SURFERMAG.COM ONLINE EXCLUSIVES

Three of the event's big guns - Brazil's Wiggolly Dantas, South Africa's Jordy Smith and Hawaii's Granger Larsen - were relegated to the long road of the Under 18 repechage rounds in a day of upsets at the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships at Maresias, Brazil, today.

Smith and Dantas made the finals of this event at Huntington Beach, USA, last year (in the Under 18s and Under 16s respectively) and Larsen has been in outstanding form this week, but today they failed to get through the fourth round of the Under 18 Qualifying. The trio are still alive in the contest but now have a much harder route, having to surf an extra three heats, to make the finals.

The day started in clean, three foot (one metre) surf but competition was postponed mid-afternoon when a strong, onshore wind blew through the contest site at Maresias Beach.

Dantas, the current Under 18 Brazilian champion, said he wasn't too fazed by having to contest the sudden-death repechages, where a third or fourth placing means instant elimination.

"I'm feeling OK," he said after today's loss. "It's going to be harder to make the final but I'll do my best. In California last year, I had to go through the repechages to make the final so it's nothing new."

Jordy Smith, 18, from Durban, who won the Under 16 world title at his home break of North Beach in 2003, was also philosophical about today's loss: "I'm not feeling too bad. I just want to focus on the next heat. Now it's pretty much just an extended contest for me and I'm ready for it. My boards feel good, and everything is full bore ahead."

In a major upset, Venuzuela's Rafael Pereira knocked USA's Dillon Perillo and Hawaii's Dylan Malamed out of the Under 16 competition. Despite a strong challenge from his more touted rivals, Pereira held on to second place behind Tahiti's Tamaroa McComb in their round four repechage.

It was an amazing performance considering that Pereira, 16, had just finished a heat in an Under 18 repechage at the second podium, and had progressed in that division, before competing again on the main podium.

"I feel very good and I'm very happy," Pereira said after his mammoth effort. "These are the biggest wins I've ever had. I feel really prepared to get to the finals of both divisions and I'm hungry for it."

All teams have now lost at least one competitor from the event and four countries share equal first place  defending world junior champions Hawaii, along with Australia, South Africa and France.

Dylan Malamed is Hawaii's first loss of a team member from the contest and they now have 11 remaining to help defend their world junior teams title.

Australia also lost their first team member today, Under 16s Garrett Parkes (Byron Bay, NSW), as did France with Under 18s Adrien Toyon being eliminated.

Brazil lost two surfers today  Dodo Veiga in the Under 18s and Johnny Max in the Under 16s, while New Zealand lost three  Billy Stairmand (Under 18), Sean Peggs (Under 16) and Ryan Hawker (Under 16).

France's Marc Lacomare continued his outstanding form in this event by posting today's highest heat score of 16.47 (out of 20 points), which included an excellent 8.57 score.

Brazil's Diana Souza top-scored round four of the Under 18 Girls Qualifying, with 13.16, and Australia's Sally Fitzgibbons was next highest, scoring 12.77 in winning her heat.

In a day of drama, Team USA lodged an official protest after one of their surfers, Kolohe Andino, was eliminated in the Under 16 round four repechage.

USA team manager Mike Cianciulli, said they felt the judges should have called an interference on New Zealand's number one Under 16 seed, Paco Divers. "Divers took off on the same wave as Andino near the end of the heat when Andino only needed a 4.4 and they should have called it," Cianciulli said. Andino was eliminated from the whole event after placing fourth. Divers and Japan's Kento Takahashi progressed. A result on the protest will be known tomorrow.

And the swell is also expected to increase tomorrow.