Ethan Ewing on debut at the Quiksilver Pro . Photo : Woodham
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S urfing Queensland ’ s major event series kicked off with a bang for 2017 at the World Surf League sanctioned Flight Centre Burleigh Pro Qualifying Series ( QS ) 1000 . A stacked line-up including some of the world ’ s best surfers converged on the iconic Burleigh Heads point break for the four-day instalment that ran over the Australia Day long weekend .
Crowd favourite and long standing WSL tour surfer Bede Durbidge threw on a rash shirt for the first time since his injury at the 2015 Billabong Pipe Masters , which saw him on the sideline for all of 2016 . There was no sign of Bede ’ s injury while he cruised through his first heat back with his text book style of speed and flow , but was unluckily eliminated in round four by an in-form Kalani Ball , who went on to finish second in the event .
After three days of testing conditions , the waves finally turned on for finals day to provide entertainment for a packed hill of spectators . Indonesia ’ s Oney Anwar and Queensland ’ s
Isabella Nichols took home the trophies and valuable ratings points to kick start their 2017 QS series campaigns .
The high-calibre action continued through the warmer months with what has been labelled as one of the best Quiksilver and Roxy Pro events in a decade . Large southerly swells settled down just days prior to the event , pushing sand into place leaving well-groomed banks from behind the rock through to Greenmount . With near perfect conditions at the world renowned Super Bank , competition was all over on day 5 of the 12-day window with two Australians taking home the trophies , Owen Wright and Stephanie Gilmore .
The action will continue throughout the year with 30 events on the SQ calendar in 2017 . We look forward to seeing the state ’ s best surfers , stand-up paddleboarders , bodyboarders and longboarders battle it out up and down the Queensland Coast .
076 | Issue 16 // Winter 2017