The opening day of the 2023 Vissla & Sisstrrevolution Central Coast Pro presented Mad Mex, World Surf League (WSL) Qualifying Series (QS) 3,000 saw a massive day of competition in punchy onshore two-to-four foot surf. Being a co-sanctioned event, this week will see competitors from both the Asia and Australia / Oceania Regions competing for points on their respective rankings.
Barrack Point surfer Lennix Smith (AUS) put on quite the show in his early round heats, the talented young surfer netted some of the highest scores of the day with his best coming in the Round of 112, when he scored a 7.67. Smith surfed three times on the opening day of competition to advance into the Round of 64 where he’ll come up against fellow Australian Axel Curotta and Japanese competitors Hiroto Ohhara and Yuji Nishi.
“It was awesome to get a couple of early heats under my belt, their weere some really fun rights I was lucky enough to find a couple and showcase my surfing ability” Smith said “The ocean can be unpredictable, making it challenging to find the perfect waves I was just stoked to find that 7.67 right at the end of the heat.”
Former World Tour athlete and Avoca local Glen ‘micro’ Hall (AUS) wound back to clock in his early round heats. Hall put on a dominant performance to secure two convincing heat wins and progress on through to the Round of 96.
“I committed a few years ago to compete in the Central Coast Pro to be able to allow myself to relive all the feelings of competing in a heat again.” Hall said “This is the third consecutive year I’ve put the rash top on at this event. The first year I entered with the message to teach my kids about getting outside of their comfort zone and having a go. It was amazing to have all my family down here today cheering me on”
Overall it was strong days performance from the Australian contingent on the opening day at Avoca with Brock Cooper (AUS), Daniel Farr (NZL), Ricardo Christie (NZL) and Korbin Hutchings (NZL) all progressing through to the Round of 64. They will now come up against some of Asia and New Zealand’s top surfers
The Vissla NSW Pro Surf Series was developed for Australian surfers to gain ranking points and prize money in the WSL Qualifying Series. The series also creates a NSW coastal road trip for all to explore the variety of waves, visit local communities and enjoy NSW surfing culture.
The Vissla NSW Pro Surf Series 2023 is proudly supported by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW.
The Men’s Vissla Central Coast Pro presented by Mad Mex QS3000, Women’s Sisstrevolution Central Coast Pro presented by Mad Mex will be available to watch from 15th March thanks to Mad Mex via the live webcast through worldsurfleague.com, the WSL App, 7plus, mySurf.tv and Surfing NSW socials.
Vissla NSW Pro Surf Series 2023 Event Schedule
Event 1: Camplify Great Lakes Pro QS3000: Tuesday 21st – Friday 24th Feb
Event 2: Surfers Rescue 24/7 Port Stephens Pro QS1000 – Monday 27th Feb: Wednesday 1st March
Event 3: Mad Mex Maroubra Pro QS1000: Friday 3rd – Sunday 5th March
Event 4: Men’s Vissla Central Coast Pro presented by Mad Mex QS3000, Women’s Sisstrevolution Central Coast Pro presented by Mad Mex: Monday 13th – Saturday 18th March
The 2023 Vissla NSW Pro Surf Series is proudly supported by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW. The series is also proudly supported by Vissla, Sisstrevolution, Destination Sydney Surrounds, Randwick City Council, Central Coast Council, Mid Coast Council, Port Stephens Council, Barrington Coast, Mad Mex, Camplify, Storage King, Avoca Beach Hotel, Southend Hotel, PRD Real Estate, Surfers Rescue 24/7, #NoTxtNoWrecks, WSL and Surfing NSW.
