Daily Times

ICHINOMIYA: Hawaiian surfer Carissa Moore said she was bringing Olympic gold home to the sport’s roots after winning a historic inaugural title at the Tokyo Games on Tuesday. Moore beat South African Bianca Buitendag in the final to become surfing’s first women’s Olympic champion, shortly after Brazil’s Italo Ferreira won the men’s title. The American dedicated her victory to her home island, more than a century after legendary Hawaiian Duke Kahanamoku first pushed for surfing to be included at the Games. “It means everything — surfing is Hawaii’s sport, and that’s where it started,” she said. “I hope I am a good ambassador for our sport and the aloha spirit and for our people. It gives the people of Hawaii hope that they can do anything they dream of.” Ferreira claimed the gold medal in the men’s event despite snapping his board on the first wave in his final against Japan’s Kanoa Igarashi.

Ferreira, who learned to surf standing on the foam box his father sold fish from, had to bob up and down in the ocean as a team official brought him a replacement. But he recovered to turn in an imperious performance, dominating the contest before being carried back up the beach on his teammates’ shoulders. Moore went into the women’s competition as the world number one, and was helped along the way by upsets that eliminated several of her main rivals. Underdog Buitendag knocked out seven-time world champion Stephanie Gilmore and world number six Caroline Marks on her way to the final, but Moore was just too hot to handle. Japan’s Amuro Tsuzuki beat Marks to win the women’s bronze medal. The medal events — originally scheduled to take place on Wednesday — were moved forward to Tuesday to take advantage of favourable wave conditions. Fans were locked out of Tsurigasaki Beach, around 100 kilometres (60 miles) east of Tokyo, but the surfers were happy with their sport’s Olympic debut.