Dhiraagu Signs On for 2009 SriLankan Airlines Pro

The Association of Surfing Professionals Australasia (ASP) and SriLankan Airlines are proud to announce that Dhiraagu, the number one telecom service provider in Maldives, has signed on as an official partner for the 2009 SriLankan Airlines Pro - Maldives.

"We are excited to once again partner with the premier telecom provider in the Maldives and the support provided by Dhiraagu is vital to the success of the SriLankan Airlines Pro - Maldives and ensures that people all around the world will be able to access up-to-date information and watch the event live," said ASP Australasia Tour Manager Dane Jordan.

Dhiraagu will provide all International roaming capabilities for the event along with vital internet connections to allow daily press and the live video webcast to be broadcast to the world.

"We are proud to be associated with such a magnificent sporting event and the live webcast showcases Dhiraagu's advanced telecommunication networks" said Mr John Murray, Head of Marketing for Dhiraagu.

"Not only does this high quality live webcast highlight the great surf in the Maldives it also presents the magnificent tropical location to hundreds of thousands of people around the world and promotes our island paradise to the world."

The SriLankan Airlines Pro is a 6 Star PRIME World Qualifying Series event and will run from 8th - 14th June, on Chaaya Island Dhonveli home to the world famous wave of Pasta Point.

The event will attract over 100 of the worlds best surfers including numerous former World Champions and current ASP World Junior Champion Kai Barger (HAW). Competitors will come from 5 different continents and over 15 different countries.

The 2009 SriLankan Airlines Pro is proudly sponsored by SriLankan Airlines, Maldives Tourism and Promotions, Atoll Travel, Dhiraagu, Atoll Adventures and ASP Australasia.

Source: surfline.com

Night flights to resume at Sri Lanka airport

Sri Lanka's only international airport is to resume around-the-clock operations after air raids by the Tamil Tiger rebels forced its closure at night, an official said on Tuesday.

The civil aviation authorities decided to resume night operations shortly following talks with the military and airport officials, a spokesperson for President Mahinda Rajapakse's office said.

"It was decided that we could get back to normal operations at the Bandaranaike International Airport in the next few days," the spokesperson said.

"Airlines will take a bit more time to adjust their flight schedules."

Military officials said the decision came after better radar was installed to track low-flying aircraft.
The airport shut for night flights on June 10 following at least four bombing sorties by low-flying light aircraft manned by Tamil Tigers.

The rebels, who are fighting for an independent homeland for the tropical island's minority ethnic Tamils, have bombed military and economic targets near the airport and in the north of the island in 2007.

The partial closure was prompted by fears that the rebels could use civilian aircraft as cover to enter the airport's air space. Airlines worried that they could get caught up in anti-aircraft fire directed against rebel planes.

The airport shares a runway with the Sri Lankan air force, which has previously been targeted by the rebels, causing some flights to be diverted to the southern Indian city of Chennai.

Airlines use Sri Lanka as a transit point for travel between Europe and the Far East. Passengers from the Maldives, a key tourist destination, regularly fly via Colombo, which is regarded as a regional hub.

The Tamil Tiger rebels have been fighting for a separate homeland since 1972. More than 60 000 people have been killed in the conflict.

Source: IOL

ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE

Used to be, the WQS tour was a complete slog, with four-man heats in crappy beachbreak after crappy beachbreak. Being able to grovel with the best of 'em while keeping an eye on the Dream Tour prize kept many surfers motivated, but things are changing.

The Sri Lanka Airlines Pro in the Maldives, now in its sixth year, is a prime example of the Dream Tour coming to the WQS. And while there was no Teahupoo-like barrels on offer this year, consistent shoulder to head-high swell graced Pasta Point for the week of the contest, allowing the world's best young surfers to cut loose over the rippable reefbreak.

Brazilian Heitor Alves took the win from Aussie Jarrad Howse in the last three minutes of the final with a solid 8.93, which comboed the Aussie.
"I'm so happy to win such a magnificent event here in the Maldives," Alves said. "All week we have surfed really good waves and today was perfect for me. I feel like Pasta Point really suits my style and after each heat I was very confident I could get a really good result here. It's great that a Brazilian finally wins here as well!"

This was Jarrad Howse's second finals performance in the past month and the South Australian born surfer who now resides in Sydney is well on track to requalify for the elite World Championship Tour in 2008.

"It's been another fantastic event here. Obviously I would have like to have won but in the final I never quite found the waves needed to score really big on. No excuses though, the winner has been the form surfer here and he will always be hard to beat in these type of conditions."

Equal third today went to Hawaiian surfer Dustin Barca and Brazil's Pablo Paulino, while South African surfer Jordy Smith's fifth placing puts him in first place on the ASP World Qualifying Series Ratings.

Source: Surfline

Robertson eliminated in Maldives

CAPE Bridgewater surfer Adam Robertson was eliminated from the SriLankan Airlines Pro in the Maldives yesterday, going down narrowly in his round three heat.

Robertson, 24, was well positioned mid-heat with a strong 6.8 opening ride but was unable to back it up with a reasonable second scoring ride and was eliminated from the event by Brazil's Ordelie Couthino.

Robertson had been in good form, defeating another Brazilian in highly-decorated veteran Fabio Gouveia to advance to round three.

``This is an amazing event,'' Robertson said.

``We score great waves every year here and it's a lot of fun to surf.''

The Maldives is regarded as having some of the warmest surfing waters in the world at about 29 degrees and produces excellent reef breaks.

It is a five-star prime rating ASP World Qualifying Tour event with $US100,000 prizemoney, attracting about 200 of the world's top surfers .

Source: The Standard

DeSouza out of race at Maldives SriLankan Airlines Pro

Young Brazilian surfer Adriano De Souza, the events number one seed, was a shock elimination on day five at the SriLankan Airlines Pro in the Maldives today. In the round of 24 surfers where three man heats are introduced with 1st and 2nd progressing while 3rd is eliminated, twenty year old De Souza only required a three point ride to progress.

The big problem for De Souza was a snapped fin on his board mid heat which restricted his performance severely. He was forced to waste time changing boards and was unable to get a wave on his new board before the heat finished. De Souza fell to Eneko Acero (Spain) and Jordy Smith (Zaf).

Angry after the heat De Souza said “It’s really disappointing when the equipment fails. It happened in my first heat here and then again today. I’ll be talking seriously with my board people to fix this because it’s a serious problem and I’m not happy at all.”

It wasn’t all bad for the strong Brazilian contingent here with Leonardo Neves and Heitor Alves both very impressive round five heat winners today. Alves likened the wave to his home breaks in Brazil and the super fast small framed goofy footer put in an awesome display to score the events highest single scoring ride with a 9.67 and the events highest heat tally of 18.17.

Surrounded by the happy Brazilian contingent after his heat Alves said, “Great heat for me, the winds picked up and I knew I could pull some good aerial moves if I focused on them and that’s exactly how it worked for me. I love the waves here and I really feel good at this stage of the event and will enjoy my next heats.”

One surfer surprising many here is Anthony Walsh (Australia/Lennox Head). Walsh recently made world headlines in surfing following exceptional performances in the worlds scariest wave in Tahiti and here in the Maldives, in probably some of the most fun waves in the world, Walsh is again winning and is through to the final 16 surfers.

“It’s nothing like Teahupoo but it’s such a rippable wave you have to surf well here. The hardest part here is the water temperature. It’s probably the warmest I’ve felt, around 30 degrees and that’s awesome for free surfing but tough when we compete!”

Other big performers today included Mikey Picon (France), Michel Bourez (Tahiti), Jarrod Howse (Aus), Dustin Barca (Haw), Kekoa Bacalso (Haw), Troy Brooks (Aus), Adrian Buchan (Aus) and Tiago Pires(Portugal), all through to the final 16 surfers. The great waves simply continue to roll through at Pasta Point and with predicted favorable winds tomorrow everyone is keen for an epic finish.

Source: GSN

Waves pump at Maldives Sri Lankan Airlines Pro Day 2

Life simply doesn’t get any better for the ASP World Qualifying Series with the Maldives producing a memorable day of great waves at Pasta Point. The surfers responded to the waves by throwing caution to the wind with big moves a plenty to entertain the spectators relaxing on deck chairs, sipping cocktails and simply enjoying the sport of surfing in this incredible environment.

Hawaiian Dustin Barca was the days standout. The confident Kauai surfer showed no signs of nerves as he lined up in the days heavyweight clash against Dane Reynolds (USA) and Hank Gaskell (Haw).

While Reynolds has been this years outstanding performer an the ASP Qualifying circuit with his new wave aerial attack it was Barca who took to the skies with a series of outstanding aerial moves combined with his committed powerful backhand attack to take the heat with the highest event wave score (9.0 out of 10) and highest wave tally of 17.86.

Fellow Hawaiian Hank Gaskell was also busy pulling big aerials in this heat and finished second to progress with Reynolds the big shock elimination. Reynolds was far from disgraced today, he also pulled some great aerial moves and scored well but didn't quite find the quality waves like Barca and Gaskell.

A focused Barca had little to say after the heat other than, “I don’t think about my competitors at all I simply go out to surf my best. No game plan before the heat, just surf the best waves the best I can.”

Australia’s Matt Wilkinson was another young emerging surfer eliminated today going down to Frederick Robin (France) and Antonio Borteletto (South Africa). Wilkinson was advancing for most of the heat and also scored well with some strong aerial moves couldn’t match the consistency of his competitors.

Adam Robertson signaled the strong Australian presence at this event with a convincing heat win as the waves peaked around mid day. Robertson defeated highly decorated veteran Fabio Gouveia (Bra) to advance to round three.

“ This is an amazing event, we score great waves every year here and it’s a lot of fun to surf – you need to pinch yourself that it’s not a holiday and stay focused on the task of winning heats - there’s a long way to go to get an acceptable result here for me.”

Other great performances today included Hodie Collazo from Spain who easily won his heat thanks to a decisive excellent 8.2 ride to defeat Parish Byrne from Australia. Fellow Spanish surfer Aritz Aranburu also posted an impressive win while Pablo Gutierrez completed a great day for Spain by progressing through his heat by stealing 2nd place on his final ride in the heat.

Conditions look likely to remain excellent for the entire event and round three top seeds will enter the water tomorrow including the super exciting talents of Jordy Smith (Zaf), Adriano De Souza (Bra) and Shaun Cansdell (Aus).

Source: Global Surfer News

Maldives ready to rumble with the SriLankan Airlines Pro

Two hundred of the World’s best surfers have arrived in the Maldives for the ASP 5 Star Prime Rated SriLankan Airlines Pro. Warming up is an understatement here today in waters around 28 degrees and with perfect 1.5m surf reeling off the amazing Pasta Point where the event is based.

The action today was extremely hot with surfers like Dane Reynolds (USA), Nathan Hedge (Aus), Simao Romao (Bra) and many pushing their surfing to the limits as they familiarized themselves to the wave. Hedge, fresh off a big win in Scotland is clearly focused on this event having arrived 5 days ago to fully prepare.

“ It was great to win in Scotland but that’s in the past, I’m here to win this event now – It’s a great place and the waves are super fun and I’m ready to go!” Go will be tomorrow with swells pumping through the Indian Ocean and an awesome forecast of surf ahead. Stand by for an explosive start to the Maldives presents SriLankan Airlines Pro tomorrow Sunday 3rd of June.

Watch it online via the link at www.aspworldtour.com The Maldives presents SriLankan Airlines Pro is made possible by SriLankan Airlines, Maldives Tourism, Dhonveli Beach & Spa Resort, Dhiraggu Internet and Atoll Travel

Source: Global Surf News

Big swells, perfect surf on tap for SriLankan Airlines Pro

The Indian Ocean is alive with a thumping swell about to fill the entire ocean with amazing surf and the big winner will be the SriLankan Airlines Pro in the Maldives.

Every year since the inaugural event began in 2001 the Maldives has delivered outstanding waves to the best of the ASP World Qualifying Series competitors but this years signs indicate we’re in for something really special with the event set to go on Sunday.

How special? Try 17 second period swells at 3 meters predicted for Pasta Point and some Indian Ocean perfection! ASP Australasian Tour Manager Glenn Best has seen every event in the Maldives and had this to say about the forecast -

“We are ready for something really amazing this year. Every year we’ve seen perfect waves up to 6 feet but this year looks like we’re going to top that in a big way” commented Best from Pasta Point at the beautiful Dhonveli Resort today.

“It’s perfect for us with a full scale live webcast now in preparation to go from day one! Vision, audio, live scores from paradise. The web team will be perfectly set up on the bar deck at Dhonveli Beach and Spa Resort overlooking Pasta Point. Viewers will feel like they are right there on the deck!”

Of the forecast Best added “Of course it’s just a forecast at this minute but we know how accurate wave forecasting science has become in the past few years, especially for open ocean island locations like the Maldives – Let’s bring on the biggest waves yet for this event!”

The Maldivian community has embraced their biggest sporting event and today the Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation, Dr. Mahamood Shougee said “ASP WQS 5 star prime rating surfing is a seal of approval by surfing professionals that the Maldives is a Quality surf Destination”.

In the next few days ASP Australasia will assist the rapidly developing Maldives Surfing Association (MSA) in the running of their coveted trials event which will award four surfers positions into the main WQS event field.

16 local Maldivian surfers will contest the MSA Trials in Male, the beautiful capital of the Maldives, the local beach provides a thumping hollow beach break with multiple ‘A’ frame peaks and the local guys such as Hussein Areef, Mohamed Azly, Mohammed Areef, Ismail Miglal and Moahmed ‘Pele’ Fayaz will all be looking to cement a spot in the WQS event.

The growth of the sport has been amazing in the Maldives since the event began with the locals surfing ability escalating largely due to their involvement with this event since it’s inception and in years to come expect to see some Maldivians competing full time on the WQS!

Stand by for an explosive start to the Maldives presents SriLankan Airlines Pro on Sunday 3rd of June. The Maldives presents SriLankan Airlines Pro is made possible by SriLankan Airlines, Maldives Tourism, Dhonveli Beach & Spa Resort, Dhiraggu Internet and Atoll Travel. The event begins on June 3rd and runs through to June 9.

Source: Global Surf News