Freak accident puts Moroccan surfer Ramzi Boukhiam out of Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach
A freak accident at Bells Beach has forced Moroccan surfer Ramzi Boukhiam out of the Rip Curl Pro with a serious-looking knee injury.
Boukhiam did not surf his elimination-round heat on Tuesday afternoon after the accident, putting him out of the competition.
He went to hospital for scans using crutches and with his left knee in a brace.
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.The 31-year-old had finished his opening-round heat earlier on Tuesday and was nearly on the beach when his foot was apparently caught in the reef close to the shoreline.
Footage showed Boukhiam then hit by a wave and he collapsed on to his board in agony.
Brazilian Italo Ferreira and Australian Xavier Huxtable, who had competed in the same heat, immediately came to Boukhiam’s aid and helped him out of the water.
“He’d just finished the wave and was waiting for the score - I saw him walking and then he went into the rock,” Fereira said.
“The other wave came at the back and hit him ... (he said) ‘I’m gone, I’m gone’ - something happened and I started to run.
“It was a bummer, because he was surfing good on this wave, but best luck to him.”
Ferreira won the hard-fought heat and Huxtable narrowly finished ahead of Boukhiam, putting the Moroccan into the elimination round.
Also on Tuesday, Jordy Smith continued his strong form as the Rip Curl Pro played catch-up after a barren Easter.
Smith won his round-one heat on Tuesday, with competition finally back on after three days of poor conditions.
The South African won the most recent World Surf League round in El Salvador, eight years after his previous event win at Bells Beach.
Only the women’s opening round and one heat of the men’s first round were run when the event started on Good Friday, before conditions deteriorated.
The four to six-foot conditions on Tuesday were affected by the wind, making for challenging conditions at the Bells Bowl.
Organisers ran the men’s and women’s elimination rounds once the men finished their opening-round heats.
After finishing runner-up to Smith at El Salvador, and taking fifth and third for the last two years at Bells Beach, compatriot Matthew McGillivray was a shock elimination round surfer.
But he won through to the round of 32 with a 14.53 - one of the highest heat scores of the day.
Fereira’s 15.67 in his win over Huxtable and Boukhiam, and the 15.00 from Mexican Alan Cleland were the highlights of the men’s opening round.
Local trials winner Carly Shanahan was the only Australian competing in the two women’s elimination-round heats, and she did not progress. There have been no Australian eliminations so far in the men’s draw.
When the event resumes, the men will have their round of 32 and the women are up to the round of 16.
