Kelly Slater swoops on Joel Parkinson, Kirra Point, Gold Coast

Hey kid, wanna know something? Kelly Slater just won his 52nd world tour event, being the Quiksilver Pro, Gold Coast. He beat Joel Parkinson in the final with 18.56 points. You can read a full breakdown here, but for now let us discuss the two moments you see on this page.

Above, Kelly uses his priority and drops in on Joel to stop him getting a score, while Joel expresses his thoughts on Kelly’s move with a hand gesture. “I was actually hoping he’d break his board,” laughed Kelly later. “I had priority. He had a good wave. It didn’t matter. If he didn’t go on that wave, I would have taken that wave. It just looked like a big, throaty one. I thought it did look a little long to stay open. I was sitting on that corner down there. That’s where that sand starts to come into the bay. That was my game plan all day.”

And, below, Kelly is chaired up the beach. He seemed to be having as much fun as ever after winning, without a hint of jadedness, and even invited ‘Russ the Didge man’ (who you’ve seen in photos and on webcasts summoning waves with his instrument) on stage to play a song after the acceptance speeches. The king continues to surprise.

Photo: Trevor Moran