Heitor Alves (BRA) was unstoppable on his way to claim the ASP 6-Star San Miguel Pro Zarautz presented by Euskaltel title over Tim Boal (FRA) in a well fought 35-minute battle. Having taken down an inform Gabriel Medina (BRA) in the semis, Alves was on a roll and proved unbeatable despite a last ditched effort by Boal to take the victory.

Clean lines in the 3ft (1m) range were on offer however event officials were forced to place the event on hold during the high tide because of infrequent set waves. With clear skies and fantastic beach weather, the shore line and esplanade were once again packed. The huge crowd revelled in the magnificent displays of surfing put on by all the guys on this last day of competition.

The greatest assemblage of surfing talent in history is converging upon the idyllic South Pacific island of Tahiti, home of the world’s heaviest wave, Teahupoo, for Stop No. 5 of 10 on the 2010 ASP World Tour, the Billabong Pro Tahiti.

Finishing off the midway part of the 2010 ASP World Tour season, the Billabong Pro Tahiti plays a vital role in both the hunt for the 2010 ASP World Title and the midyear field reduction from the ASP Top 45 to the Top 34.

Jordy Smith (ZAF), 22, current ASP World No. 1, is into his third season on the elite ASP World Tour, but enters into the Billabong Pro Tahiti as the No. 1 seed, a career first for the young South African.

The Sooruz Lacanau Pro an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) sanctioned event witnessed an amazing day of competition in excellent conditions which are forecasted to continue through the weekend setting up for some great finals action. Standouts were many as surfers displayed progressive modern manoeuvres to impress the huge crowds lining the shore.

The Sooruz Lacanau Pro an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) sanctioned event is set to step into top gear with the top seeds prepared to hit the water in what is tipped to be one spectacular day of action with an excellent forecast for swell conditions for day 4 of this 145,000$US event.

The Sooruz Lacanau Pro an Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) sanctioned event ran through to complete 12 heats of Round One of competition with many outstanding high-level performances witnessed on the main contest peak setting the scene for what can be expected to come at the 31st edition of this ASP Men’s Star-Series 6-Star 145,000$US event.

Peaks in the 3-4ft (1m) range were on offer and improved as the tide lowered during the late afternoon session of competition. Light winds with early morning rain which cleared away opened up a great day of action packed surfing from the strong international field of competitors at the Sooruz Lacanau Pro.

Mick Fanning (AUS), 29, reigning ASP World Champion, has a lot on his plate. The pressures of an ASP World Title defense against the best in the world, his duties as a loving husband, his status as a sporting icon within Australia, his role as surfers’ representative on the ASP Board, an extensive fitness regime, sponsorship responsibilities, etc., etc. So when Tracks Magazine sat down with him, they had no shortage of topics to hit upon: a new fin sponsor, his title defense and his role in the new ASP 36-man format. This…is their story…

Firstly Mick, when signing a new sponsorship agreement, is it the money or the product itself that you consider most – fins surely has to be performance-based decision?

What happened was I went and tried different fin systems, cause I was riding glass on fins and I was so set on them I couldn’t ride any other fin system. I eventually became sick of carrying 12 boards with glass ons. What I did was I got a couple of different fin systems put on a quiver of boards and took them all on the Red Bull boat in Indonesia last year and tried all the different ones together – and the FCS ones felt the best.