Kika Veselko and Afonso Antunes win the Bom Petisco Peniche Pro in Supertubos
Francisca Veselko and Afonso Antunes won this Saturday at Bom Petisco Peniche Pro, with Supertubos Beach offering high-quality waves to close the MEO Surf 2021 League with a flourish.
The new generation of national surfing confirmed the great moment it is going through in a scenario of high quality, both in terms of the waves and the technical level presented in the water.
The final day of Bom Petisco Peniche Pro was marked by some morning wait, as the announced swell was late in arriving. After several calls, the race started at midday, with the men’s race taking place and, although conditions were difficult, the best national surfers started showing up early.
At this stage, two of the members of the new generation of national surfing stood out, repeating the performances of the opening day. Local youngster Matias Canhoto, aged 14, and wildcard João Maria Mendonça managed to advance for the first time to the quarter-finals man-on-man of the MEO Surf League.
The action continued with the men’s quarter-finals, with Eduardo Fernandes eliminating Miguel Blanco in the first heat. This was followed by the triumph of Afonso Antunes, who was always in the limelight since the beginning of the competition, against the young sensation Matias Canhoto. Afterwards, Joaquim Chaves, one of the surfers at the event, won a very balanced duel against Guilherme Ribeiro, while Gony Zubizarreta had to work hard to win João Maria Mendonça.
In the women’s semi-finals the level was also very high, with Gabriela Dinis and Mafalda Lopes standing out in the first heat. In the second heat the newly crowned national champion Kika Veselko showed the excellent moment she is going through, with a score of 14.75 points. The big surprise turned out to be the young Constância Simões, who secured the first career final. Given these scenarios, it was already guaranteed that there would be a debut to win stages on the female side.
This was followed by the men’s semi-finals, where the level increased as the waves of quality began to reach more and more Supertubos and Afonso Antunes beat Eduardo Fernandes to open the semi-finals. In the second semi-final there was an explosive final clash, with Joaquim Chaves taking the lead, but with Gony Zubizarreta turning the battery around in the final part, thanks to a score of 9.25 points.
It was at the best wave time of the day that the finals hit the water and the four female finalists offered one of the best finals in memory in the MEO Surf League. After several high marks and many changes in leadership, Kika Veselko stamped the first victory of her career in the MEO Surf League, which served as the icing on the cake for the national title she had already won. Despite the defeat, Mafalda Lopes (2nd), Gabriela Dinis (3rd) and Constância Simões (4th) gave an excellent replica and also contributed to a great show.
