Head to Jeffrey’s Bay for the 2008 Billabong Pro

The quiet holiday town of Jeffrey’s Bay in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, will once again come alive with world class surfing action that starts on 10 July 2008 and ends on 20 July 2008. Forty-five of the best surfers on the planet will descend on Jeffrey’s Bay, which is the fifth stop on the ASP World Tour 2008. The Supertubes will be host to the R2.3 million ($320 000) Billabong Pro for the twenty-seventh year.

Jeffrey’s Bay has been a surfing hotspot for more than forty years, and its most popular surfing site, Supertubes, is home to some of the most breathtaking hollow cylinders of waters that give surfers the opportunity to create the ride of their choice and display their skills in spectacular fashion. It is also known for having the best right hand point breaks. Here is where the world’s greatest will be battling it out to win the Billabong Pro 2008, the fifth leg of the ASP World Tour.

Many spectators and television audiences will keeping a close eye on the big names that will be attending, such as Mick Fanning (Reigning World Champion), Andy Irons (Former World Champion), Kelly Slater (Former World Champion and current leader in the ratings) and Taj Burrows (Defending Champion of the Jeffrey’s Bay event). The surfers and the countries they are representing are as follows:

  • Australia is represented by Mick Fanning, Taj Burrow, Joel Parkinson, Bede Durbidge, Dean Morrison, Kai Otton, Tom Whitaker, Luke Stedman, Michael Campbell, Adrian Buchan, Daniel Wills, Dayyan Neve, Ben Dunn, Luke Munro, Jay Thompson, Daniel Ross and Keiren Perrow.
  • From the United States, spectators can look forward to Kelly Slater, Bobby Martinez, CJ Hobgood, Taylor Knox, Damien Hobgood, Chris Ward, Tim Reyes, Dane Reynolds and Ben Bourgeois.
  • Surfers from South Africa include Ricky Basnett, Roydon Bryson, Travis Logie and Jordy Smith.
  • From Hawaii come Andy Irons, Pancho Sullivan, Fredrick Patacchia, Bruce Irons and Roy Powers.
  • Rodrigo Dornelles, Neco Padaratz, Leonardo Neves, Adriano De Souza, Jihad Khodr and Heitor Alves will be representing Brazil.
  • Jeremy Flores represents France
  • Tiago Pires is from Portugal
  • Basque Country will leave their mark on the contest through the talents of Aritz Aranburu.

Over and above the surfers and loyal fans that will be crowding the beaches, journalists, television crews, videographers and photographers from all over the world will also be attending, to bring the live action to various countries and commentary will be done in four languages. The VonZipper Wildcards Trials will also be a thrilling event, as aspiring professional surfers take to the waves to win a chance to compete against the world’s best. Updates and results will be available on the Billabong Pro website, but it is always better in real life and is an event that will again draw thousands of locals to Jeffrey’s Bay.