Maxing Swell Delivers Huge Scores for Day 4 of 2023 Surf City El Salvador ISA World Surfing Games

Double-overhead to double-overhead plus surf lights up La Bocana and El Sunzal

Australian Junior phenom Ellie Harrison earns highest numbers of the event

Shino Matsuda shines as Team Japan continues strong

Cody Young (CAN) in prime position to secure Santiago 2023 Pan American Games qualification

Surf City El Salvador – June 3, 2023

Large swell greeted competitors on the fourth day of the 2023 Surf City El Salvador ISA World Surfing Games (WSG). It proved to be both exciting and challenging with both huge performances and tight heats happening in equal measure over the course of the day.

Men’s and Women’s Main Round 3 were completed at La Bocana, while Women’s Repechage Rounds 1 and 2 were completed at El Sunzal, along with the continuation of Men’s Repechage Round 1.

Tokyo 2020 Olympian and 2010 ISA World Junior Champion Gabriel Medina (BRA) earned the best Men’s numbers for the third time in four days by lofting a huge air reverse on the opening section of a double-overhead wave for an 8.83. Combined with a 6.90, he also collected the highest heat total of the day (15.73).

In the final heat of the day Australia’s Ellie Harrison went to town on the long walls of El Sunzal, claiming both the highest single wave score of the event, a 9.50, as well as equaling Caroline Marks (USA) for the highest heat total of the event (17.67).

Harrison was a late addition to Team Australia, but is enjoying competing in her first WSG.

“The call-up came as a huge surprise, but I’m just so grateful that they even thought of me to come,” Harrison said. “I’m looking to build confidence in heats and definitely after that one it feels good to post up a couple big scores. I’m just grateful to be here, I love El Salvador and it’s so good being here with Team Australia and all the CT surfers.”

Erin Brooks (CAN), Kailani Johnson (INA), and Luana Silva (BRA) were also able to pick the best of the large surf at El Sunzal in the Women’s Repechage Rounds, while Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS), Johanne Defay (FRA), and Shino Matsuda (JPN) managed challenging conditions at La Bocana to find large numbers in the Main Round.

Matsuda is part of an incredibly strong Team Japan, who were the only nation to enter the day with all six of their surfers still in the Main Round.

“As the Japanese team we are very concentrated,” Matsuda said. “We are all together as one team. Everyone has a lot of energy and we’re up for the challenge. We’re in a good place.”

2006 ISA WSG Gold Medalist Jordy Smith (RSA) and Tokyo 2020 Olympian Manuel Selman (CHI) both lit up La Bocana, as did Sebastián Williams (MEX), who continues to impress as he marches through the Main Round.

After a great performance yesterday, Liam O’Brien (AUS) was the last man standing in the Main Round for the Australian Men’s team, but a tough heat today saw him join fellow WSL CT surfers Ethan Ewing and Ryan Callinan in the repechage.

While the major goal in this year’s WSG for surfers representing four continents is qualification for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, athletes from the Americas are hoping to qualify themselves for the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games. The five highest ranked eligible men and women will earn their slots for Santiago 2023 in El Salvador, and the respective winners in Santiago will achieve their dream of qualifying for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Cody Young (CAN) is keeping himself in a prime position to head to Santiago 2023 in October after posting one of the highest heat totals of the day. The 24-year-old has already earned provisional qualification at the 2023 Pan American Surfing Games (PASA) in Panama, but still has work to do to stay ahead of the pack and secure his slot.

“I have a job to do here first before I officially qualify for the Pan American Games,” Young said. “I’m provisionally qualified right now through PASA, but they only take two per country and my other two teammates are still in the event so I’m just going to try to do my job here and qualify for that. I’m looking forward to Chile, I’ve never been down there, and I’m looking forward to surfing man-on-man heats.”

Competition will resume tomorrow at 8:00am CST with Men’s Main Round 4 at La Bocana and 7:45am with Women’s Repechage Round 3 at El Sunzal.