FIRST WOMAN TO COMPETE IN THE RIP CURL CUP :: Hawaiian charger Bethany Hamilton has been awarded a wildcard spot in the 2012 Rip Curl Cup Padang Padang Invitational. Hamilton, 22, from Kauai, Hawaii, will be the first-ever woman surfer to compete in the Rip Curl Cup (July 15 – August 26). [July 24, 2012: Press Release]
EVENT DETAILS:
July 15 – Aug 26, 2012 • Padang Padang, Bali, Indonesia • Rip Curl Cup Padang Padang
Watch this Video of Bethany talking about the contest & see footage of her surfing this barreling wave!
EVENT RECAP & RESULTS
Rip Curl, my surf clothing sponsor since I was ten years old, gave me a wild card into the 2012 Rip Curl Cup at Padang Padang–a beautiful wave with a great barrel. It was an honor! The Rip Curl Cup is a specialty event that you have to be invited to – it is all about getting barreled. I was the only female in the event, which consisted of 16 international surfers and 16 local surfers! The contest has over a month to wait for a good swell to hold the event in. So it makes for a great contest! Being the only girl in the event and the first girl ever to compete in it, I was very nervous yet at the same time kinda relaxed, just hoping to get some good barrels! Plus I got to hang in Bali and surf while waiting for the Rip Curl Cup to run. I had many good days in the “office!”
After two weeks of waiting for a decent swell to hold the competition, a good swell showed up. My goal going into the contest was to get a good barrel and maybe make a heat! I surfed in round one, heat four with Mustofa Jeksen, I Wayan Suyadnya, & Ryan Hipwood. I got a good barrel–best wave of the heat–and I ended up winning the heat! It felt amazing to reach my goal (which honestly I wasn’t too confident that I would, surfing against pro guys)!
Well, in the next heat – the QUARTER FINALS!! – I had Jamie O’Brien (one of the best barrel riders in the world and an incredible surfer), Ry Craike (he’s crazy good), and Bobby Hansen. Intimidation to the max. I did not advance that heat. But it was fun none-the-less! Stoked overall with my performance! Thank you Rip Curl Asia for putting on a great event and for having me a part of it!
July 25-August 1, 2012 • Bikini.com, Surfline.com, Transworld Surf, and Transworld Business and others announce Bethany’s wildcard invitation to the Rip Curl Cup Padang Padang!
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