Close Shave for Jordy II in Nias

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The waves were absolutely cranking as Paige Hareb (NZL) and Marlon Harrison (AUS) won the WSL Qualifying Series (QS) 5,000 event on Sunday, beating Ella McCaffray (USA) and Jordy respectively. However, it was Jordy who was the form surfer of the week, posting incredible scores all the way to the Final, and he came close to defending his title on a wave he openly praises as one of his favourites.

Nias got picture-perfect waves every day, culminating with the Finals in thumping righthand barrels and rippable long walls. This has become one of the best and most anticipated events on the QS. Surfers in the last three editions have scored incredible conditions, with world-class action from the local Indonesian contingent and a strong international presence.

In the Men’s Final, defending winner from 2019, Jordy took on young Queensland rookie Harrison and was in attack mode from the start with a couple of big backhand snaps to put a score on the board. Harrison waited patiently and the ocean sent him an absolute bomb in the form of a big, clean barrel, which he rode perfectly to drop the first perfect 10 point ride of the event to the cheers of the enormous crowd lining the waterfront. The Australian backed it up with a smaller and shorter tube for a 6 to put Jordy on the ropes looking for a very high score.

10 OUT OF 10: Marlon Harrison nailed a deep tube for a perfect score. Photo WSL / Vanno

Jordy didn’t back down and locked into a big barrel, punctuated by a nice turn for an 8.83 to get right back in the fight with just over 10 minutes remaining. The South African tried his luck on a smaller inside wave under Harrison’s priority but came up just 0,6 points shy of the score he needed, and the Australian claimed his first win on the QS with the best wave of the entire event.

Harrison and Maree had previously eliminated Jaggar Bartholomew (AUS) and Kian Martin (SWE) respectively in the Semifinals. Event favourite and Indonesian superstar Oney Anwar carried the local hopes all the way to the Quarterfinals where Martin put a stop to his Nias campaign in equal 5th place.

The women’s Final was a battle of youth vs. experience, an up-and-coming Junior, Ella McCaffray (USA) against a Championship Tour veteran Paige Hareb (NZL) and it did not disappoint. After a couple of unsuccessful efforts from both surfers to get tubed, McCaffray was first to put a score on the board with a combination of turns to set the early lead. The regular vs goofy battle was on as soon as Hareb found a clean wall to exploit, getting the better of the exchange to get back in first position.

PAIGE TURNER: The Kiwi surfer was absolutely shredding through the event. Photo WSL / Vanno

The American answered with a little cover-up to carve combo but never got quite deep enough in the barrel to rival Hareb’s highest score of 7.50. The surfer from New Zealand quickly backed it up with a 6.20 to put her opponent under pressure halfway through the Final. Hareb put the final nail in her opponent’s coffin with two massive backhand turns and a near-perfect 9 point ride in the dying moments of the heat to secure the win.

“I like to think positive going into it but there were so many good surfers here and the waves have been insane all week so anything could have happened,” Hareb said. “I’m really happy for the way it’s worked out. Hopefully all the kids back home see that Kiwis can win international events and it gives them a bit of inspiration. And hopefully Billy (Stairmand) and I keep flying the flag high for the rest of the year.”

Hareb had a stellar run through the Nias Pro, posting excellent numbers to dispatch some of the strongest surfers in the field, namely Kobie Enright (AUS) and Kailani Johnson (IDN). The 32 year-old from Oakura has been on a tear lately and looks poised to finally get a break on the upcoming Challenger Series. The next event for the QS will be the Taiwan Open of Surfing QS3,000 November 11-20 at Jinzun Harbour, Taitung in Taiwan.

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