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As a reminder, Surfatoll organized a photo contest that would reward the winner with a brand new Firewire board designed by Rob Machado. The contest ended at the end of September 2018, the winner’s photo obtained 221 Likes on FB (click here to see all submitted pictures) on that date. My home break is Salgueiral beach and some beaches south of Porto. We have good and consistent waves in the winter (Atlantic Ocean) but the water is cold… that was one of the reasons that my family and I (wife and an 11 year old son) chose the Maldives and the island of Thulusdhoo for our summer vacation in 2017. Breakfast made with pancakes and amazing tropical juices, take a few pictures before going into the water (among which I chose the one I  submitted to the Surfatoll photo contest) and surf until lunch.

Matt Wilkinson and Owen Wright decided to stay in the Maldives islands – the tropical jewel located in the middle of the Indian Ocean – before the next leg of the Championship Tour (CT), which will take place in Jeffreys Bay from July 12-23, 2017. Their choice got rewarded with excellent conditions of hot and turquoise water that allowed them to surf waves of exceptional quality! First, on Hudhuran Fushi (Lohis) in the northern atoll of Malé, the two Australians deployed their arsenal for impressive maneuvers under the astonished glance of the surfers on the hotel who had coffee in the iconic spot watching waves and sampling the incredible local cuisine. There are other amazing waves nearby that suit almost every level of surfing except for complete beginners since all waves break over the reef.

Taj Burrow took first place after battling the defending champion, Shane Dorian in the Final. Only six world champions are invited to battle for the coveted surfing trophy in the Maldives. Iboo surfed against some of his surf heroes like female superstar Bethany Hamilton, iconic soul surfer Rob Machado, the 2015 event champion Shane Dorian, the WSL deputy commissioner Travis Logie and Pipe specialist Jamie O’Brien. Areef went nose-to-nose with Burrow, but couldn’t win over the judges for the win.

The 300 million dollar building project threatened to destroy the world class break of Raalhugandhu and the surfing community only learned of these battle plans by witnessing the slow, calculated, and ominous invasion. In February, 13 were arrested, including Ahmed Aznil, president of the MSA (Maldivian Surfing Association). The intentions of the bridge building are certainly for the purpose of bettering the economic situation of Male’, capital city of the Maldives, by linking it to the Hulhule’ International Airport; however, the MSA does not purport to be against the building of the bridge, they only have the hope that it could be done thoughtfully, without destroying one of the national treasures of the Maldives. He stated that he had “proposed various surf development programs, national and international level contests and plans for sustainable surfing tourism in the Maldives,” but that his efforts had made little to no change.