTS:
1- Teresa Bonvalot (PRT) 15.83
2- Keshia Seelow-Eyre (GBR) 11.00
CAPARICA PRIMAVERA SURFFEST WOMEN’S SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Keshia Seelow-Eyre (GBR) 13.00 def. Kim Veteau (GLP) 8.50
SF 2: Teresa Bonvalot (PRT) 13.83 def. Juliette Brice (FRA) 7.77
CAPARICA PRIMAVERA SURFFEST WOMEN’S QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Kim Veteau (GLP) 12.17 def. Nadia Erostarbe (EUK) 8.97
QF 2: Keshia Seelow-Eyre (GBR) 10.64 def. Nina Reynal (FRA) 9.83
QF 3: Teresa Bonvalot (PRT) 13.17 def. Ainara Aymat (EUK) 13.06
QF 4: Juliette Brice (FRA) 9.63 def. Carol Henrique (PRT) 7.83
Words by World Surf League (WSL)
