The Perfect Chapter is officially firing the starter’s gun today. After organizers pored over the forecasts for the last few months, the event, which runs on the best day of the winter in Portugal, has been called on — and it is shaping up to be a day to remember.
It’s been big in Portugal for the last little while. Nazaré, as you undoubtedly saw, did ungodly things for the WSL’s Tow Surfing Championship. Carcavelos, where the Perfect Chapter is running this year, is just a stone’s throw down the road (if you can throw a stone 80 miles) from that famous big wave spot. It was a tough decision to call the event off that same day, but in the interests of running it in absolutely perfect conditions, the decision was made. Since the Perfect Chapter is a barrel-riding event first and foremost, organizers wanted to wait for a day with a little more offshore. Today is that day.
“The forecast shows a solid swell over four meters, with a long period, and northerly winds,” said Rodrigo Herédia, Contest Director for the Perfect Chapter. “These are the ideal conditions for Carcavelos. The sandbanks are well shaped, so we expect a great day of surfing.”
The event is a little different than most. The surfers were voted in through an online poll, and each and every one of them is an expert in barreling waves. Fans chose surfers in three categories: Portuguese surfers, International Surfers, and for the first time in 2019-20, the New Generation category.
This year, 43,000 voters from 92 countries 5 continents chose the surfers. So far, there have been a few shake-ups to the lineup. Alex Botelho, who is still recovering after an accident in Nazaré, will be replaced by Filipe Jervis. Clay Marzo, who suffered a knee injury, will be replaced by fellow Hawaiian Kiron Jabour.
Willian Aliotti, defending champion, also suffered a serious injury to his hand while foiling back in December. He will be replaced by Hawaiian Anthony Walsh, 7th place in the previous edition.
Here’s the final lineup:
Portuguese surfers:
Joao Guedes, Miguel Blanco, Tiago Pires, Nic Von Rupp, Filipe Jervis
Wildcard: Pedro Boonman
International surfers:
Aritz Aramburu, Cory Lopez, Bruno Santos, Kiron Jabour, Pedro Scooby, Lucas Chumbo
Wildcard: Balaram Stack
Local wildcard:
João Moreira
Defending champion wildcard:
Anthony Walsh
New Generation:
Afonso Antunes
