Steph Gilmore Rings the Bell

With all eyes set on the Bell, the ladies paddled out in rough conditions, catching the 2-3 foot waves, against onshore winds and inconsistent sets. Chelsea Hedges (AUS) put on a sharp display of surfing in the quarter finals, taking out red-hot Silvana Lima (BRA) who won the title the previous year. With Silvana eliminated, 3 world title holders and 19-year old Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) remained in contention to ring the bell.

Local surfer Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) took the Rip Curl Bells Beach Pro for the third time in her career, citing patience and consistency as her winning factors.

"I wasn't in a hurry," the 22 year-old said. "It's probably not the most exciting frame of mind for the spectators, but I know that it doesn't totally count until the Final, so that was my game plan and I guess it kind of worked for me. It's what I've used for a lot of events and it seems to work."

Any surfer on tour would be wise to observe Steph’s strategy- the Australian is an undeniable dominant force on the Women’s World Tour. After three consecutive world titles, she leads the tour with two-of-two events to her name. The Rip Curl Women’s Pro Bells Beach was the second stop on the Australian leg of the tour, also a crucial event for surfers to claim their stake as a top contender for the 2010 season.

"I'm a bit overwhelmed by this," Gilmore said. "To ring the bell once is an amazing feeling, but three times? I don't think the gravity of it has sunk in yet. It's an incredible event and I feel very fortunate to have achieved such success here so far."
–Winner and 3x Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach champ Stephanie Gilmore

Although 7 out of 17 surfers in the event were Aussies, Peruvian Sofia Mulanovich (PER) fought her way through the heats and battled Steph in the finals.

"I'm not at my 100% but I'm just stoked to make it to the Finals," Sofia said after she suffered a neck injury in Round 3. "I really want to go get treated before my Final. Hopefully it feels better before the next event." The world champ’s perseverance paid off; she is currently tied with Melanie Bartels (HAW) for the world #2 spot. Both surfers have a second and fifth place finish for 2010.

After ripping throughout the contest, Chelsea eventually fell to Sofia in the Semifinals.

"I'm disappointed," She said. "Heats don't get much closer than that. I felt like I was on a roll after Margaret's and it's disappointing to feel good here and lose a heat like that. I'll just try to shake it off.”

Perhaps one of the most unique aspects of the women’s tour for 2010 is the strong-willed up-and-comers. No cold feet, no holding back, these young guns have high expectations in the first years of their professional careers. And why shouldn’t they? Stephanie Gilmore was the first in ASP history to take the title in her rookie year and hasn’t looked back since. After defeating #3 in the world, Coco Ho (HAW), Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) in her second year on tour was not satisfied with her results in the semifinals, as she fell to the world champion. 

"Equal 3rd is a good result but it's still very frustrating to go down to Steph (Gilmore) again," Fitzgibbons said. "I'm just going to take it as a learning experience and look forward to the next one. It's great to have events back to back this season and I'm excited for New Zealand." As for Steph, she plans on recharging her batteries before the TSB Bank kicks off on April 11th.

"Two for two is definitely an unexpected start of the year but I guess when you're not really expecting too much that's when it all just comes your way," Gilmore said. "Winning the World Title is such an incredible feeling - it's quite rare so while I can, I just might as well keep winning. But it does take a lot of energy- it really draws a lot of energy out of you. When you come to the end of the year, everybody wants a piece of your time and it can be quite intense, but it's something that I enjoy. I think that's why I just kind of cruise throughout the year and then at the end of the year, I want that big climax."

The next stop on the 2010 ASP Women's World Tour will be the TSB Bank Women's Surf Festival in Taranaki, New Zealand from April 11-16, 2010. Oakura, Taranaki local Paige Hareb will share her break with the rest of the ladies on tour. She is the first Kiwi female in history to qualify for the ASP Women’s World Tour.

RIP CURL WOMEN'S PRO BELLS BEACH FINAL RESULTS:

1 - Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 14.67

2 - Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 10.00



RIP CURL WOMEN'S PRO BELLS BEACH SEMIFINALS RESULTS:

SF 1: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 13.50 def. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 10.67

SF 2: Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 10.50 def. Chelsea Hedges (AUS) 10.50



RIP CURL WOMEN'S PRO BELLS BEACH QUARTERFINALS RESULTS:

QF 1: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 16.50 def. Coco Ho (HAW) 3.34

QF 2: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 17.34 def. Rebecca Woods (AUS) 4.56

QF 3: Chelsea Hedges (AUS) 9.33 def. Silvana Lima (BRA) 4.83

QF 4: Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 9.93 def. Melanie Bartels (HAW) 7.67



ASP WOMEN'S WORLD TOP 5 (After Event No. 2):

1 - Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 2400 points

3 - Sofia Mulanovich (PER) 1524 points

3 - Melanie Bartels (HAW) 1524 points

5 - Chelsea Hedges (AUS) 1308 points

5 - Coco Ho (HAW) 1308 points