Algarve surfer Yolanda Hopkins won, this Saturday, the triumph in the Rip Curl Pro Anglet, QS3000, which took place in France.
This was the second victory of the 2022/23 season in the European QS for the Portuguese surfer, after four stages. A triumph that puts Yolanda even more leader of the European ranking and with qualification for the Challenger Series 2023 practically stamped.
After winning two weeks ago in Newquay, UK, Yolanda appeared again in great form on the waves of southwestern France, being the only Portuguese to guarantee her presence in the semi-finals and, consequently, on the final day in Anglet. And in the decisive heats, the Algarve surfer used all her experience to seal the triumph.
With the sea not making life easier for the surfers on this final day, Yolanda Hopkins always knew how to be regular and competent in the heats she did. In the semi-finals she added 10,96 points which were enough to beat the 8,33 points of French Tessa Thyssen.
Then, in another heat dominated from start to finish, Yolanda scored 11,17 against 9,24 for Basque Ariane Ochoa, current vice-leader of the rankings, in the final.
At the age of 24, Yolanda Hopkins thus stands out in the lead of the women's ranking, as the great dominator of the European QS circuit 2022/23. It was the second victory of the season and the third of her career at QS level, and after six stages played in the current calendar year she has never been below 5th place in European terms. After this triumph, Yolanda reached 5150 points, 1660(!) more than Ochoa.
A victory that confirms the great moment of national female surfing. This is because it is the ninth consecutive victory for Portuguese surfers on the European QS circuit. Something that has been happening since the beginning of 2021 and the return of international surfing competitions after the pandemic.
In addition to Yolanda Hopkins' two triumphs, Teresa Bonvalot won five races, Carolina Mendes triumphed in one and Kika Veselko, who won her debut last week in Lacanau, won another.
In Anglet, Mafalda Lopes and Carolina Mendes finished in 5th place, while Teresa Bonvalot and Kika Veselko finished in 9th place and Gabriela Dinis in 13th.
After this stage, Portugal has six surfers in the top 20 of the European female ranking, since, in addition to the outstanding leader Yolanda Hopkins, it also has the 3rd place of Kika Veselko, the 5th of Carolina Mendes and the 8th. by Mafalda Lopes. Closing the top 20 and further away from the qualifying accounts comes junior Gabriela Dinis.
In 12th place in the ranking is the European champion in title Teresa Bonvalot, who, despite being out of the qualifying places, is “shielded” by the fact that she is in a good position in the ranking of the Challenger Series 2022 to become the first Portuguese in history to qualify for the World Surf League World Surfing Tour.
Currently in 8th place in a ranking that determines the top 5 for the 2023 World Tour, even if Teresa doesn't get that dreamed up qualification for the world elite, she should get an automatic spot for the Challenger Series 2023, as she is the best European Championship and one of the best in this season's ranking.
On the men's side, where the winner was Frenchman Gatien Delahaye, Frederico Morais finished as the best Portuguese in the Pro Anglet, getting the 9th final place, while junior Matias Canhoto, only 14 years old, was the great sensation of the competition. French, after having managed to stay in 13th place.
In terms of ranking, Guilherme Ribeiro, who last week won the Lacanau Pro, emerges as the best Portuguese, occupying the 11th place. Despite being outside the qualifying cut for the 2023 Challenger Series, the current leader of the national rankings is well into the fight for qualification. Further afield, in 23rd place, appears Frederico Morais. Afonso Antunes is 27th, Francisco Almeida 29th and Matias Canhoto 31st.
The action at the European QS 2022/23 continues in October, with the Azores hosting the best European surfers from the 18th to the 23rd of that month. Being the second QS3000 stage of the season, after Anglet's, the Areis de Santa Bárbara stage will be decisive for the rankings, with the men's fleet needing to recover points, while the women's fleet will be able to stamp a historic tenth consecutive victory in this circuit.
The Azorean event will be the last of the calendar year in the European QS, but the season will continue in the first half of 2022, where the final championships will take place that will define the surfers qualified for the 2023 Challenger Series. two in Portugal, one in Costa de Caparica and another exclusively male in Santa Cruz.
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