The ASP will announce its new-look commentary team for 2014 this week, keeping people guessing right up to show time. But fans of the good old Aussie accent better brace themselves for disappointment.
Last year Portugal's only WCT surfer, Tiago Pires, missed almost the whole season due to a knee injury. At the end of the year he applied for one of two injury wildcards and received it. "Reading that email," Pires said in a recent interview with the ASP, "was almost like finding out I had qualified for the first time. Just a very positive and joyful news."
"It took a day or two for it to really hit me. I was in shock. I was shaking and at times trying to fight back some tears. It really felt like an emotional rollercoaster that I just wanted to be over."
A late afternoon glass-off coupled with excellent overhead waves saw Brazilian underdog Jesse Mendes steal the show at the Reef Hawaiian Pro today.
"My preparations have changed quite a bit lately. I used to focus only on competitions before. Now my head is asking me to look for more instead. Happiness is the key to success for me."
2013 was a breakthrough year on the Women’s World Championship Tour for Tyler Wright with a runner-up finish in an epic title race that came down to the final day of the final event. Tyler spoke to ASP as she was boarding a plane to the US for an end of season Californian vacation.
It was the defining moment of the Quiksilver Pro final: Joel Parkinson, standing tall in a clean Kirra barrel, sticking his middle finger up at Kelly Slater who was just about to drop in on him.
Of course the photo has a back story...
"I don't really know what we're doing here, Stuart."
This wasn't the interview I'd intended it to be. Three days before those words were spoken I'd arranged to meet with Richard Grellman, Executive Chairman and acting head of the ASP. It was an easy interview to secure and I quickly found out why; the following day Paul Speaker of ZoSea was announced as new CEO of the ASP and Grellman was relinquished of his top dog duties.
I continued with the the interview anyway...
The professional surfing tour and coporations attached to it preach creativity and freedom in the slogans but it's possible to argue that they actually bury them, destroy them, make them only connotesales. The professional surfing tour can be argued to be surfing as control – an apparatus of capture. As the commentators and judges remark, he/she surf's "in control".
So what to do?
"Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the kings horses and all the kings men Couldn't put Humpty together again." Traditional Nursery Rhyme.
Greetings sports fans. Welcome to the auspicious year of the Water Dragon, a symbol of great optimism and dynamic growth for our illustrious and numerous Chinese comrades. We welcome them warmly to the Sport of Kings.
