Gabriel Medina was the winner of the Brazilian clash for a spot in the semifinals of the men’s surfing tournament at the Paris Olympic Games (France). The three-time world champion showed off all his technique to beat João Chianca, also known as Chumbinho, by 14.77 to 9.33, in the waves of Teahupoo this Thursday (1). Now the surfer from São Sebastião will face off against Australian Jack Robinson to seek a spot in the grand final.
Although the sea was not as big as in previous days, Medina showed his characteristic aggressiveness right at the beginning of the heat in order to put pressure on Chumbinho. In the first few minutes of the competition, the three-time world champion pulled two barrels out of his hat to receive his two best scores in the competition, a 6.67 and an 8.10.
João Chianca had a lot of difficulty responding at the right time, especially in difficult sea conditions. As a result, his best score was 4.83, which was not enough to prevent Medina from qualifying.
“This is my favorite wave [de Teahupoo]as I always said. I’m happy just to get in the water here, and today was an important heat against João, who is my good friend and we had to face each other. And I’m happy to be in the semifinals”, declared the surfer from São Sebastião after qualifying.
When asked about the sea conditions, Medina expressed the expectation that they would improve in the coming days for the semi-finals: “Teahupoo changes a lot [as condições do mar]because it is very exposed. Today we dealt with the wind, with the size, which decreased a lot, but next time [disputa]probably Saturday, the forecast is pretty good for the waves. So I believe the sea will improve”.
Tati in the semifinals
Brazil also secured a place in the semi-finals of the women’s surfing competition, with Tatiana Weston-Webb, who beat Spaniard Nadia Erostarbe in the quarter-finals by 8.10 to 6.34. The Brazilian had previously shown that she is a strong candidate for Olympic gold after defeating American Caitlin Simmers, the current world number one.
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— Time Brazil (@timebrasil) August 2, 2024
“I’m feeling great [com a classificação para a semifinal]. I encountered very difficult conditions [no mar]but passing this heat gave me the conditions, as it was a super difficult heat, but I managed to show a bit of my surfing and catch some waves, and thank God I was able to pass one more” declared the Brazilian after qualifying”
In the next phase of the competition, Tati will face Costa Rican Brisa Hennessey, who beat Brazilian Luana Silva by 6.37 to 5.47 and prevented a Brazilian semi-final in the women’s competition.
