Silva Turns On Late Show for Women’s Title

Jacqueline Silva used a late surge to overtake Melanie Redman-Carr and win the Hello Kitty Boardfest surfing contest Monday at Huntington Beach Pier.

And it was a good thing because the community of Florianopolis, Brazil, expected nothing less of its hero.

“I was on the Internet [Sunday] with my family and friends and they were saying, ‘You can do it. We’ll be waiting for you at the airport to watch you carry the trophy off the airplane,’ ” Silva said moments after her win.

With the victory in the World Qualifying Series tour event, she automatically qualifies for next year’s elite World Championship Tour. The WCT takes the top six surfers on the WQS and the top 10 from the WCT.

Silva, 26, who is tied for ninth on the WCT with three events left, went from eighth to fifth on the WQS. Only a low-rated one-star event -- at Newport Beach later this month -- remains on the WQS schedule, and it won’t have a bearing on top surfers.

Also encouraged, despite finishing third in the four-woman final, was Julia Christian of Carlsbad. Ranked fourth on the WQS going into Boardfest, she learned Sunday that she had already qualified for the WCT, after the cancellation of what was supposed to be the final WQS event.

The four-star O’Neill World Cup, added just last week, was scheduled for late November at Sunset Beach, Hawaii. It was dropped amid strong opposition from WQS surfers, who cited, among other factors, that they had already exhausted their travel budgets.

Christian, 23, acknowledged being “a little off-rhythm” in Monday’s final, held in consistent three- to five-foot surf.

Making the WCT is a dream for surfers, and Christian was eager to avoid letting this one turn into another nightmare. In 2003 she made her WCT debut, struggled throughout and failed to requalify.

“So I have plenty of room to improve,” she said with a sheepish giggle.

So does Karina Petroni, 17, of Atlantic Beach, Fla., who finished third in Monday’s final but improved from 29th to 24th on the WQS.

Silva and fellow WCT veteran Redman-Carr were clearly the better performers in the final.

Redman-Carr, 30, took an early lead with a score of 7.33 out of a possible 10 on a long left-hander, finishing her ride with a resounding off-the-lip reentry that brought cheers from the beach.

The Australian received the same score soon after and was in good position until Silva earned an 8.83 on a right-hander on which she performed several sharp vertical top turns.

Surfers are credited with the total of their two best scores, and Silva took the lead with seven minutes left in the 30-minute final, earning a 6.13.

Redman-Carr needed a 7.64 to retake first, but then Silva, with a series of hard vertical hits, logged a 7.57 to increase her total. She needed that score because Redman-Carr closed with a 7.77.

“It’s worth it because I made just enough to pay for my trip,” said Redman-Carr, who earned $2,200 and is ranked sixth on the WCT.

Silva received $3,500 but was surprised to learn that her trophy was a large, bright pink Hello Kitty bicycle, which is sure to raise some eyebrows in Florianopolis.

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Andy Irons defeated Kelly Slater with a dramatic late surge during the Quiksilver Pro Japan, a WCT event held in six- to eight-foot surf at a right-handed break near Chiba.

With the win, Irons, the three-time and reigning world champion, moved closer to Slater in the points race. Slater, who is seeking his seventh world title, leads, 6,374 to 5,796, with five WCT men’s events left.