IS THIS SLATER’S LAST CHANCE TO ROCK SNAPPER
KELLY Slater will add a third stop to his Australian World Surf League schedule by competing for potentially the last time on the Gold Coast.
Slater has confirmed to WSL officials he will enter the lineup at Snapper Rocks, Coolangatta, for the Gold Coast Pro, to begin on Saturday.
The 50-year-old American will be one of multiple big names set to compete in the second-tier Challenger Series event, with Steph Gilmore to return home to take part while Sally Fitzgibbons will also surf after missing the top 21 cut in the Championship Tour. More surfers from the CT could join them once officials finalise the men’s and women’s cut this week.
Slater’s inclusion is expected to draw huge crowds to Snapper Rocks, with fans unsure if it will be the last time they will see him competing at the iconic surfing location.
The 11-time world champion continues to defy his age and is currently ranked fourth in the world in a season where he has already won the Billabong Pro Pipeline in Hawaii.
The Gold Coast has been a happy hunting ground for Slater, who has celebrated six world tour wins on the Glitter Strip, including two in the Billabong Pro (1997 and 1998) and four in the Quiksilver Pro (2006, 2008, 2011 and 2013).
Slater finished 17th at the Rip Curl Bells Beach in Victoria after being eliminated in the Round of 32 on April 13 and was expected to take on Brazilian Jadson Andre at the same stage of the Margaret River Pro in Western Australia on Tuesday.