Martim Nunes and Maria Salgado triumph at Projunior Porto&Matosinhos

• They defeated Francisco Mittermayer and Erica Máximo in the final;
• The circuit goes to São Jacinto, in Aveiro, at the beginning of July;

Martim Nunes and Maria Salgado won this Sunday, at Praia de Leça da Palmeira, the victory in Projunior Porto&Matosinhos, the inaugural stage of the returned Junior Tour circuit, which brings together the best Portuguese junior surfers in the fight for the titles of national champions Under-20.

Nunes, 18 years old, and Salgado, only 15 years old, stamped the triumph in the stage that marked the return of this circuit, after an interregnum of 7 years.

After a Saturday marked by some fog, which limited the course of the action, this Sunday Leça da Palmeira Beach provided good conditions for the best national juniors to put on a show, in a competition that was part of the Porto&Matosinhos Wave Series 2022. A final day that was marked by some surprises, with emphasis on the early eliminations of the seeds of the men’s and women’s competition, Joaquim Chaves, who had made the best performances of the opening day, and Gabriela Dinis.

On the men’s side, after having won the two heats played the day before, Martim Nunes came back at full throttle on the second day of action in Leça da Palmeira, winning another heat in round 3 and also in round 4. In the semi-finals, man-on-man scored 14.50 points to overcome João Roque Pinho, joining Francisco Mittermayer in the final, who won a dramatic duel against Rodrigo Chaves, decided by just 0.50 points.

Supported by five consecutive triumphs, the young surfer from Praia Grande came back strong and scored a 7-point wave that launched him into the dispute. In the final part, he added a score of 6.55 points, to add up to 13.55 points, against just 10.15 for Mittermayer, currently 17th in the MEO Surf League ranking. Martim thus managed to add a 100% victorious record to the victory in the stage, also guaranteeing the leadership of the Junior Tour ranking.

“It was a very good championship, with good waves during both days”, began by stressing Martim Nunes. “I think everyone was in the mood to surf and all the heats had a high level. I felt good throughout the championship, I was doing good heats, which helped me to gain rhythm and confidence. It was a very good result to bring motivation to the European Pro Junior, which starts next week in Morocco. I had never competed in this category because it has been seven years since this circuit went to the water. So it was very good to win a stage. I hope to continue at this pace in the next stages of the Junior Tour, doing good heats and the rest will come in addition”, he shot.

On the female side, the fog only allowed heat to be held the day before. Interestingly, Maria Salgado won the dispute, launching the young surfer from Santa Cruz to a great performance in the waves of Porto, who, like Martim Nunes, won all the heats she entered. After overcoming round 2, a solid triumph against Benedita Teixeira in the woman-on-woman semi-finals followed, with Erica Máximo winning the other semi-final against Constância Simões.

Despite Erica Máximo, current number 9 in the MEO Surf League women’s ranking, reaching the final in a great moment, Maria Salgado managed to better manage the heat and seal one of the most important triumphs of her career. The young surfer from the West scored 12.60 points, surpassing her opponent’s 9.50, to take the lead in the Junior Tour’s female ranking.

“The championship went very well for me”, Maria Salgado began saying. “I managed to win every heat I entered and I am very happy to have won the championship. Regarding this circuit, I hope to continue to pass heats and try to fight for the title. My goal in surfing is to evolve and try to have as much fun as possible in the championships. In the short term, I would also like to be able to represent the National Team at the upcoming Junior World Cup”, she admitted.

Martim Nunes and Maria Salgado go to the next stage in the leadership of the ranking and are very well launched in the fight for the U-20 national titles. After Porto and Matosinhos, the Junior Tour continues its journey to the waves of São Jacinto, in Aveiro, where the second and penultimate stage of the circuit takes place, on the 2nd and 3rd of July. The third and decisive stage will take place in November, at a date and place yet to be defined.

Projunior Porto&Matosinhos results:
Men’s final: Martim Nunes 13.55 x Francisco Mittermayer 10.15
Women’s Final: Maria Salgado 12.60 x Erica Maximum 9.50
Best men’s wave: Joaquim Chaves, 9.50 points in Round 1
Best female wave: Maria Salgado, 8.75 points in the semi-finals
Best male score: Joaquim Chaves, 17 points in Round 1
Best female score: Maria Salgado, 13.75 points in the semi-finals

The first stage of the Junior Tour – Projunior Porto&Matosinhos was part of the Porto&Matosinhos Wave Series 2022, an initiative organized by Onda Pura Surf Center, with the collaboration of the municipal councils of Porto and Matosinhos, as well as the Parish Council of Matosinhos and Leça da Palmeira, with the technical support of the National Association of Surfers and the Portuguese Surfing Federation. The event also has the support of Turismo do Porto and Northern Portugal, Goldenergy, 58 Surf, Ramirez, Vitalis, Unilabs, Hospital de Santa Maria – Porto, Edifício Transparente and MEO.

More information at www.ansurfistas.com

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