Surfing: Marks (USA) is the first woman to punch her ticket to the medal rounds
In a matchup of former world champions, Caroline Marks of the United States has won heat #1 of the Women’s quarter finals against Australia’s Tyler Wright.
Surfing on her frontside, Marks (USA), the current World #2, had the heat’s highest wave score with a 4.0, earned after linking a quick, messy cover up into a strong carve and lip bash. Less than ideal winds shut down the clean tube rides that were on the offer less than an hour before and shifted the focus from barrel time to carves and top turns. Marks(USA) adapted first to the change and it set her up well for the win.
Wright (AUS) had a path to victory with time left on the clock and sitting outside with priority but Mother Nature had different plans and a scoring wave simply never materialized for her when she needed it most. She finished with a heat total score of 5.37, not enough to beat Marks’ 7.77 combined score.