After weather suspended competition for two days, the surfers were finally back out in the reef of Teahupo’o looking to rekindle some of the magic from Men’s Round 3.
Before the competition had to be postponed, the men were able to sneak in the third round of their competition on Monday, July 29, where they put on one of the most spectacular shows in competitive surfing history. This was in large due to the extreme conditions in Tahiti that day, serving up gnarly wipeouts and legendary rides.
On Thursday, Aug. 1, the waves were far from the stunning swells fans remembered watching Gabriel Medina soar into the air from. Instead of massive, curling barrels, competitors found themselves in waves averaging only six feet in height with choppy, ugly sections for the majority of the day. Still, they were able to wrap up both Round 3 of the women’s event, and the entirety of the quarterfinals in what still proved to be a wild day in the water.
Gabriel Medina continued his meteoric rise to Olympic fame, dominating his teammate on his way to the final day of competition. On the other hand, a legend was knocked off, as reigning gold medalist, Carissa Moore, saw her quest to go back-to-back come to a screeching halt in the quarterfinals.
Here’s everything you need to know from women’s Round 3 and the quarterfinals
WOMEN’S ROUND 3 RESULTS
MEN’S QUARTERFINALS RESULTS
WOMEN’S QUARTERFINALS RESULTS
Down goes Moore, two new champions will be crowned
After Tokyo’s men’s winner, Italo Ferreira, failed to qualify for the 2024 Games, Carissa Moore was left as the only surfing gold medalist who would be looking to defend her title in Tahiti. She had a stellar Round 1, and looked unimpeded by the delays as she took care of business in Round 3 early on Thursday, Aug. 1. She took down South Africa’s Sarah Baum in methodical fashion, controlling what ended up as a low scoring, ugly heat in methodical fashion. Moore jumped out to the only lead and never looked back, nonchalantly punching her ticket to the quarterfinals.
That is where she would run into trouble, as she faced off against France’s Johanne Defay in a quarterfinal match, who’s Olympic performance has been the definition of resilience. In Round 1, Defay took a brutal wipeout, smashing her head on the shallow reef resulting in her having to check in with the medical team as blood trickled down her face. In Round 2 however, Defay looked fearless and put on a terrific performance. Thursday morning, Defay delivered a clutch wave to take the lead in the final minutes against her French teammate, and Tahitian native, Vahine Fierro, and punch her ticket to a quarterfinal faceoff with Moore.
While Carissa Moore spent the opening phase of the matchup waiting for the ideal sets to roll in, Defay elected to make the most out of the waves in front of them. She carved out two solid scores for 10.34 points total before her opponent even had a keeper on the board. Moore ‘s patience soon ran out, as she tried to make a good run out of an uninspiring wave, but lost her footing on a turn and went tumbling over the falls. The American kept pushing, shredding a wave that never quite got set with a few turns to chip away at Defay’s lead. She was looking for a 6.85 to hop into first place, but Teahupo’o was not cooperating by sending no waves that could garner a score that high. In the final seconds her prayers were nearly answered, as she dropped deep into a barrel with time expiring. Moore battled her way towards daylight, but was dropped as the wave came crashing down on her, sinking her hopes of defending the gold medal. With Carissa Moore officially knocked out, surfing will now have two new gold medalists in its second iteration at the Games.
Medina continues flying high
The third quarterfinal on the men’s side was the one most that fans had circled, as the Brazilian storm was in full effect with Gabriel Medina and Joao Chianca going head-to-head. After his levitation act in Round 3 went viral, the gold medal favorite, Medina, wasted no time jumping out to a lead, hitting a tight tube ride for 6.67 points just a few minutes into the session. He kept on the attack, ducking under and disappearing for several seconds inside another closing barrel before bursting out of the foam ball for an 8.10, the top score of the day. While there was still 20 minutes left on the clock, Chianca really needed to up the intensity; his teammate had a daunting lead and was looking for a knockout blow. He did his best to make things interesting, but his efforts were no match for mesmerizing Medina, who floated his way through to the semifinals and continued his electric Olympic run.
SEE MORE: Gabriel Medina soars for the most iconic photo of the Games
Marks the last hope for the stars and stripes
After Round 1, the Americans looked primed to leave their mark on the surfing competition, as all five U.S. surfers won their opening heats and received first round byes into Round 3. The dream soon became a nightmare though, as John John Florence and Griffin Colapinto were downed by podium favorites in the third round earlier in the week. Then, after a multiday weather delay, the world No. 1, Caitlin Simmers, saw her Olympic run end in the same round at the hands of Brazil’s Tatiana Weston-Webb, as the two met for a rematch of their Round 1 heat, where Simmers emerged from the most talented group of the opening phase. Weston-Webb would enact her revenge in Round 3. She earned a pair of 6.17-point waves early on and Simmer was never able to threaten, as the Brazilian was dominant in the grudge match.
Caroline Marks had already won her heat at the time of Simmers’ defeat, taking down China’s Siqi Yang with ease in a fairly uneventful Round 3 duel. Then she took to the water for the first women’s quarterfinal, where she saw Australia’s Tyler Wright. Despite the close difference on the scoreboard, the heat was not as tight as it seemed. Marks scored two waves higher than either of Wright’s keepers, and once again claimed a methodical, business-like victory to secure her spot in the semifinals.
With Carissa Moore getting eliminated later on in the round, Marks now stands as the last hope for a U.S. team that was looking to sweep the podium on the women’s side of the competition. The reigning world champion needs two more wins to add a gold medal to her resume, cementing herself as a legendary surfing at just 22-years-old.
French civil war delivers the most thrilling heat of the day
The two Frenchman in the men’s event met for an inter-team quarterfinal and both had a patient approach, taking their time easing into the round in search of the small barrels Teahupo’o had in store. They served up a nice exchange a third of the way through the period, as Tahitian native, Kauli Vaast, showed his local knowledge when he found one of the rare hollow swells of the day. Joan Duru answered with one of his own, appearing to get swallowed up in the stomach of the wave before fighting his way out through the crash point to re-emerge in the whitewash. The two continued delivering blows to each other, ripping wave after wave until the local boy dropped in for a stunning ride. He stalled as deep in the barrel as he possible could to nab the first score in the excellent range that the quarterfinals had seen, an 8.00. Now Duru’s back was really against the wall, needing a 7.84 to regain the lead. When the dust finally settled, he was unable to find some late-round magic, and the Tahitian had defended his home break, stamping his spot into the semifinals.
Full Results
See below for the full results from the day’s action. Winners (marked in *bold) of the quarterfinals advance to the fnal day of competition, scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 3, at 1:00 p.m. ET.
Women’s Round 3
Heat 1
*Caroline Marks (USA) – 6.93 total – 4.33, 2.60
Siqi Yang (China) – 1.63 total – 1.00, 0.63
Heat 2
*Tyler Wright (AUS) – 11.10 total – 5.83, 5.27
Anat Lelior (ISR) – 7.74 total – 4.67, 3.07
Heat 3
Vahine Fierro (FRA) – 7.54 total – 3.77, 3.77
*Johanne Defay (FRA) – 9.00 total – 5.00, 4.00
Heat 4
*Carissa Moore (USA) – 8.16 total – 4.33, 3.83
Sarah Baum (RSA) – 3.87 total – 2.00, 1.87
Heat 5
*Nadia Erostarbe (ESP) – 8.34 total – 4.77, 3.57
Shino Matsuda (JPN) – 5.84 total – 3.17, 2.67
Heat 6
Caitlin Simmers (USA) – 1.93 total – 1.50, 0.43
*Tatiana Weston-Webb (BRA) – 12.34 total – 6.17, 6.17
Heat 7
*Luana Silva (BRA) – 6.77 total – 3.50, 3.27
Taina Hinckel (BRA) – 5.93 total – 3.00, 2.93
Heat 8
*Brisa Hennessy (CRC) – 12.34 total – 7.67, 4.67
Yolanda Hopkins (POR) – 9.90 total – 6.33, 3.57
Men’s Quarterfinals
Quarterfinal 1
Reo Inaba (JPN) – 10.16 total – 7.33, 2.83
*Alonso Correa (PER) – 10.50 total – 6.33, 4.17
Quarterfinal 2
*Kauli Vaast (FRA) – 15.33 total – 8.00, 7.33
Joan Duru (FRA) – 12.53 total – 7.50, 4.83
Quarterfinal 3
*Gabriel Medina (BRA) – 14.77 total – 8.10, 6.67
Joao Chianca (BRA) – 9.33 total – 4.83, 4.50
Quarterfinal 4
*Jack Robinson (AUS) – 15.33 total – 8.00, 7.33
Ethan Ewing (AUS) – 13.00 total – 8.33, 4.67
Women’s Quarterfinals
Quarterfinal 1
*Caroline Marks (USA) – 7.77 total – 4.00, 3.77
Tyler Wright (AUS) – 5.37 total – 3.50, 1.87
Quarterfinal 2
*Johanna Defay (FRA) – 10.34 total – 5.67, 4.67
Carissa Moore (USA) – 6.50 total – 3.50, 3.00
Quarterfinal 3
*Tatiana Weston-Webb (BRA) – 8.10 total – 4.50, 3.60
Nadia Erostarbe (ESP) – 6.34 total – 3.57, 2.77
Quarterfinal 4
*Brisa Hennessy (CRC) – 6.37 total – 3.20, 3.17
Luana Silva (BRA) – 5.47 total – 2.90, 2.57
What’s up next for surfing?
The final day of the surfing competition will take place on Saturday, Aug. 3, at 1:00 p.m. ET. It will kick off with the men’s and women’s semifinals, followed by the medal finals, and eventually the medal ceremonies.
For more information on how to watch the final day of competition, see the article below.
SEE MORE: How to watch surfing at the Paris Olympics: TV and stream schedule
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