HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif., April 1, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Smith Grudge Match International is an online video competition comprised of eight two-man teams representing their home country seeded in a head-to-head, tournament style bracket. Surfline's users become judges as they are given the power to vote for their local heroes. $10,000 is awarded for the strength of their three best video clips captured during a three-month filming period (March1 – June 1, 2015).
Representing USA will be the dynamic Eric Geiselman, along with the man who Slater deems "the best freesurfer in the world" -- Nick Rozsa.
Powerful goofyfooter and excellent tube rider Marc Lacomare will represent France alongside aerial specialist Maxime Huscenot.
Gold Coast wildman Brent Dorrington and powerhouse Jay Davies will hold it down for Australia.
19-year-old shredder Slade Prestwich and the hard-charging Matt Bromley will represent South Africa.
The youngest competitor in the competition (who turned heads on the North Shore this season) Yago Dora along with one of the foremost rippers of his country Ian Gouveia will represent Brazil.
Jaws superstar Albee Layer and Pipeline mainstay Jamie O'Brien will represent Hawaii.
Shun Murakami, who recently made a name for himself at the Volcom Pipe Pro, and Japan's most visible surfer Masatashi Ohno are representing The Land of the Rising Sun.
Hailing from a coastal village in rural Sumbawa near some of Indonesia's best waves is Oney Anwar. Anwar and former Rip Curl Padang Padang winner Garut Widiarta are representing Indonesia.
FORMAT: Two video rides in one combined clip (one clip per surfer) during each round of competition: quarterfinals, semifinals and finals. Surfline users will watch eight quarterfinal videos and pick the four teams to advance to the semis. Users will then watch four semifinal videos and pick the two teams to advance to the finals. Users will then watch two finals videos and pick the overall winner.
VOTING CRITERIA: Commitment and Degree of Difficulty, Innovative and Progressive Maneuvers, Combination of Major Maneuvers, Variety of Maneuvers, Speed, Power and Flow.
TIMING: All rides must be filmed between March 1 and June 1, 2015. Quarterfinals voting begins on June 22. Semifinals voting begins on July 6. Final round of voting begins on July 20. Voting closes at midnight July 27. The winning community will be announced on July 30.
Teams:
France: Marc Lacomare, Maxime Huscenot
AUS: Brent Dorrington, Jay Davies
US: Eric Geiselman, Nick Rozsa
HI: Albee Layer, Jamie O'Brien
South Africa: Slade Prestwich, Matt Bromley
Brazil: Ian Gouveia, Yago Dora
Japan: Shun Murakami, Masatashi Ohno
Indo: Oney Anwar, Garut Widiarta
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