There was a severe case of deja vu at the Rip Curl Women's Pro presented by Ford Fiesta, at Bell's Beach, Australia, on Monday as current World Champion Surfer Stephanie Gilmore won for the second year in a row - after a heated final against Sofia Mulanovich ala their face off in 2007.
The Peruvian 2004 World Champion had the lead for most of the final, but Aussie Stephanie managed to take a right hander with just five minutes left of the competition: she weaved some stylish floaters and top turns through the swell to score the day's highest single-wave score of 9.33 out of 10.
However with her strong second place, following her season opener win at the Roxy Pro on the Gold Coast of Australia, Sofia retains her top spot at the current ASP Women's World Tour Rankings - and is the hottest contender to take the Champion title from Gilmore for 2008.
For the full report go to www.ripcurl.com/?prowHome_en and for the latest on the ASP World tour go to www.aspworldtour.com.
Images: ASP
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