Rosanne Hodge surfed well enough, but couldn’t make it past the ASP’s 2008 season’s opening event’s quarterfinals at the Roxy Pro Gold Coast, which was won by Peru’s Sofia Mulanovich after the defeating Australian Samantha Cornish in clean three foot (1 metre) waves at Snapper Rocks, Coolangatta, Australia.
Hodge was eliminated from the event by Rebecca Woods (AUS) in the fifth heat of the day, South Africa’s sole representative finishing in equal ninth place overall. Woods waited patiently for the better waves to score a narrow 11.50 vs. 9.83 point victory.
The season opening event ran from Round 3 through the Final today with major upsets and inspiring performances enthralling the hundreds on the beach and thousands watching online.
Mulanovich, 2004 ASP Women’s World Champion and world runner-up last season, was in sensational form, netting the day’s highest heat total of a 17.34 out of a possible 20 to combo Cornish in the Final.
"The final started out kind of slow, but I got a good score midway and from then on, I started pushing my surfing out there," Mulanovich said. "My board felt really good out there and I when I caught that last wave, I knew that Sam (Cornish) was going to need a lot to catch me. So stoked."
The Peruvian had yet to procure a solid result at the Roxy Pro Gold Coast in past seasons, but her victory today puts Mulanovich at the top of the ratings in the race for the 2008 ASP Women’s World Title.
"So stoked to finally get a good result here," Mulanovich said. "I love the wave at Snapper, but until today, I hadn’t been able to get a result. It’s a long season and I am off to a good start, but there are still so many good girls out there. Steph (Gilmore) and Layne (Beachley) and so many others. Samantha today surfed so well and I know she’s hungry for a win."
Cornish, who finished No. 4 on the ASP Women’s World Tour last season, was in devastating form today netting solid scores in the three rounds leading up to the final. Although the young Australian’s conditioning held steady, the waves did not deliver for her in the Final.
"We’ve surfed four times today, but I didn’t feel too tired out there, I just couldn’t get the waves that linked through," Cornish said. "Congrats to Sofia (Mulanovich) though as she was ripping. I’m a bit bummed that I couldn’t see it all the way through today, but I’m still happy with my performance here."
The next stop on the 2008 ASP Women’s World Tour will be the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach from Mar. 19-24, 2008.