SPORTS?Personality of the Year Chelsea Tuach is making her mark on the waves Down Under.
Tuach, this country’s leading surfer, is through to Round 3 of the ASP 6-Star Australian Open and already in the top 25 of 72 of the world’s best professional women.
In her Round 2 match-up with Nao Omura of Japan, Faye Zoetmulder of South Africa and Tia Blanco of the United States, Chelsea dropped six and 6.83 in the first five minutes of the heat in difficult, low-tide conditions. Her third wave was a massive blow tail re-entry that scored 6.67 for a single manoeuvre which the web commentators said was the best of the heat.
Chelsea would end with a heat total of 13.73 to advance to Round 4 when all the top seeds hit the water for the first time. She will face off with two Australians and a French girl in the next round.
After her quick start, the beach commentator said: “Chelsea is on fire!” What is remarkable about this is that Chelsea had just stepped off a 12-hour flight from Singapore where she had to fly to sort out a visa problem that affected a number of surfers at this event. The other surfers were able to take the short flight to New Zealand but, as a Barbadian, Chelsea needed a visa for New Zealand, so she had to fly to Singapore.
“I am happy the nightmare is over and I’m feeling a lot more relaxed now,” Chelsea said after her heat. “I just want to thank the Barbados Government and our honorary Australian consul, Mr James Gardiner, for intervening for me and making it possible for me to compete here today.”
Tuach was the third seed of the junior event that started last Saturday without her as a result of the visa issues.
Her energy is now focused on doing well in the women’s event of the biggest surf contest in Australia.
