logo
Japan's O'Leary beats world number one Dora to take J-Bay win

Japan's O'Leary beats world number one Dora to take J-Bay win

Straits Times19-07-2025
Japan's Connor O'Leary won his first world championship tour title at the Corona Open J-Bay in South Africa on Friday.
O'Leary had the event's only 10-point ride in the semi-finals as he knocked out three-time J-Bay winner Filipe Toledo, before beating another Brazilian in world number one Yago Dora in the final.
The Australian-born O'Leary only rode three waves but racked up scores of 8.17 and 7.50 in his second and third runs, giving him a two-wave total of 15.67 of a possible 20, well clear of Dora's 14.23.
"All the stars aligned for this one, so I'm stoked. It felt good to have so many people cheering for me, and then to perform for them," said O'Leary, a goofy-footer, or one who stands with his right foot forward.
"I intended to do some of the best backhand surfing you've ever seen, and to compete with a fellow goofy in the final, hopefully it inspires other goofy-foot surfers that they can compete against the best in perfect right-hand point breaks."
World number two Gabriela Bryan won the women's event with a hard-fought victory over Australian world number one Molly Picklum, totalling 13.60 with efforts of 6.67 and 6.93 to outdo Picklum's opening 7.67.
Picklum finished with a total of 13.34.
"I came here early, putting in a lot of time here, and it paid off. I'm so stoked. It's been a dream of mine to win here at J-Bay. It's an iconic wave and one of my favourites in the world," Hawaii's Bryan said.
The tour next heads to Tahiti. The top five men and women after the 11-stop tour will then compete for the world title in a one-day, winner-takes-all Finals Day in Fiji.
Picklum, Byran and Caity Simmers (U.S.) have qualified for the women's event, while only Dora has sealed his spot in the men's competition. REUTERS
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Norris takes Spa pole on all-McLaren front row
Norris takes Spa pole on all-McLaren front row

Straits Times

timean hour ago

  • Straits Times

Norris takes Spa pole on all-McLaren front row

Formula One F1 - Belgian Grand Prix - Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium - July 26, 2025 Red Bull's Max Verstappen poses with a trophy after winning the sprint race alongside second place McLaren's Oscar Piastri and third place McLaren's Lando Norris REUTERS/Yves Herman SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium - McLaren's Lando Norris edged out his championship-leading teammate and title rival Oscar Piastri for pole position at the Belgian Grand Prix on Saturday. The Briton blasted around the long and flowing Spa-Francorchamps circuit in a best time of one minute 40.562 seconds, with Piastri a mere 0.085 slower, to secure his fourth pole in 13 races and 13th of his career. Norris will be chasing his third win in a row, in what looks like being a wet race on Sunday despite Saturday's sunshine, to cut the Australian's nine-point lead. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc will start third and Red Bull's reigning champion Max Verstappen, winner of the 100 km sprint, qualified fourth for his team's first grand prix under the leadership of Laurent Mekies after Christian Horner was sacked. "The car has been flying all weekend, Oscar's been doing a good job all weekend so we're pushing each other a lot," said Norris, who was third in the sprint with Piastri second. "It's tough because you kind of see where your strengths and weaknesses are. And you learn from each other quickly. It's a good but tough battle that we have at the minute." Norris had been fastest in the opening phase of qualifying, with Piastri a close second, and the positions were reversed in the second segment before the top-10 shootout and the Briton coming out on top. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Woman taken to hospital after car falls into sinkhole on Tanjong Katong Road Singapore Students hide vapes in underwear, toilet roll holders: S'pore schools grapple with vaping scourge Singapore 'I've tried everything': Mum helpless as son's Kpod addiction spirals out of control Singapore NDP 2025: How Benjamin Kheng is whisked from Marina Bay to Padang in 10 minutes by boat, buggy Singapore Almost half of planned 30,000 HDB flats in Tengah to be completed by end-2025: Chee Hong Tat Singapore From libraries to living rooms: How reading habits take root in underserved S'pore children Asia Thai-Cambodia clashes spread along frontier as death toll rises Asia Thousands rally in downtown Kuala Lumpur for resignation of PM Anwar "I felt like the car was very good again, but it's fine margins out there. It's obviously not a bad place to be starting but there was more in it, which is always disappointing," Piastri said. "After the sprint, I was aiming for P2," he said, referring to Verstappen winning from that position. Behind the top four, Alex Albon qualified fifth for Williams with George Russell sixth for Mercedes and ahead of Red Bull's Yuki Tsunoda. Racing Bulls had Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson eighth and ninth with Sauber's Brazilian rookie Gabriel Bortoleto completing the top 10. Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton, last year's winner with Mercedes, failed to get through the first phase after his best lap was deleted for exceeding track limits. The seven-times world champion, who has yet to stand on the podium since his move to Ferrari at the end of last season, will start 16th. REUTERS

Groves avoids crash to win Tour Stage 20, Pogacar retains lead
Groves avoids crash to win Tour Stage 20, Pogacar retains lead

Straits Times

timean hour ago

  • Straits Times

Groves avoids crash to win Tour Stage 20, Pogacar retains lead

Find out what's new on ST website and app. PONTARLIER, France - Australian Kaden Groves completed his set of grand tour stage wins when he prevailed on the Tour de France's penultimate ride, avoiding a crash on slippery roads before powering to a solo triumph on the 184.2km journey from Nantua on Saturday. Groves's bike-handling skills were on display when he managed to stay up as Spain's Ivan Romeo and France's Romain Gregoire skidded out of control in front of him on a wet descent 21 kilometres from the finish. The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider then attacked from a reduced breakaway bunch and never looked back in the remaining 17 kilometres, bursting into tears in a mix of disbelief and exhaustion after the line. Groves, who gave his team their third victory in this year's Tour after Jasper Philipsen and Mathieu van der Poel also won, has seven Vuelta and two Giro d'Italia stage wins to his name. Dutchman Frank van den Broek took second place, 54 seconds behind, with his compatriot Pascal Eenkhoorn third, five seconds further back. Defending champion Tadej Pogacar spent a quiet day in the main peloton and made another step towards a fourth Tour title as he retained his overall leader's yellow jersey with a 4:24 advantage over Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard. The final stage is a 132.3km ride from Mantes-la-Jolie to Paris, where the peloton will cycle up the famous Butte Montmartre three times before the final laps on the Champs-Elysees. REUTERS Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Woman taken to hospital after car falls into sinkhole on Tanjong Katong Road Singapore Students hide vapes in underwear, toilet roll holders: S'pore schools grapple with vaping scourge Singapore 'I've tried everything': Mum helpless as son's Kpod addiction spirals out of control Singapore NDP 2025: How Benjamin Kheng is whisked from Marina Bay to Padang in 10 minutes by boat, buggy Singapore Almost half of planned 30,000 HDB flats in Tengah to be completed by end-2025: Chee Hong Tat Singapore From libraries to living rooms: How reading habits take root in underserved S'pore children Asia Thai-Cambodia clashes spread along frontier as death toll rises Asia Thousands rally in downtown Kuala Lumpur for resignation of PM Anwar

Norris takes pole in Belgium with Piastri second
Norris takes pole in Belgium with Piastri second

Straits Times

timean hour ago

  • Straits Times

Norris takes pole in Belgium with Piastri second

Find out what's new on ST website and app. Formula One F1 - Belgian Grand Prix - Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium - July 26, 2025 Red Bull's Max Verstappen poses with a trophy after winning the sprint race alongside second place McLaren's Oscar Piastri and third place McLaren's Lando Norris REUTERS/Yves Herman SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium - McLaren's Lando Norris pipped championship-leading teammate Oscar Piastri to pole position at the Belgian Grand Prix on Saturday. The Briton lapped the Spa-Francorchamps circuit in a best time of one minute 40.562 seconds with Piastri a mere 0.085 slower. Norris will be chasing his third win a row in Sunday's race. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc will start third and Red Bull's reigning champion Max Verstappen, winner of the earlier 100 km sprint, qualified fourth. Piastri leads Norris by nine points going into the 13th grand prix of the 24-round Formula One season. REUTERS

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store