AUSTRALIAN LUKE EGAN WINS HIS SECOND QUIKSILVER
		                 PRO TITLE OVER BRAZILIAN GUILHER HERDY
  
		                  
  
							
		                 Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000 (MAY 23-June 1) 
							
		                 **Live Webcast on: www.quiksilver.com  
		
		                 Association of Surfing Professional (ASP)
		                 2000 World Championship Tour (WCT)  
	
		
		
		                 Tavarua Island, Fiji (Thursday, June 1, 2000). Australian Luke Egan today became the
		                 first surfer to win two Quiksilver Pro titles when he defeated Brazilian Guilherme
		                 Herdy in their 35-minute final out at Cloudbreak 19.15 to 18.00-points. The victory
		                 was his second World Championship Tour (WCT) win of 14 years, after claiming his
		                 first back in 1997 during the Quiksilver Pro G-Land (Java, Indonesia), before the event
		                 was forced to move locations.  
		                 
		                  
  
		
		                 Egan, 30, made the most of the deteriorating conditions during the final heat, electing
		                 to catch a few of the smaller waves and build his tally early, while Herdy waited in vain
		                 for the less consistent sets. Though the surf was still in the 6-foot range, increased wind
		                 made the wave faces very difficult to ride, and Herdy was left needing 5.16-points
		                 when the match finished.  
		
		                 "It doesn't get much better," laughed Egan as he boarded the marshaling boat
		                 victorious. 'Having your two best mates sitting there with you (referring to
		                 Australians Matt Hoy and Mark Occhilupo, who were first to congratulate him in the
		                 water). I did it to Occy last year when he won, and he just did it to me Ð it's the best.  
		
		                 In regard to the conditions, he reasoned: "It could have been better. The waves
		                 weren't very good and I decided to catch a couple of little ones and it worked. I just
		                 felt really on today and it's a great feeling."  
		
		                 Speaking about his second Quiksilver Pro title and now being placed second in the
		                 world after today's result, Egan added:  
		
		                 "Yeah, there's something good about thisÉ Fiji Bitter (he joked as a local beer was
		                 handed to him mid-quote). I'm actually stoked to be the only guy to ever win this
		                 event twice and I've won it in two different spots. I feel good about that.  
		
		                 "I've been trying really hard and have made a lot of sacrifices, so I'm going for it (the
		                 world title)."  
		
		                 Herdy, rated 31st in the world at the end of last year, showed his talent in hollow lefts
		                 today defeating Hawaiian Shane Dorian in their quarter-final, American CJ Hobgood in
		                 the semi's, before meeting his match in Egan. The Brazilian is now rated sixth on the
		                 current ratings.  
		                 
		                  
  
		
		                 "Congratulations to Quiksilver for doing this contest one more time," said a beaming
		                 Herdy after the final. "I'm so stoked. I didn't win, but second place is very important
		                 for me for the points. I hope next event I have the same luck I had here and surf good
		                 waves.  
		
		                 "Congratulations to Luke, he won the heat and got the best waves. Second place here
		                 is like a dream though. Every surfer in the world dreams about this contest and to be
		                 here. I am one of those guys. I was in the water, was in the final, you know? It was a
		                 close heat and maybe if I had a little bit more time I could have got it, but no problem,
		                 I'm still stoked."  
		
		                 Equal third today went to Americans CJ Hobgood and Cory Lopez. Hobgood was
		                 unlucky during his semi-final with Herdy, as the waves just seemed to stop during the
		                 30-minute clash.  
		
		                 "I just couldn't catch a wave," said Hobgood later. "There were great waves before
		                 our heat, but then nothing came. I felt I could have won, but that's just the way it
		                 goes."  
		
		                 Lopez, who has been suffering from a sore back the past couple of months, surfed
		                 great throughout the event, but similarly to Hobgood, was unable to find the waves he
		                 needed during his heat against Egan. Still, the result has pushed him into third position
		                 on the ratings.  
		
		                 Current world champion and defending Quiksilver Pro winner Mark Occhilupo was
		                 another casualty of Egan today, losing in their quarter-final. The close friends put on a
		                 fantastic performance, however, posting the two highest total scores of the entire
		                 event, with Egan earning a perfect 10-point ride to win the classic battle 26.70 to
		                 25.25-points.  
		
		                 "There was a lull at the start of the heat and I didn't think it was going to turn on,"
		                 explained Occhilupo. "I can't really think of any mistakes I made, maybe just going
		                 that 9.25 ride and letting Luke get that 10! I saw him get that second tube and he
		                 committed himself and deserved to win the heat Ð he surfed insane. I hope he wins; I
		                 pray he wins."  
		
		                 Egan, who did just that, summed up the incredible heat with 'Occy' as follows:  
		                 
					      
  
							
		                 "We surf together a lot and when we get together for a heat we both push ourselves, I
		                 think, and have the all-time heats. It's an eerie feeling when we draw each other, as
		                 you know each other are going to try so hard. It's epic to have great heats like that
		                 with your mate."  
		
		                 Troy Brooks, 21, who entered the Quiksilver Pro as a replacement surfer for Great
		                 Britain's Russell Winter, finished fifth today, losing to Lopez in their quarter-final. In
		                 what was another great match-up, Brooks posted a 9.80-point ride, the highest of any
		                 natural-foot (left foot forward) surfer in the event, though still not enough to advance.  
		
		                 "I saw Cory's 9.40 and thought 'Oh, no,'" explained Brooks. "I needed a good one
		                 and got priority, then that bomb came. It barreled down the whole reef and I just came
		                 out. It does favor Goofy-footers out here, as you have to ride higher up the face on
		                 your backhand. For someone who wasn't expecting to even be in the event, though,
		                 you've got to be happy with fifth."  
		
		                 Official Results of Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000  
		
		                 1st L Egan (Aus) US$15,000  
		                 2nd G Herdy (Brz) US$8,000  
		                 3rd CJ Hobgood (USA); C Lopez (USA) US$4,000  
		                 5th T Prestage (Aus); S Dorian (Haw); T Brooks (Aus); M Occhilupo (Aus)
		                 US$3,000  
		
		                 Current ASP Ratings after Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000 (Top 10)  
		
		                 1st S Garcia (Haw) 3000-points  
		                 2nd L Egan (Aus) 2620  
		                 3rd C Lopez (USA) 2340  
		                 4th F Padaratz (Brz); Taj Burrow (Aus) 2260  
		                 6th G Herdy (Brz) 2160  
		                 7th M Occhilupo (Aus) 2140  
		                 8th S Dorian (Haw) 2110  
		                 9th L Hitchings (Aus) 2080  
		                 10th M Campbell (Aus); S Beschen (USA) 1910  
		
		                 Further Information Contact  
		
		                 Jesse Faen, ASP Int'l. Media Director  
		                 jesse@aspworldtour.com 
		                 PH/Fax Answering Service: 1-212-699-3827 ext. 4282  
		
		                 Or visit us live at: www.asplive.com or www.quiksilver.com  
		
		                 Complimentary digital images available to all newspapers, websites, and magazines.
		                 Contact Pierre Tostee / ASP World Tour Photographer:
		                 pierre@tostee.com   
		                 
		                 
 
  
 
  
								
						
						
						
						Round 4:
   
						Herdy Surfs a near Perfect Heat Defeating Garcia
  
						
						Bassy's Quik Pro Update
  
						
						 
  
						
						
						Brazilian Guilerhme Herdy woke up on the right side of the bed this morning. 
						He needed a near perfect heat to beat current WCT points leader Sunny Garcia, 
						and he got it.  Herdy started the heat off with a lengthy tube and he didn't 
						look back. His wave selection and rhythm left Garcia battling from behind for 
						most of the heat.
  
						
						 
  
						
						 When Garcia did pick off a high scoring ride, Herdy would be 
						right behind him on the next set wave. Herdy will be surfing against Shane Dorian 
						in the Quarters. The quarter final match-ups are CJ Hobgood vs. Todd Prestage; 
						Shane Dorian vs. Guillerhme Herdy; Troy Brooks vs. Cory Lopez; and Occy vs. Luke Egan. 
						The remainder of the event will be held on a pending swell.
					
						
 
 
 
  
					
						
						Round Three: Occy conquers slater; Garcia takes out Carroll; Wildcard Brooks beats Taj. 
  
						
						 
  
						
						
						Bassy's Quiksilver Pro Fiji Update  Day 4 (Friday May 26)
						 Current world champ Mark Occhilupo shook the monkey off his back by beating
						Kelly Slater in a thrilling round three heat at the Quiksilver Pro Fiji.
						Occy was understandablyecstatic after a disappointng loss to Slater last
						December in Hawaii. In that duel, Slater pulled a rabbit out of his hat by
						nabbing a last minute Backdoor tube, beating Occyin the semis of the
						Pipeline event.
  
						
						 
  
						
						 Today day in Fiji, the tables were turned. Occy stroked inot a blustery
						left and proceeded to tear three big hooks under the lip followed by a
						clean inside tube section. A set wave rolled towards Slater as time wound
						down. The six time world champ ran out of magic and the horn sounded before
						he could get to his feet. "At Pipe last year, i had him (Slater) combo'd
						and he got a 10. He's a super freak surfer. This heat was much closer."
						explained Occy. "I haven't beaten him in an ASP man on man heat ever in ten
						years! I had a mental block there, and I got over it."
						
						 Prior to the Occy/Slater duel, current WCT points leader Sunny Garcia
						battled with goofy foot power merchant Tom Carroll. Garcia's wave selection
						and layback pigdog combos put him on top early, and  he remained ther for
						the rest of the heat.  Carroll pulled into some sectiony tubes that didn't
						cooperate. "It was kinda' crumbly out there, and that was probably to my
						advantage," explained Garcia. "Tom is an unbelievable tube rider, but with
						the wind shutting down the tubes, it helped me out."
						
						 Wildcard entrant Troy Brooks gave Garcia's run for the world title an added
						push forward when he battled and beat WCT number two surfer Taj Burrow in
						the bumpy lefts. Brooks seemed to frustrate Burrow with cunning use of wave
						priority as Burrow never found a proper rhythm. Brooks was given the
						wildcard spot due to the unfortunate illness of Ruseel Winter of Great
						Brittain.
						
						 It looks as if the swell is fading, and with only one full day of
						competition remaining, the waiting is on for a good solid clean swell.
						-Scott Bass 
						
 
 
 
  
						
						
						 COMPETITION POSTPONED DUE TO STRONG WINDS
  
						 
						  
  
						
						
	                    Tavarua Island, Fiji (Thursday, May 25, 2000). The Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000 was today postponed due
	                    to increased wind making a mess of the surf out of Cloudbreak. Four-to-six foot waves were still
	                    gracing the lineup, but with choppy conditions, contest organizers decided to pull the pin on round
	                    three, after originally placing it on hold in the morning.
  
						
						 
  
						
						 Reigning world champ Mark Occhilupo takes on six-times ASP world champion Kelly Slater in round three.
						
						 A decision will be made early tomorrow morning regarding the continuation of the event.
						
						 Upcoming Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000 Round Three Match-ups
			
						 Heat 1: M Lowe (Aus) vs. CJ Hobgood (Brz) 
						 Heat 2: F Padaratz (Brz) vs. R Williams (Haw) 
						 Heat 3: P Rosa (Brz) vs. T Curran (USA) 		
						 Heat 4: M Campbell (Aus) vs. T Prestage (Aus) 			
						 Heat 5: S Dorian (Haw) vs. R Lovett (Aus) 				
						 Heat 6: L Hitchings (Aus) vs. R Rocha (Brz) 					
						 Heat 7: D Hobgood (USA) vs. G Herdy (Brz) 
						 Heat 8: S Garcia (Haw) vs. T Carroll (Aus) 
						 Heat 9: T Burrow (Aus) vs. T Brooks (Aus) 			
						 Heat 10: B Emerton (Aus) vs. S Lopez (USA) 			
						 Heat 11: C Lopez (USA) vs. T Knox (USA) 			
						 Heat 12: S Beschen (USA) vs. R Machado (USA) 			
						 Heat 13: M Occhilupo (Aus) vs. K Slater (USA) 				
						 Heat 14: R D Hardman (Aus) vs. Y Sodre (Brz) 			
						 Heat 15: L Egan (Aus) vs. F Gouveia (Brz) 			
						 Heat 16: V Ribas (Brz) vs. S Powell (Aus) 
				 
						 Further Information Contact
						 
						 Jesse Faen, ASP Int'l. Media Director
						 jesse@aspworldtour.com
						 PH/Fax Answering Service: 1-212-699-3827 ext. 4282 
						
						 Or visit us live at: www.asplive.com http://www.asplive.com  or www.quiksilver.com or www.bluetorch.com http://www.bluetorch.com 
						
						
 
 
 
  
						
						
						TWO-TIME WORLD CHAMPION AND EVENT WILDCARD TOM CARROLL ON THE RAMPAGE
  
						
						 
  
						
						
						  Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000 (MAY 23-June 2) 
	                       Association of Surfing Professional (ASP) 2000 World Championship Tour (WCT)
	
	                       **Live Webcast on: www.quiksilver.com & www.bluetorch.com
	                       Tavarua Island, Fiji (Wednesday, May 24, 2000). Two-time world champion (1983 & '84) Tom
	                      Carroll (Aus) today caused a major upset when he defeated world number-12 Jake Paterson (Aus) in
	                      perfect 6-foot conditions at Cloudbreak in the Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000. The Quiksilver-sponsored
	                      surfer received a wildcard position into the event and has already proved himself a danger man on the
	                      famed left-hand reef break against the top 45-rated surfers in the world.
  
							
							 
  
							
	                       Carroll, 38, who retired from full-time competition back in 1994, stated yesterday he believes he could
	                      go all the way to win the Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000. Today's result against Paterson helping to solidify
	                      this, with the kind of surfing that helped to earn him admirers all over the globe. He'll now meet
	                      current rating's leader Sunny Garcia (Haw) in round three.
	
	                       "Jake's a really tough competitor so I figured out a game plan last night and just put it into action,"
	                      Carroll explained afterward. "I wasn't feeling great this morning in that heat, but I'm stoked to have
	                      gotten through. It's perfect out there."
	
	                       "I think these competitions always bring the best out of you and I think that's a great thing about
	                      competition," he said yesterday. "I think I can win the event. There's a big mountain there to climb,
	                      but there's a flag at the top and I can see myself up there. I've got to get through a lot of heats first, so
	                      we'll see how I go."
  
							
							
							 
  
	                       Paterson, 27, who's no slouch when it comes to surfing reef breaks as he proved winning the coveted
	                      Pipe Master's crown in 1998, had no luck today. He managed some explosive top-turns, but when
	                      surfing a hollow reef break like Cloudbreak, tubes are what the judges are looking for to reward the
	                      higher points.
	
	                       "I knew Tom would be getting barreled and I would have to try and find some," Paterson admitted.
	                      "It's difficult on your backhand, and I just didn't find them. I got smashed out there."
	
	                       Quiksilver's replacement surfer Troy Brooks (Aus) was another giant-killer today eliminating world
	                      number-10 Nathan Webster (Aus). Brooks was offered his position in the event when Great Britain's
	                      Russell Winter developed a blood infection last week in Tahiti and consequently had to pull out of
	                      Fijian event.
	
	                       "After I fell on my first wave I was a bit shaken up, but then I managed to get barreled and boost my
	                      confidence," explained the 21-year-old Brooks. "I took a few deep ones and then with 30-seconds to
	                      go I pulled into my second tube on my last ride and was pitched onto the reef and snapped my board
	                      in half."
	
	                       Brooks, who also competed in The Rip Curl Pro last month, went on to explain how he ended up in the
	                      event, and his thoughts moving into the next round against world number-two Taj Burrow (Aus).
	
	                       "I was coming over here anyway, hoping if there were any injuries I might get a spot. Then Russell
	                      Winter said he couldn't make it due to a blood infection, and I was the only person here and managed
	                      to get it Ð I'm rapt. 
	
	                       "At Bells (for The Rip Curl Pro) it was my home break so I had confidence from that, plus all of my
	                      friends were there to support me. This is my first time to Fiji and my first experience was seeing 10-12
	                      ft waves at Cloudbreak, which was a bit daunting, especially drawing the world champ in round one.
	                      It's tough, but there's no pressure on me to do well. I'm just going o cruise and hopefully get a few
	                      more good barrels."
	
	                       Current world champion and defending event winner Mark Occhilupo (Aus) eased past his Fijian
	                      opponent Matia Waqa (pronounced 'Wonga') in their heat, defeating the trials winner 18.15 to
	                      5.75-points. Still, Occy was all praise for the local surfer.
	
	                       "It was a bit like a free-surf out there then, he didn't really get anything," said Occhilupo. "I was
	                      watching video footage of Matia from the trials last night and he surfed really well. It's a shame more
	                      Fijians aren't able to compete in the event, but I guess that will happen. I take my hat off to him."
	
	                       Occhilupo will now face six-time world champion and last week's Gotcha Pro Tahiti winner Kelly
	                      Slater (USA) in the most eagerly anticipated match-up of the event so far.
	
	                       Damien Hobgood (USA) secured the highest total heat score of the day when he defeated South
	                      African Paul Canning 24.55 to 11.00-points. Hobgood's twin brother CJ, also surfed a fantastic heat
	                      over Hawaiian Kalani Robb (23.90 to 21.80-points).
	
	                       The single highest wave went to American Rob Machado in the last heat against Australian Glyndyn
	                      Ringrose. Machado needed a very good ride within the final minute, before slotting into a perfect barrel
	                      for a near-perfect score of 9.8 out-of-a possible 10-points.
	
	                       Official Results of the Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000 Round Two
	
	                       Heat 1: M Occhilupo (Aus) def. M Waqa (Fiji)
	                       Heat 2: T Carroll (Aus) def. J Paterson (Aus)
	                       Heat 3: T Brooks (Aus) def. N Webster (Aus)
	                       Heat 4: F Padaratz (Brz) def. R Dornelles (Brz)
	                       Heat 5: C Lopez (USA) def. T Martin (Aus)
	                       Heat 6: L Hitchings (Aus) def. N Padaratz (Brz)
	                       Heat 7: D Hardman (Aus) def. M Hoy (Aus)
	                       Heat 8: B Emerton (Aus) def. K Malloy (USA)
	                       Heat 9: D Hobgood (USA) def. P Canning (SAfr)
	                       Heat 10: F Gouveia (Brz) def. A Daltro (Brz)
	                       Heat 11: Y Sodre (Brz) def. D Wills (Aus)
	                       Heat 12: CJ Hobgood (USA) def. K Robb (Haw)
	                       Heat 13: S Powell (Aus) def. B Bourgeois (USA)
	                       Heat 14: R Lovett (Aus) def. G Emslie (SAfr) 
	                       Heat 15: R Rocha (Brz) def. S Sutton (Haw)
	                       Heat 16: R Machado (USA) def. G Ringrose (Aus)
	
	                       Further Information Contact
	
	                       Jesse Faen, ASP Int'l. Media Director
	                       jesse@aspworldtour.com
	                       PH/Fax Answering Service: 1-212-699-3827 ext. 4282
	
	                       Or visit us live at: www.asplive.com or www.quiksilver.com or www.bluetorch.com
	
	                       Complimentary digital images available to all newspapers, websites, and magazines. Contact Pierre
	                       Tostee / ASP World Tour Photographer:
	                       pierre@tostee.com 
					
						
 
 
 
  
						
						
						CURRENT WORLD CHAMPION AND DEFENDING EVENT CHAMPION MARK OCCHILUPO BEATEN IN FIRST ROUND
   
						
						 
						
						
						Tavarua Island, Fiji (Tuesday, May 23, 2000). Current world champion and defending event winner Mark Occhilupo (Aus) was 
						today beaten in his first round heat of the Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000. His opponent, Brazilian Guilherme Herdy, found a great 
						last ride to score 9.25 out-of-a possible 10-points and advanced straight into round three. 
						 Occhilupo now moves into the 'sudden-death' round two matches, but with conditions remaining in the 6-8 ft range, and sets 
						still reaching 10-foot, the 33-year-old was excited about the prospect of being able to surf Cloudbreak an extra time. 
						 "I didn't have a very good heat and I think I rode too long a board," he reasoned afterward. "I wanted to swap boards, 
						but I just got beaten on my last wave when Herdy got that good one. It's alright, I get to surf another heat at Cloudbreak, 
						so I'm excited about that. The waves this year have been awesome, so we're having a ball." 
						 Herdy was ecstatic about his win, however, explaining that despite many tries, he had never defeated Occhilupo previously. 
						 "I'm so stoked to win that heat 'cause I've had a few heats with Occy and never beaten him," he said. "I got the wave which was 
						a really good one, with two barrels, not too deep, but real fun. I'm so stoked (laughs)." 
						 Current ratings leader Sunny Garcia (Haw) furthered his world title campaign tod   .y winning his first round heat. 
						Having won the first two World Championship Tour (WCT) events of the year, Garcia bowed-out in the fourth round of last 
						week's Gotcha Pro Tahiti event, though still managed to extend his points lead. Despite almost drowning while warming up 
						for the Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000 yesterday, Garcia was in fine-form during his 30-minute bout against Australian Beau Emerton 
						and local Fijian Quiksilver Pro trials' winner Matia Wonga. 
						 "The waves yesterday were big and I almost drowned, so it was nice the waves came down a little," Garcia explained. 
						"I was lucky and found a couple of smaller waves which didn't barrel, but peeled. Beau gave me a good run, but fortunately 
						for me, he didn't get the waves." 
						 Wonga, 27, who was born near Fiji's main airport in Nadi, has lived on Tavarua Island since he was 16. Despite proclaiming his 
						pride at being able to represent his country in the event, he was disappointed the waves didn't offer better tubes for him to show-off 
						his local knowledge and barrel-riding skills. 
						 "It's pretty tough for me, it was a really hard heat," he stated. "I was really hoping the wind would be right today and there 
						would be more barrels, but today is sort of crumbling. Still, I'm so stoked to be representing my country and the Island." 
	
						 Six-time world champion and last week's Gotcha Pro Tahiti champion Kelly Slater (USA) picked up right where he left off in 
						Polynesia, defeating Australian Nathan Webster and Brazilian Yuri Sodre. Slater didn't have a great heat, but still managed to 
						find the points he needed. 
						 "I got cleaned up by the bigger sets a whole bunch out there," he said. "At the end I needed a 1.75 and I just snuck a wave with 
						like 20-30 seconds to go. 
						 "I feel pretty good and I know Cloudbreak pretty well," he added. "We'll just have to see what the swell does. Hopefully it will 
						be big like the other day. It was real exciting out here, so hopefully it gets good like that." 
						 Current world number two Taj Burrow, on the other hand, surfed a great heat against fellow Aussie and two-time world champion 
						Tom Carroll. Despite staying in the same room as Carroll, Burrow admitted how glad he was with his win, as Carroll had been 
						provoking him in the lead-up to their match. 
						 "I was feeling really confident and my board felt great," explained Burrow. "Tom and I are staying together, so every time 
						we've passed each other he's been like, 'Come on you little punk' (laughs). I'm glad I got him." 
						 Carroll, 38, who was actually told he'd won the heat as he paddled in, was still enthusiastic after realizing he placed second. 
						Having retired from the full-time competition years ago, Carroll happily accepted a wildcard position into the Quiksilver Pro Fiji, 
						and is confident of his chances going into the next round. 
						 "I got a bum steer, but I can take it," laughed Carroll about thinking he'd won. "It's fantastic surfing against these guys, 
						having the chance to surf against Taj, the world number two. We really went out there and gave it to each other. 
						 "I think these competitions always bring the best out of you and I think that's a great thing about competition," he continued. 
						"I think I can win the event. There's a big mountain there to climb, but there's a flag at the top and I can see myself up there. 
						I've got to get through a lot of heats first, so we'll see how I go." 
	
						 The day's highest total scorer turned out to be Ross Williams (22.65 out-of-a possible 30-points) in the very last heat against 
						fellow Hawaiian Shawn Sutton and Australian Luke Hitchings. While Hawaiian Kalani Robb took top honors in the highest single wave 
						category, posting the only perfect 10-point ride of the event, despite finishing second to Brazilian Peterson Rosa. 
						 Further Information Contact
						 
						 Jesse Faen, ASP Int'l. Media Director
						
						 www.jesse@aspworldtour.com
						
						 PH/Fax Answering Service: 1-212-699-3827 ext. 4282 
						 Or visit us live at: www.bluetorch.com   or www.asplive.com   or www.quiksilver.com 
						 Complimentary digital images available to all newspapers, websites, and magazines. Contact Pierre Tostee / ASP World Tour Photographer: 
						
						 pierre@tostee.com 
						
						
 
 
 
  
					
						
						SURFERS OFFICIALLY WELCOMED BY FIJIAN CHIEFS 
  
						 
						
						Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000 (MAY 23-June 2) 
						 Association of Surfing Professional (ASP) 
						
						 2000 World Championship Tour (WCT)
  
						
						 
						 Tavarua Island, Fiji (Monday, May 22, 2000). The top 45 rated surfers in the world plus three wildcard entrants 
						were officially welcomed today by Fijian chiefs on Tavarua Island, the setting for this year's Quiksilver Pro Fiji 2000. 
						With the event scheduled to begin tomorrow morning and perfect 8-10 ft conditions already present, this afternoon's 
						ceremony saw traditional Kava drinking, as well as a blessing offered to competitors.
  
						
						 
						 Ratu Kini Vosilagi, chief of all Western Fiji, gave the following address: 
						
						 "We welcome you with all our hearts and it's been an honour and a privilege 
						to be here with you and see what you are going to do." 
						 Six-time world champion and winner of the Gotcha Pro Tahiti last week, Kelly Slater (USA), heads the list of 
						invited wildcards into the event along with two-time world champion Tom Carroll (Aus). Local Fijian surfer Wonga 
						Tavarua, who received a wildcard spot last year, secured his place in the main event when he took out the Quiksilver 
						Pro trials a few days ago in excellent 6-8 ft conditions at Cloudbreak. 
						 Great Britain's Russell Winter is still hospitalized with blood poising which he developed while in Tahiti, 
						and has been replaced by Quiksilver-sponsored Troy Brooks (Aus). 
						 Tavarua Island and the Quiksilver Fiji Pro both remain unaffected by the political upheavals that have erupted 
						in the country's capital, Suva, in recent days.
  
						
						  
						 Official Quiksilver Pro Fiji First Round Match-ups
						 
						 Heat 1: S Dorian (Haw) vs. G Emslie (SAfr) vs. K Malloy (USA) 
						
						 Heat 2: C Lopez (USA) vs. S Powell (Aus) vs. T Prestage (Aus) 
						
						 Heat 3: L Egan (Aus) vs. CJ Hobgood (USA) vs. M Hoy (Aus) 
						
						 Heat 4: F Padaratz (Brz) vs. T Curran (USA) vs. N Padaratz (Brz) 
						
						 Heat 5: N Webster (Aus) vs. Y Sodre (Brz) vs. K Slater (USA) 
						
						 Heat 6: M Campbell (Aus) vs. A Daltro (Brz) vs. T Martin (Aus) 
						
						 Heat 7: J Paterson (Aus) vs. S Lopez (USA) vs. R Dornelles (Brz) 
						
						 Heat 8: S Garcia (Haw) vs. B Emerton (Aus) vs. W Tavarua (Fiji) 
						
						 Heat 9: T Burrow (Aus) vs. D Hobgood (USA) vs. T Carroll (Aus) 
						
						 Heat 10: M Occhilupo (Aus) vs. G Herdy (Brz) vs. T Brooks (Aus) 
						
						 Heat 11: L Hitchings (Aus) vs. S Sutton (Haw) vs. R Williams (Haw) 
						
						 Heat 12: S Beschen (USA) vs. G Ringrose (Aus) vs. P Canning (SAfr) 
						
						 Heat 13: V Ribas (Brz) vs. R Machado (USA) vs. F Gouveia (Brz) 
						
						 Heat 14: M Lowe (Aus) vs. R Rocha (Brz) vs. D Wills (Aus) 
						
						 Heat 15: P Rosa (Brz) vs. R Lovett (Aus) vs. K Robb (Haw) 
						
						 Heat 16: D Hardman (Aus) vs. B Bourgeois (USA) vs. T Knox (USA) 
						 Further Information Contact
						 
						 Jesse Faen, ASP Int'l. Media Director jesse@aspworldtour.com
						
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						 Or visit us live at:  www.asplive.com
						
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