The 2023 Championship Tour rosters are starting to shape up. With just one more event left on the 2022 Challenger Series schedule now, several surfers came to Rio hoping to lock up their qualification by the end of the Corona Saquarema Pro. Some did secure their spots for 2023, but three men, in particular, had those plans squashed by none other than Gabriel Medina.
Medina’s Challenger Series win came after trailing Ramzi Boukhiam in the final for 27 of the 30-minute heat. A win for Boukhiam would have secured his CT qualification but the Moroccan surfer now has to wait for a result at the Haleiwa Challenger in three weeks. He’s not alone in that scenario though. France’s Maxime Huscenot needed to make the final in order to qualify for the 2023 Championship Tour. Medina knocked Huscenot out of competition in the quarters. Joao Chianca, one of the CT’s inaugural mid-year cut casualties, would have secured a return to the Dream Tour with a win in Rio. Medina eliminated him in the semifinal. All three surfers are still in solid position to finish the year above the CT qualification line, but it felt like we were watching vintage Medina on a day where he dashed the hopes of a trio of surfers in one fell swoop.
“He’s (Boukhiam) such a great surfer,” Medina said after the final heat. “I hope he can make it to the tour, he deserves this. He’s one of the best to surf in a QS event and I can’t wait to see him on CT waves.”
The event didn’t play out the same on the women’s side, with a handful of competitors qualifying for the 2023 CT during their time in Rio. Australia’s Macy Callaghan and Molly Picklum, and American Caity Simmers all qualified for next year’s tour. Alyssa Spencer, who won the event, flew eight spots up the leaderboard and moved to within one position of the CT qualification line.
