With six surfers in the top 30 seeds at the World Junior Championships, Hawaii boasted a strong crew at the start in Ericeira, Portugal. The first few rounds have provided some mixed results and unfortunate pairings as that contingent of
With six surfers in the top 30 seeds at the World Junior Championships, Hawaii boasted a strong crew at the start in Ericeira, Portugal. The first few rounds have provided some mixed results and unfortunate pairings as that contingent of six is down to just three.
Seth Moniz, the younger of the two Moniz brothers participating, fell victim to Australia’s Harry Bryant in the second round. Seth had some huge success in Junior events in 2015, winning a pair of contests and earning three other top-five finishes. But he couldn’t continue with that same momentum and he’ll have to now root for older brother Josh, who won his first-round heat and is set to take on another Aussie, Kai Hing, in the third round.
Kalani David came through in his second-round heat, picking up the win against Japan’s Momoto Tsuzuki. David had the three highest single-wave scores of the heat, finishing up with a 14.07 to 11.80 win. Between Junior and Qualifying Series events, David surfed a full schedule in 2015 with some big results, but he is still looking for his first win since the 2013 North Shore Surf Shop Pro Junior at Haleiwa.
The third Hawaii junior to make it to round three is Benji Brand, but he and David will be going head-to-head in an elimination heat. It’s the second straight round that Brand will have to take on one of his brethren. He went up against Oahu’s Elijah Gates in round two and emerged with the narrow win, 14.37 to 12.60. Brand has done some things on the big stage before, but in far different conditions. He took second at last year’s Pipeline Pro Junior. The surf in Ericeira has been in the three-foot range, so Brand will need to use the rest of his repertoire beyond just tube riding.
Imai Devault lost in his second-round heat to France’s Nelson Cloarec, so he, Gates and Seth Moniz will be spectators the rest of the way. And unfortunately either Brand or David will join them after their head-to-head heat, so the number of Hawaii’s potential champs is dwindling.
Whoever eventually wins will probably have to go through Japan’s Hiroto Ohhara at some point. Ohhara was phenomenal in round three, putting up a 19.26 two-wave total on a pair of nine-point rides. He slammed three big turns on his first 9.33 and a second three-wave combo resulted in a 9.93. Ohhara is a familiar name, having won the U.S. Open of Surfing at Huntington Beach last year and receiving an invite to the Championship Tour’s Hurley Pro at Lower Trestles. He’ll be one of the faces to watch during this upcoming season’s Qualifying Series.
Japan’s Hiroto Arai, American Noah Schweizer, Italy’s Leonardo Fioravanti and future CT competitor Kanoa Igarashi are some of the contenders still in the mix.
Today’s forecast shows some large waves in store, but the winds will likely have the final determination on just how good the conditions are for subsequent rounds.
Still awaiting their turn to get back in the water are the four wahine semifinalists, headlined by Mahina Maeda. She’ll be taking on Portugal’s Teresa Bonvalot for a chance to defend her title against either Holly Wawn or Isabella Nichols.
•••
David Simon can be reached at dsimon@thegardenisland.com.
