[©ASP / Joel Parkinson was presented with a hand carved Ukulele after winning the Reef Hawaiian Pro.]

HALEIWA, Oahu, Hawaii  – Australia’s Joel Parkinson (Gold Coast, QLD) made a brilliant return to the pro surfing stage after six months on the sidelines with injury, winning the Reef Hawaiian Pro to take the lead in the prestigious Vans Triple Crown of Surfing series. Parkinson, 29, is the two-time defending champion of this Hawaiian series that is the final stage of the ASP World Tour. It was an emotional day for the Australian who has experienced the highs and lows of life en-route to this win: The birth of his son last month, the death of close friend Andy Irons two weeks ago, and debilitating injury that forced him off tour.

[©ASP / Joel Parkinson won the Reef Hawaiian Pro claiming the ratings lead in the Vans Triple Crown series.]

This week Parkinson has been in devastating form, posting the only perfect 10 of the event and the highest heat total of the competition in his opening round. His form has been on-point and on-rail for the duration and easily deserving of the $20,000 winner’s purse.

[©ASP / Joel Parkinson sent warning signals at his fellow competitors in this years Triple Crown defeating ASP World Tour surfers Taj Burrow, Adrian Buchan and Dusty Payne to advance into the semifinals.]

Runner-up in the final was Joel Centeio (Hawaii, $10,000), the defending champion coming into the event. Third was Julian Wilson (Sunshine Coast, QLD, $5,100); and fourth was Heath Joske (Coffs Harbour, $4,900). The highest placed Brazilian surfer was Alejo Muniz (=13th); the top US surfer was Huntington Beach’s Brett Simpson (CA =13th); and the top European was Maxime Huscenot (France, =25th).

[©ASP / Joel Parkinson hoists his winners trophy for the first time at the Reef Hawaiian Pro after defeating Joel Centeio (HAW), Heathe Joske (AUS) and Julian Wilson (AUS) in the final.]

[©ASP /Lord Adam Melling had his Reef Hawaiian Pro hopes crushed when he was defeated during the quarterfinals.]

[©ASP /Lord Adam Melling had his Reef Hawaiian Pro hopes crushed when he was defeated during the quarterfinals.]

The final of the Reef Clash of the Legends also ran yesterday and was won by Hawaiian Sunny Garcia, a six-time Vans Triple Crown champion in his own right. Runner-up was Mark Occhilupo (Australia), Tom Curren (Santa Barbara, CA. USA) was third, and Tom Carroll (Australia) was fourth.

[©ASP /Occy placed runner up to Sunny Garcia in the Clash of the Legends]

Story: ASP

Let’s see what’s happening at the first stop of the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing.

For those who don’t know it, the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing consists of three men’s and three women’s professional surfing events that are the final stop on the 2010 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour. In its 28th year, the Vans Triple Crown is considered the most prestigious title in surfing next to the ASP World Title.

[©ASP / Jay Thompson tops himself a place in Round 4.]

Vans Triple Crown of Surfing is presented by Rockstar Energy Drink.  The first jewel of the Crown is the men’s Reef Hawaiian Pro and the Cholo’s Women’s Pro, at Haleiwa Ali’i Beach Park. The official website for the series is www.vanstriplecrownofsurfing.com.

[©ASP /Corey Lopez dominated his round of 96 heat to advance into the next round in first place.]

Men are battling to the title and certainly an highlight of the event is the return of Joel Parkinson. Parko is back after having been off the tour for the past six months nursing a serious foot injury. He opened his account with a perfect 10 and signed off on the heat with the highest two-wave total score of the event to date: 19.87 out of a possible 20 points.

[©ASP /Haleiwa local Sean Moody advanced in second place.]

Among the women, we see another victory of the Australian Stephanie Gilmore, the 4-time ASP world champion of surfing. She eclipsed the field to win the Cholo’s Hawaiian Pro – the first leg of the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing. With the world title locked away, Steph’s victory here puts her in good stead to gun for a third Vans Triple Crown title to round out the year. Gilmore, 22, earned $4,500 for today’s win.
Surfing in double-overhead waves, Gilmore was untouchable in every round with near-perfect scores and flawless, critical maneuvers. Runner-up was rookie Australian Tyler Wright, 16, from Lennox Head, who threw down some of the most futuristic maneuvers women’s surfing has ever seen, but failed to match Gilmore’s well-rounded performance. Third was Alana Blanchard (Hawaii), and Jacqueline Silva (Brazil) was fourth.

The next stop for the ladies is Sunset Beach, stage 2 of the Vans Triple Crown of Surfing, Nov. 24 through Dec. 6. The third and final event, open to the top 4 Vans Triple Crown contenders only, is the Vans Duel for the Jewel at Pipeline, December 8-20.

[©ASP ]

Finally for what concernes the Clash of the Legends, world champion surfers Tom Curren (USA), 46; Tom Carroll (Australia), 48; Sunny Garcia (Hawaii), 40; and Mark Occhilupo (Australia), 44, gave a good exhibition.

The Clash of the Legends will see all four of these surfers battle a total of three times. Their top two scores from each heat (six waves total) will be tallied to determine the Ultimate Legend by the close of the Reef Hawaiian Pro.

Curren, Carroll, Occhilupo and Garcia amassed an incredible number of titles and records during their collective 87 years on tour, laying claim to a total of $3.3 million in prize money; 130 tour wins; a total of 1,163 events surfed; and no shortage of rivalry. If anyone thought this was just a fun heat, they were clearly wrong.