As the Four Seasons Maldives Surfing Champions Trophy (SCT) readies to launch for the eleventh time, event organisers are thrilled to add three final names to this year’s star-studded lineup.
Joining Brazilian world champion Adriano de Souza and Hawaiian super siblings Mason and Coco Ho at Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa will be 2012 World Champion Joel Parkinson, Californian style master, Conner Coffin, and local wildcard and 2021 Maldives national champion Hood “Hoobs” Ahmed.
Parkinson first competed in the Surfing Champions Trophy in 2019 – where he reached the Grand Final head-to-head against Josh Kerr – and can’t wait to bring his family back to create more memories at Four Seasons Resort Kuda Huraa in 2023.
“My last time in the Surfing Champions Trophy was so much fun,” comments Parko. The surfing was amazing and I loved competing on all the different kinds of boards. I only hope I can drag my family away from all of the activities at Kuda Huraa for long enough to watch my heats!”
“Reconnecting with Adriano will be awesome, we spent so much time competing against each other at the highest level that I’m really looking forward to hanging out in a more relaxed setting, in paradise with our families. I’ve always loved Mason and Coco’s surfing and seeing them on single and twin fins is going to be insane. I can’t wait to come up against Conner again too. He’s a bit younger than me but we’ve been friends for a long time and now that we’re off tour we haven’t seen each other as much, so to have him in a heat at pumping Sultans will be very, very fun.”
“Parko is the man!” says 30-year-old natural footer Coffin, who competed on the championship tour for six years and finished fourth in the world in 2021. “His style is amazing, and even though I grew up in Santa Barbara, where Tom Curren is king, I always watched Joel’s surfing closely too. The last time we surfed against each other was at J-Bay the year that Joel retired, so it will be really fun to have some heats together again.”
“I travelled with Mason for years” says Coffin, “so to come up against him on a single fin would be insane! Obviously Coco rips too, and Adriano is a world champion so his record speaks for itself. He’s such a nice guy out of the water and I can’t wait to hang, it might be a different story in a jersey though! I’ve always seen the Four Seasons Maldives Surfing Champions Trophy and thought it looked like a dream to compete in so I’m super appreciative that I’ve been invited. I can’t wait to soak up all the sights and see what the level of local surfing is like too.”
On that front, the event will also showcase the incredible wave-riding talents of local wildcard, Hood “Hoobs” Ahmed, in his first appearance at the Surfing Champions Trophy. “I’m a very happy, proud Maldivian,” says the 32-year-old goofyfooter and surf guide, who was the Maldivian national champion in 2021. “To compete in the Surfing Champions Trophy is a dream, one I never really thought would come true. Having the chance to represent my country in the biggest event in the Maldives is a huge honour for me and my family.”
“I’m really looking forward to surfing with Joel Parkinson, who has always been a favourite, as well as Mason Ho, whose surfing I find very inspiring. My good friend Hussain “Iboo” Areef competed last year and told me it was one of the best experiences of his life so I’m very excited to be involved, and can’t wait to welcome everyone to the Maldives in August!”
This year the Four Seasons Maldives Surfing Champions Trophy will run from 21-28 August at the surfer’s paradise of Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Kuda Huraa. Surfers will square off in three divisions, riding single, twin and (thruster) tri fin surfboards before the two top ranked competitors surf off to hoist the Surfing Champions Trophy. Heat times are staggered by age and though vibes will be high at all times, with $25,000 in prize money up for grabs the surfers will be going hard in their heats from start to finish. Stay tuned for more updates from paradise as the excitement levels build leading into August.
To catch all the exhilarating action, surf fans can book the Surf & Spa package, available for the entire month of August.
The offer includes a session for two with expert Tropicsurf coaches, a two-for-one offer at The Island Spa, 15 percent off non-suite rooms, in-villa welcome refreshments, round-trip airport transfers, and daily buffet breakfast at Café Huraa. To reserve your stay in this surfer’s paradise, book online, email: [email protected] or call the central reservations department of Four Seasons Resorts Maldives at tel: (960) 66 00 888.
The final curtain fell on this year’s Boardmasters as the one and only Florence + The Machine graced the main stage for a dazzling, ethereal headline performance. One of Boardmasters most unforgettable sets of all time brought the festival to a truly sensational close. Boardmasters’ home of Watergate Bay welcomed tens of thousands of adoring fans who gathered for a line up comprising internationally-acclaimed artists, and so much more to be discovered beyond the music.
Florence + The Machine’s headline set was nothing short of euphoric. Florence graced the stage, seemingly floating as she sang along with the crowd to hits including You’ve Got The Love, Dog Days Are Over and Shake It Out. Building up anticipation before the headline act was Irish singer-songwriter Dermot Kennedy who belted out his catalogue of powerful, emotive tracks which have catapulted him to #1 album territory. Tion Wayne, Sofi Tukker, Caity Baiser (who also surprised festival goers with a surprise set at The Cove), and Black Honey amongst others made sure the main stage kept the vibes riding high from start to finish.
Land Of Saints enticed fans with a huge line up including Jockstrap, Squid, Connie Constance, Shygirl, rounded off into the evening and early hours with Four Tet and Joy (Anonymous). Unleashed was the home of high octane dance, d’n’b and more with a stellar mix of acts from Bru-C and Tom Zanetti, to Riton and Charlie Hedges to name a few. Fans kept their dancing shoes on at The Point with DJs including Charlie Boon, Sally C and Sarah Story spinning lively tracks, as well as Paul Woolford going b2b with Danny Howard to make sure the bangers continued into the early hours. The View, looking out onto the sea, played out an eclectic mix of new music, rising stars and much more with VC Pines, Caravaña Sun, Aine Deane and tonnes more keeping fans entertained.
Plus, there was drum’n’bass playing out at The Dockyard and DB90 and late night revelry at The Submarine and 80s cheese and light up dance floors at the Transatlantic Lounge. The Green Team continued on their daily beach cleans, doing their bit alongside festival goers to make strong efforts towards its continued sustainability goals. Beach cleans took place at Porth Beach, Watergate Bay, Great Western and Fistral Beach.
The Qualifying Series (QS) 1,000 Animal Pro and Longboard Qualifying Series (LQS) 1,000 Reef Longboard Pro crowned their 2023 winners in three-to-five foot surf at Fistral beach to wrap the surfing events at Boardmasters. In a battle of epic proportions with British rising star Alys Barton (GBR), the reigning European Champion Yolanda Hopkins (POR) managed to fend off her opponent to claim the first-ever three-peat at the Animal Pro. Kai Odriozola (ESP) and Ido Arkin (ISR) fought in a wave-starved heat and tried to milk every opportunity. Eventually it was the basque surfer Odriozola who found the best scoring opportunity in the tricky lineup. The young San Sebastian surfer appeared in his second Final of a QS and this time managed to convert for a first win on the professional tour at only 17 years old.
The former runner-up in the world, Alice Lemoigne (FRA) continued to demonstrate her superiority in the Cornish waters as she absolutely dominated the Reef Longboard Pro women’s Final. The Reunion Island native became the first surfer to claim five victories at Boardmasters, but only briefly enjoyed the standalone record as she was joined in the last heat of the day by Edouard Delpero who equaled the feat. French surfer from Biarritz, Edouard Delpero (FRA) also managed to claim a fifth win on the Cornish coast, defeating compatriot Martin Coret (REU) as well as Jon Garmendia (ESP) and Ignacio Pignataro (URY) in the event’s Final. In a friendly battle with his own brother for the most wins on tour, Edouard went one better than Antoine, both surfers having won four times before at Fistral. This marks Edouard’s 12th professional win to date.
Yesterday, all camping festival goers are heading home and the post-event clean up operation will begin right away. Boardmasters encourages all camping attendees to take home their tents and Leave Only Footprints. Boardmasters’ team of volunteers, supervisors, charity partners and in-house team will be on site to clear the site once festival goers have left. The clean up operation is a robust and thorough process, with the main aim to leave Boardmasters’ beautiful Newquay home at Watergate Bay in pristine condition. Campsites nearest to Watergate Bay road will be prioritised first. The fields will be clear by the end of the week. Help the Homeless will be salvaging any quality tents that are left behind to help those in need.
It’s certainly been a Boardmasters for the ages. Boardmasters will be back next year, with details to be announced very soon. For more information and to sign up for the 2024 presale for exclusive 24 hour ticket access, visit boardmasters.com.
Our favourite time year when we celebrate Britains and Irelands best photographers and their photos. You don’t have to be pro, you don’t have to have the best gear, you just have to have an eye for the moment. Every one is in with a chance and we will be running a full a gallery of the top contenders next issue. Lineups, action, portraits, show us what you got! Ever wanted your shots in print? Send them in! Know someone has super talented but a bit shy? Send their shots in! The closing date for entry is August 21st, 2023.
The Carve editorial team will select top 10-15 photos and a final winner. To Enter: Send a maximum of 5 low res photos to [email protected]
The finalists will have their shots printed in Carve and we will be picking the best photos to be printed in a full feature.
Have your cameras/shots at the ready, we can’t wait to see your creative work.
Team Carve.
The deal:
Anyone can enter a shot as long as:
You’re a British or Irish photographer, although the location of photos does not matter.
You can supply us with your best action or lifestyle shots which have been taken in the last year and are unpublished.
Finalists will need to send original files, provide proof of ownership and date taken using the RAW file information. Uncropped full frame files with your colour corrected/edited version.
The photos will need to be printed A3 with no loss of quality, so please do not crop the image.
The closing date for entry is August 21st, 2023. The Carve editorial team will select top 10-15 photos and a final winner.
The prize bundle: dryrobe advance of the winner’s choice worth £160 and a dry robe Compression Backpack worth £95, choice of: Rip Curl Journey Fleece Buclet Hat £34.99, Rip Curl Anti Series Journey Rip Crew £119.99, Rip Curl Wetty Crew Sock £19.99, Rip Curl Anti series shore break jacket £219.99, Rip Curl Cord surf bucket hat £34.99, Rip Curl icons of surf sock £19.99, three limited edition Carve X Town and Country Car seat covers for the runners up. Town & Country Covers townandcountrycovers.com+ more to come.
T+C’s Got to run these because law. – No cash alternatives to the prize. By entering you agree to allow Carve (Orca Publications) using your photo in the mag and online (You will be credited or tagged when we do). No one else will use your photo. We will contact those in the final selection directly. We can’t answer all messages or emails so bear with us.
Filmed on a single day during the recent Summer swell madness, ‘Opener’ features some of the North Coast elite getting their El Nino reps in. Featuring Reubyn & Joss Ash, Miles Lee-Hargreaves & Barnaby Cox mixing it up with local regulars.
Sunday the 13th of August 2023 (yesterday), another crazy day of incredible tubes in Hossegor in the month of August ! Not the usual conditions for the middle of summer season, perfect tubes in board shorts, regrets to those who chose to travel to the other side of the world to score. Charly Quivront, Marco Mignot, Gatien Delahaye and Didier Piter were on the spot”.
The Qualifying Series (QS) 1,000 Animal Pro and Longboard Qualifying Series (LQS) 1,000 Reef Longboard Pro crowned their 2023 winners in three-to-five foot surf at Fistral beach to wrap the surfing events at Boardmasters.
The final day of competition resumed around lunchtime and ran through the four categories’ Semifinals on the incoming tide with continued solid conditions and a lot of energy in the lineup. By the time the Finals came around, the tide had come right up into the heart of Fistral giving the crowds an excellent point of view from the Boardmasters beach bar to witness all the action.
Hopkins Continues to Write Boardmasters’ History, Claims First-Ever Three-Peat
In a battle of epic proportions with British rising star Alys Barton (GBR), the reigning European Champion Yolanda Hopkins (POR) managed to fend off her opponent to claim the first-ever three-peat at the Animal Pro today. Although the Portuguese started the Final with a dominant combination of two waves, Barton came back in the fight with an excellent 8.83 (out of a possible 10), the highest single score of the entire event, but unfortunately could not find a back-up score and had to settle for second.
Hopkins adds a third consecutive win at Fistral after 2019 and 2022, her career-fifth win on the QS and takes an early lead in the race for the 2023-2024 European title and qualification for the Challenger Series (CS).
“I love coming here to Fistral, it’s always such a good vibe!” Hopkins said. “It’s lovely to do a hat trick! I loved the waves we got and I’m stoked I got some good scores and some good poundings. I’ve got family here that I don’t visit often so I look forward to spending time with loved ones and taking a good rest now.”
Odriozola Claims Career-First QS Win at Boardmasters
In a somewhat slow Final, Kai Odriozola (ESP) and Ido Arkin (ISR) fought in a wave-starved heat and tried to milk every opportunity. Both surfers were unsuccessful on aerial maneuvers on their first few attempts, and eventually it was the basque surfer Odriozola who found the best scoring opportunity in the tricky lineup.
The young San Sebastian surfer appeared in his second Final of a QS and this time managed to convert for a first win on the professional tour at only 17 years old.
“I’m super stoked to take my first win on the QS today,” Odriozola stated. “We’ve had a little bit of everything this week and it was good to compete in challenging conditions. I’m not looking too far ahead, I haven’t set crazy goals for this season so I’m just going to try to keep my momentum and enjoy the next few events. My brother and I almost made the Final together so hopefully we get to do that in another event!”
Lemoigne Continues to Dominate at Fistral, Adds Fifth Boardmasters Win
The former runner-up in the world, Alice Lemoigne (FRA) continued to demonstrate her superiority in the Cornish waters as she absolutely dominated the Reef Longboard Pro women’s Final with an excellent 8.67 amongst her counting scores. Her opponents Zoe Grospiron (FRA), Emily Currie (GBR) and Carlota Jauregui (ESP) were never really in a position to threaten the French for the win and Lemoigne added another impressive line to her resume.
The Reunion Island native became the first surfer to claim five victories at Boardmasters, but only briefly enjoyed the standalone record as she was joined in the last heat of the day by Edouard Delpero who equaled the feat. This result marks Lemoigne’s 10th victory on the professional longboard tours.
“We didn’t really know what to expect with this forecast but it turns out we had really enjoyable conditions so I’m stoked to get the win today,” Lemoigne said. “I love coming back here every year and it feels like Fistral is returning the love to me so I’m very happy. The longboard tour is really cool at the moment and I’m super stoked to be a part of it. I hope I can qualify for the finals at Malibu again this year.”
Delpero Atop Podium at Boardmasters Once More, Grabs Own Fifth Win
The French surfer from Biarritz, Edouard Delpero (FRA) also managed to claim a fifth win on the Cornish coast, defeating compatriot Martin Coret (REU) as well as Jon Garmendia (ESP) and Ignacio Pignataro (URY) in the event’s Final.
In a friendly battle with his own brother for the most wins on tour, Edouard went one better than Antoine, both surfers having won four times before today at Fistral. This marks Edouard’s 12th professional win to date.
“I’m beyond just happy with this win and it means a lot to me,” an emotional Delpero stated. “I have faced many challenges in the last couple of years with injuries, travel issues and some difficult results so I’m stoked to get the win today and it gives me a good confidence boost ahead of the next event at Bells Beach coming up.”
Highest wave score Alys Barton 8.83
Mystic Junior Open
Under 18 men
1. Jay Phipps
2. Elliot Barton
3. Elie Perrin Davies
4 Craig McLachlan
Under 18 women
1 Belle Betteridge
2. Georgie May Hicks
3. Lola Mitchell
4. Haryln Sykes
REEF LONGBOARD PRO MEN’S FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Edouard Delpero (FRA) 15.84
2 – Martin Coret (REU) 13.76
3 – Jon Garmendia Gonzalez (EUK) 12.13
4 – Ignacio Pignataro (URY) 9.60
5 = Ben Skinner, Arthur Randall,
ANIMAL PRO MEN’S FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Kai Odriozola (ESP) 10.83
2 – Ido Arkin (ISR) 8.56
3 = Luke Dillon, Hans Odriozola
5= Patrick Langdon-Dark, Renan Grainville, Markel Vizcarguenaga, Nicolas Paulet
ANIMAL PRO WOMEN’S FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Yolanda Hopkins (POR) 13.40
2 – Alys Barton (GBR) 12.36
