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ON THE DEFENSE
Aaron Cormican secures third-consecutive East Coast Surfing Championships victory
By:
Darlene Conolly
Photos: All Photos: vbsurfphotos.com
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August 27, 2007
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Aaron Cormican has shown for the third time that he surfs Virginia Beach's First Street Jetty better than anyone.
Within the first few minutes of the final, Andre had already pulled in two scores solid enough to secure him with the lead, when the heat was put on hold and called out of the water by the local law enforcement. |
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In VB, the onset of a thunderstorm entails evacuating the beach to prevent someone from being struck because, apparently, it happens. After about 15 minutes, the finalists were allowed to reenter the water and the heat continued. With intent to defend his title, Cormican's approach was to sit on Andre in order to keep him at bay. Obviously, Andre wasn't enthused about having such a skillful competitor blocking him and according to Cormican, the young Brazilian began jabbing the nose of his board at him while they were both trying to position for a wave. In the end, the defending ECSC champ collected his wits, busted a few effortless-looking frontside airs and managed to take the lead, which he held all the way until the final buzzer. "I've been trying to pace myself all week and save a bit in the tank for the finals today," Cormican said. "There was a little bit of pressure I put on myself to perform after last season, but it didn't really hit me until the final today. I'm super stoked I came out with the win. It means a lot." "When the kid got a good score, I was sitting outside, waiting for a set and he came back out to sit on me. I just snapped and ended up paddle battling him all the way to the jetty."
-- Adam Virs on his encounter during the final with Jadson Andre
Fellow finalist and third place finisher, Adam Virs, immediately paddled over to Cormican to congratulate him. Upon returning to the beach, loud claps of thunder applauded Cormican on his third consecutive title. But the drama from the water wasn't over yet. Cormican walked up to Andre's coach to confront him about what had happened in the water. Motioning a reenactment of what the Brazilian had done, Cormican said, "He was jabbing his board at me--" The coach interrupted Cormican and yelled at him about poor sportsmanship. "I just wanted to apologize for sitting on him!" Cormican snapped back. From there, a heated argument ensued until people separated the two. Cormican then proceeded to the stage where he was given his $5,000 check for first place. Andre claimed his $2,500 award -- not so shabby for a 17-year-old. "The kid surfs good," said Virs about Andre. "But he was overdoing it in our heat. He was getting way too competitive, even though he was doing really good." Virs admittedly confessed to being over-aggressive in the final as well. "When the kid got a good score, I was sitting outside, waiting for a set and he came back out to sit on me," recalled the Ventura, California pro. "I just snapped and ended up paddle battling him all the way to the jetty." Andre was unavailable for comment on the situation following the final. But regardless of the complex issue, all the surfers were quick to credit Andre on his impressive surfing skills. After all, Cormican only defeated Andre by six-hundredths of a point, just barely defending his title. Being that he's only 17-year-old, he's just one of many strong, young competitors coming out of Brazil today. In fact, the Brazilians did a great job of making a solid presence at this year's ECSC. In the Grade-1 Pro Junior final, Miguel Pupo dominated a tough heat against big-time American juniors Sebastian Zietz, Blake Jones and Phillip Goold, respectively. "This has been my first time competing in Virginia Beach and I had a great result," Pupo said. "Coming to America and competing against their best juniors has been a really good experience. Hopefully I can carry this momentum throughout the rest of the year." 45TH ANNUAL ECSC - ASP WQS MEN'S 2-STAR RESULTS Final: 1 - Aaron Cormican (USA) 12.76 2 - Jadson Andre (BRA) 12.70 3 - Adam Virs (USA) 10.33 4 - Kellen Ellison (USA) 8.77 ASP GRADE-1 PRO JUNIOR RESULTS Final: 1 - Miguel Pupo (BRA) 16.00 2 - Sebastian Zietz (HAW) 14.77 3 - Blake Jones (USA) 12.44 4 - Phillip Goold (USA) 9.00 MORE SURF NEWS SURFLINE HOME PAGE |
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