Paris Olympics 2024: Margaret River’s Jack Robinson beats Ethan Ewing to make semifinal in Tahiti
West Australian surfer Jack Robinson has charged into the Olympics semifinal with an impressive barrel-riding performance to boot countryman Ethan Ewing from the tournament.
Ewing faced an agonising final three minutes, with priority, but no waves presenting to help him lift above Robinson’s second score of 7.33.
Tyler Wright’s dream of emulating her brother and Tokyo medallist Owen ended when she lost to reigning world champion Caroline Marks in a quarter-final.
Sign up to The Nightly's newsletters.
Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Wright scored a 3.50 and a 1.87 and had the priority late in the heat before a big set brought plenty of chop and washed away her chance of one final score.
Robinson was patient and waited out a smaller set as Ewing backed his turning craft to take the lead in the middle of the heat.
The victory means the Margaret River surfer will take on Brazilian megastar Gabriel Medina in a semifinal on Sunday morning for the chance to go through to the gold medal heat.
Robinson took hold of the first significant wave of the heat, emerging from a barrel to produce a nice turn and score of 7.33 to put the heat on Ewing nine minutes into the session.
Ewing hit the lip with a nice turn after coming out of a barrel in a response wave that landed him an 8.33 and catapulted him into the lead.
While laying down a score to better his initial 1.00 was an option, Robinson waited patiently in the Teahupo’o surf, even after Ewing delivered a three-turn combo and a 4.67.
Then the wave he was waiting for arrived and the WA star carved his way out of a tube perilously close to closing out on him and igniting the quarter-final.
“I had to duck and weave, it was super technical,” Robinson said of that wave.
Robinson even fist-pumped on his way out of the barrel, which scored him an 8.9 and the lead back. It left his rival with priority with three minutes remaining.
The pair shared a hug after the buzzer.
Making Robinson’s run even more impressive, the 26-year-old overcame a significant cut to his foot in the days before competition started and was forced to surf a repechage earlier this week to keep his medal hopes alive.
