Tory Gilkerson Brings Home Gold For Team USA At ISA Longboard Titles
EVENT // 2018 ISA WORLD LONGBOARD CHAMPIONSHIPS
2018 ISA World Longboard Surfing Championship wrapped up at Riyue Bay (also known as Sun and Moon Bay) in Wanning, China today after a week of two-to-three foot waves continued to roll into the increasingly popular surf destination.
Located on Hainan Island in the South China Sea, Riyue Bay is the hub for surfing in China. The two Kilometre stretch is home to a number of breaks for every level of surfer but when it’s on, the point breaks are world class, hence why we’ve seen a dramatic growth of international events being held there. There are a couple of beach breaks, two left-hand point breaks that can produce long barreling rides that hug a rocky coastline.
This week the surfers milked a relatively tame swell, but there were still plenty of clean waves on offer for the world’s best longboarders to contest. 2017 World Champion Honolua Blomfield made the trip with her Hawaiian team despite Hawaii having a nice run of waves. She was joined by competitors from 22 countries including China, Brazil, Russia, Israel, Spain, Channel Islands, England, Uruguay, Argentina, Portugal, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the USA, Switzerland, Italy and Germany.
In the Women’s Grand Final Tory Gilkerson faced off against Brazil’s Chloe Calmon, Japan’s Natsumi Taoka, and the reigning WSL champion, Honolua Blomfield, for a chance to earn her first-ever ISA medal. Tory used her patience to her advantage and rode only four waves to obtain the 16.30 heat score to win the Gold. Brazil’s Calmonused a last-minute 7.77 to move into the Silver Medal position, while Honolua and Natsumi earned the Bronze and Copper respectively.
“I’m so stoked to win, not only for myself but for my team (USA),” said Tory. “It’s amazing to get the Team Gold. We have great camaraderie and are all super supportive of each other. It’s like a team of brothers and sisters. We’ve had a great all-around performance. The Team Gold is the icing on the cake. “There have been some ups and downs this week. There were a few days of small waves and I had a stomach bug, but it’s all about having fun and enjoying our time. ISA events are so cool because the teams get together and support each other.
2018 OPEN WOMEN’S FINAL RESULTS
2018 INTERNATIONAL TEAMS RANKINGS
20 – Switzerland