Sarah Baum and Frederico Morais win WSL J-Bay Classic

Frederico Morais and Sarah Baum held on after their victories. Photo: Kody McGregor // WSL

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The World Surf League J-Bay Classic, a special event taking place in South Africa’s iconic Jeffrey’s Bay, has come to an end. The competition was first announced in February in response to J-Bay’s cancellation of the Championship Tour and featured a line-up of talented surfers competing in both high-performance and alternative formats. In the end, however, there could only be one winner for each event, with Sarah Baum and Frederico Morais taking top honors.

Sarah Baum had perhaps the most exciting path to the finals possible. Photo: Pierre Tostee // WSL

Sarah Baum’s road to victory was a true underdog story. The South African surfer was not part of the originally announced roster, but previously earned her spot in the main competition by winning a trial event held beforehand. As a result, she was the crowd favorite going into her final heat against Australian Sally Fitzgibbons. Although Fitzgibbons built an early lead with two mid-range scores, Baum finally came online later in the heat, scoring an excellent 8.00 to stay in the match. Then everything changed when she left for a wave at the last minute. Two huge turns, capped off by an explosive whitewater exit, gave her the win, to the cheers of an ecstatic crowd.

“I can’t even believe what just happened,” Baum told the WSL. “As soon as I hit that wave, all the emotions were flowing, uncontrollably. Normally I don’t claim waves, but I did claim that wave. I heard everyone on the beach blowing up, I even got goosebumps on my head.”

“Seeing Baumy go for the score and see her make that turn and the crowd erupt, I think that has replaced my fondest memory of J-Bay by far,” Fitzgibbons said. “To be part of a very important moment when she is the first South African to win since 1987, I think it is a good way to end this week. I couldn’t ask for anything more, I’m so pleased and satisfied.”

Frederico Morais fought through the doldrums to win his men’s event. Photo: Kody McGregor // WSL

The men’s final came down to a heat between Portugal’s Frederico Morais and South Africa’s Michael February. The pair spent much of the time waiting for the sets to come in, in what even the WSL press release described as “an agonizingly slow heat.” Ultimately, Morais was able to record consecutive scores of 6.00 and 6.83, putting Februari on the defensive. February fought hard to come back from behind, but in the end, even when a big wave finally appeared, it wasn’t enough to regain the lead.

“J-Bay is not a place, it is an emotion,” Morais summarized. “It’s the best golf in the world. J-Bay has always been nice to me, the wave, the people, I love it here. It was a super special week with a bit of competition, a bit of free surfing, it’s exactly what I was looking for.” He also added that the event was literally the first time he surfed a twin-fin, which made his victory over alternative form style master February all the more impressive.