Over the weekend, Nanaho Tsuzuki (JPN) and Jin Suzuki (JPN) won the 2024 IBK Miyazaki Pro QS 3000 Presented by Rash, while Anon Matsuoka (JPN) and Bronson Meydi (INA) won the 2024 IBK Pro Junior Presented by Rash.
Strong typhoon swell and conditions delivered exciting moments and harsh weather in equal measure. The four-to-five foot waves on offer provided plenty of opportunity for the Semifinalists, who had worked their way to the top of a stacked field of over 100 of Asia's best surfers.
It was the second QS win for both Tsuzuki and Suzuki in their careers, and it was clear how much clinching a second victory meant to them.
Nanaho Tsuzuki (JPN) opened the women's Final with the highest score of the event, an 8.50. Aggressively attacking a massive closeout section, the 21-year-old rode out clean with a huge smile on her face to match her claim. Straight off the back of a victory in the Pro Junior, Anon Matsuoka (JPN) was able to bring another strong performance and earn a 7.00 of her own. But, Tsuzuki found a 6.40 backup to post a 14.90 heat total and claim victory, nearly two years after her first big win at the 2022 Taiwan Open of Surfing QS 5000.
"I'm so happy!" Tsuzuki exclaimed. "This competition made me truly feel the value of my surfing at this level. Anon (Matsuoka) had just won the Pro Junior, so I knew it would be a good battle, but I thought it would be best to just be myself, even in the tough conditions, so I just focused on that. I want to express my deepest gratitude to everyone who always supports me and to the town as well."
Nanaho Tsuzuki - WSL / Kiyo
Matsuoka's Pro Junior victory and QS 3000 runner-up finish follows a win in last week's whitebuffalo OMAEZAKI Pro QS 3000, leaving Tsuzuki as the only surfer to beat her so far this QS season. Matsuoka now sits No. 7 on the Asia region QS rankings as she attempts to retain her position on the Challenger Series (CS). Tsuzuki, who is also competing on this year's CS, jumped four places into No. 2, behind rankings leader Mirai Ikeda (JPN).
Ikeda also featured in the Pro Junior Final, finishing fourth behind Matsuoka, Anri Matsuno (JPN) and Kana Nakashio (JPN). Nakashio has a narrow lead over Ikeda in the quest for a berth in this year's WSL World Junior Championships.
Jin Suzuki's (JPN) victory comes five years after his first win at the 2019 Murasaki Shonan Open QS 1500. The 23-year-old's path to the top of the podium included posting the highest heat total of the event, 15.00, to defeat Olympian Reo Inaba (JPN) in the Semifinals. After placing second to another Olympian, Hiroto Ohhara (JPN), the last time he made a Final at the 2023 Chiba Ichinomiya Open QS 3000, Suzuki was determined to walk away victorious today.
Suzuki faced Shohei Kato (JPN), who was competing in his first-ever QS Final. Under rapidly deteriorating conditions, neither surfer was able to break out of the 5-point range. But Suzuki got the better of each exchange to take his big second win.
"I haven't been able to win for a while, so I'm really happy," Suzuki said. "I was pretty frustrated with the second place in Chiba last year. I've been working really hard, step-by-step, with the help of everyone around me. I'm feeling confident in my surfing at the moment. In the past, I've had a tendency to get really worked up, losing sight of what's going on around me, and my surfing gets all messy. I've been getting some coaching for competitions, and I've studied positioning a lot and how to do things to win in competitions. I think that's what helped me win today."
Jin Suzuki - WSL / Kiyo
The runner-up finish for Kato sees the 20-year-old take the lead in the Asia region QS rankings, with Suzuki jumping seven places into No. 3.
An intense front hit during the men's Pro Junior Final, with strong winds and rain wreaking havoc on the event site. That didn't slow down Bronson Meydi (INA) from taking his second Pro Junior win of the season. Meydi's energetic approach paid off, consistently earning him the best scores of the men's Pro Junior division. The 20-year-old took the win over Raiha Onou (JPN), Noah Arkfeld (PHI) and current Asia Junior Tour rankings leader I Made Ariyana (INA), to jump himself into No. 2 on the leaderboard.
"I came here to win and that's what I got," Meydi said. "I was just trying to have fun. Just go on everything and try to go big, but at the same time maybe put a couple of numbers on the board first. Before the heat, we all got together and we were like, ‘Let's go boys, let's have fun and just do your best.' It was great vibes. This event means a lot because I'm trying to get to the Junior Championships. I won this one, and yeah, just looking for the points. Let's go, next one."
Bronson Meydi - WSL / Kiyo
The Japan leg of the Asia region QS season now heads to Hyuga for the final stop, where the IBK Hyuga Pro Presented by RASH QS 3000 and the IBK Hyuga Pro Junior Presented by RASH will have a waiting period of September 17-21, 2024.
The 2024 IBK Miyazaki Pro Presented by Rash QS 3000 and 2024 IBK Miyazaki Pro Junior Presented by Rash was held at Kisakihama, Miyazaki from September 11 - 14, 2024.
Nanaho Tsuzuki and Jin Suzuki Win 2024 IBK Miyazaki Pro QS 3000
WSL
Over the weekend, Nanaho Tsuzuki (JPN) and Jin Suzuki (JPN) won the 2024 IBK Miyazaki Pro QS 3000 Presented by Rash, while Anon Matsuoka (JPN) and Bronson Meydi (INA) won the 2024 IBK Pro Junior Presented by Rash.
Strong typhoon swell and conditions delivered exciting moments and harsh weather in equal measure. The four-to-five foot waves on offer provided plenty of opportunity for the Semifinalists, who had worked their way to the top of a stacked field of over 100 of Asia's best surfers.
It was the second QS win for both Tsuzuki and Suzuki in their careers, and it was clear how much clinching a second victory meant to them.
Nanaho Tsuzuki (JPN) opened the women's Final with the highest score of the event, an 8.50. Aggressively attacking a massive closeout section, the 21-year-old rode out clean with a huge smile on her face to match her claim. Straight off the back of a victory in the Pro Junior, Anon Matsuoka (JPN) was able to bring another strong performance and earn a 7.00 of her own. But, Tsuzuki found a 6.40 backup to post a 14.90 heat total and claim victory, nearly two years after her first big win at the 2022 Taiwan Open of Surfing QS 5000.
"I'm so happy!" Tsuzuki exclaimed. "This competition made me truly feel the value of my surfing at this level. Anon (Matsuoka) had just won the Pro Junior, so I knew it would be a good battle, but I thought it would be best to just be myself, even in the tough conditions, so I just focused on that. I want to express my deepest gratitude to everyone who always supports me and to the town as well."
Matsuoka's Pro Junior victory and QS 3000 runner-up finish follows a win in last week's whitebuffalo OMAEZAKI Pro QS 3000, leaving Tsuzuki as the only surfer to beat her so far this QS season. Matsuoka now sits No. 7 on the Asia region QS rankings as she attempts to retain her position on the Challenger Series (CS). Tsuzuki, who is also competing on this year's CS, jumped four places into No. 2, behind rankings leader Mirai Ikeda (JPN).
Ikeda also featured in the Pro Junior Final, finishing fourth behind Matsuoka, Anri Matsuno (JPN) and Kana Nakashio (JPN). Nakashio has a narrow lead over Ikeda in the quest for a berth in this year's WSL World Junior Championships.
Jin Suzuki's (JPN) victory comes five years after his first win at the 2019 Murasaki Shonan Open QS 1500. The 23-year-old's path to the top of the podium included posting the highest heat total of the event, 15.00, to defeat Olympian Reo Inaba (JPN) in the Semifinals. After placing second to another Olympian, Hiroto Ohhara (JPN), the last time he made a Final at the 2023 Chiba Ichinomiya Open QS 3000, Suzuki was determined to walk away victorious today.
Suzuki faced Shohei Kato (JPN), who was competing in his first-ever QS Final. Under rapidly deteriorating conditions, neither surfer was able to break out of the 5-point range. But Suzuki got the better of each exchange to take his big second win.
"I haven't been able to win for a while, so I'm really happy," Suzuki said. "I was pretty frustrated with the second place in Chiba last year. I've been working really hard, step-by-step, with the help of everyone around me. I'm feeling confident in my surfing at the moment. In the past, I've had a tendency to get really worked up, losing sight of what's going on around me, and my surfing gets all messy. I've been getting some coaching for competitions, and I've studied positioning a lot and how to do things to win in competitions. I think that's what helped me win today."
The runner-up finish for Kato sees the 20-year-old take the lead in the Asia region QS rankings, with Suzuki jumping seven places into No. 3.
An intense front hit during the men's Pro Junior Final, with strong winds and rain wreaking havoc on the event site. That didn't slow down Bronson Meydi (INA) from taking his second Pro Junior win of the season. Meydi's energetic approach paid off, consistently earning him the best scores of the men's Pro Junior division. The 20-year-old took the win over Raiha Onou (JPN), Noah Arkfeld (PHI) and current Asia Junior Tour rankings leader I Made Ariyana (INA), to jump himself into No. 2 on the leaderboard.
"I came here to win and that's what I got," Meydi said. "I was just trying to have fun. Just go on everything and try to go big, but at the same time maybe put a couple of numbers on the board first. Before the heat, we all got together and we were like, ‘Let's go boys, let's have fun and just do your best.' It was great vibes. This event means a lot because I'm trying to get to the Junior Championships. I won this one, and yeah, just looking for the points. Let's go, next one."
The Japan leg of the Asia region QS season now heads to Hyuga for the final stop, where the IBK Hyuga Pro Presented by RASH QS 3000 and the IBK Hyuga Pro Junior Presented by RASH will have a waiting period of September 17-21, 2024.
The 2024 IBK Miyazaki Pro Presented by Rash QS 3000 and 2024 IBK Miyazaki Pro Junior Presented by Rash was held at Kisakihama, Miyazaki from September 11 - 14, 2024.
Nanaho Tsuzuki
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