LIHU‘E — A large assembly of dedicated Association of Surfing Professionals athletes are now making their way to the exotic south east coastline of Sri Lanka for the inaugural ASP 6-Star SriLankan Airlines Pro which is set to commence on
LIHU‘E — A large assembly of dedicated Association of Surfing Professionals athletes are now making their way to the exotic south east coastline of Sri Lanka for the inaugural ASP 6-Star SriLankan Airlines Pro which is set to commence on Friday at Arugam Bay, according to an ASP press release.
It’s the first ever ASP event in Sri Lanka as ASP Australasia breaks new ground venturing into a territory that holds fascination with stories dating back to the 1970s of pioneering surfers finding super consistent and perfect waves on this lush island.
The June monsoonal winds and a very active winter Indian Ocean combine to make Arugam Bay the surf location that it is, and the field descending on the break this week will put the wave to the test like never before as they chase essential ASP Star points and a prize pool of $145,000.
Elite ASP World Tour surfers Drew Courtney, Dan Ross and Blake Thornton head the field with an array of international talent like recent ASP 6-Star winner Aritz Aranburu of Spain, former ASP World Champion Sunny Garcia of Hawai‘i, South Africa’s David Weare, Masotoshi Ohno from Japan, New Zealand’s Richard Christie and the United Kingdom’s Alan Stokes to name just a few of the surfers heading for this wave.
Even the contest organizers are uncertain what to expect from Arugam Bay, however contest director Dane Jordan from ASP Australasia is optimistic that the venue will deliver.
“I’ve spent five days there in three years preparing for this event and I have seen it break with excellent shape and consistency.
“I’ve surfed the break and it’s a super high performance wave,” Jordan said. “I’m not so familiar to know the exact prime swell directions, tides, winds and all else but indications are there’s a 17-second period, 8-feet south swell for Saturday and I’m imagining that could be an ideal starting point.
“I’ll liaise closely with a good bunch of local surfers and we have a very healthy waiting period to get the best out of this and the rest we’ll leave to the surfers who I know will shred the daylight out of these waves.”
Jordan also announced the final make-up of the wildcard surfers into this event, headed by exciting Japanese surfer Osawa Nobuyuki and backed up by equally exciting Australians Mitch Coleborn, Davey Cathels and Chris Friend.
Extra wildcards will be awarded to Sri Lankan surfers who will compete under an ASP assisted trials for these positions.
Asanka, widely regarded as the No. 1 surfer in Sri Lanka, and also owner of the restaurant and land right on the point, is a favorite to take one of these positions and in his best English commented on the opportunity and the event.
“I think good the tournament for our boys,” he said. “All the local boys are happy. It gives us chance to make our surfing better. Also for rest of Sri Lanka to see how good our boys surf and how much surfing good for country.”
Like all new locations that ASP surfers explore, there will be rich and positive sharings of all things surfing in a quality event that should benefit all.
The SriLankan Airlines Pro will be live on the web and will include a quality-produced and globally-distributed television show along with television news feeds distributed internationally.
