Roxy Pro: The Competion
The 9th stage (of 10) of the Samsung Galaxy Women’s Championship Tour brings the top 17 surfers of the sport’s professional elite to prove their skills in the region’s fast and powerful beachbreaks.
18 surfers will be competing to win the Roxy Pro France 2016, but the overwhelming favourite has to be the current defending champion, Tyler Wright (AUS). Currently world number one after an amazing season that includes three wins out of the first six 2016 CT events, the Australian will be coming to Hossegor with her sights set firmly on winning her third consecutive victory at the Roxy Pro France. Still, her rivals are numerous: reigning WSL Champion Carissa Moore (HAW) and current number two Courtney Conlogue (USA) are close behind Tyler on the Jeep Leaderboard, 6X WSL Champion Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) is always a threat, while Tatiana Weston-Webb (HAW) made her ambitions clear by scoring the first-ever perfect 10 score at Roxy Pro France in 2015. Meanwhile, following a win at the Fiji Women’s Pro, French Reunion Islander Johanne Defay will be coming to Hossegor with enough skills, confidence and cheers from the beach to make her a serious contender. The 17 female elite WSL surfers will be joined at the Roxy Pro France by an 18th invited wildcard Bronte Macaulay (AUS).
Roxy Pro: Past Winners
Since moving to Hossegor in 2011 to run simultaneously with the men’s event, both Stephanie Gilmore and Tyler Wright have both made their mark on the Roxy Pro.
2015 – Tyler Wright
2015 – Tyler Wright
2014 – Sally Fitzgibbons
2012 – Stephanie Gilmore
2011 – Stephanie Gilmore
Roxy Pro: Hossegor
In the long, stunning coastline of south Landes, France has an exceptional playground to offer the shortboard elite. Renowned for having some of the best beachbreaks on the planet, the Aquitaine region boasts some 230km of sandbanks that come to life every autumn, while the very best hollow barrels are to be found around the town of Hossegor. For the organizers, this wealth of quality spots combined with regular, powerful swells and the flexibility to quickly move the contest site to the best available banks ensure the Quiksilver & Roxy Pro France is one of the most consistent events on the tour. The combination of the world’s best surfers riding some of Europe’s best waves ensures a huge and enthusiastic audience, year after year. With approximately 100,000 people attending the Quiksilver & Roxy Pro France each year, the contests represent a major tourism event for a region that’s synonymous with Often compared to Hawaii’s North Shore, the spectacular autumn waves carried by the Bay of Biscay to the Aquitaine coast have a formidable reputation. Famous for its ‘tube machines’, the beach breaks of Landes quickly punish the smallest mistake by turning into washing machines. Subject to strong currents and big tides, these spots require exceptional seamanship and great skill to ride. Due to the ever-changing conditions of the sandbanks on which quality beachbreak waves depend, the contest’s organisers select the event’s main site in September, as close to the start date as possible. Even after the event site has been decided, the organisers always have the option of deploying a mobile venue to find better conditions if necessary.
Roxy Pro: Watch It Live
In-depth coverage of the entire Quiksilver Pro and Roxy Pro France events can be watched at www. worldsurfleague.com and via the WSL mobile app. This includes about 45 hours of live coverage with commentary in English and Portuguese, wave-bywave recaps via the Heat Analyzer, highlight edits and more. Every morning at 7:30, watch the “Morning Show” where the WSL panel of experts serve up a mix of previous day highlights, analysis and event status updates. In France, the competition will be broadcast on Sport 3 SFR (formerly Far MCS) with commentary in French. Virgin Radio is the official radio and Lequipe. fr/Adrenaline, the partner website of the Quik and Roxy Pro 2016.
To find out more about what’s happening during the Roxy Pro click here
