Alessa Quizon and Pauline Ado Take Third, With Quizon Earning the GoBank “New Kid on the Wave” Award

Oceanside, Calif. (August 4, 2013) — Thousands of fans converged at the iconic Oceanside Pier this weekend for the Ford Supergirl Pro— the largest all-women’s surf contest in the world. The three-day contest, the only ASP 6-Star competition in North America, came to a thrilling close on Sunday with Hawaii’s Malia Manuel taking the Supergirl cape and the title. Spectators packed the beach for the finals as 12 of the world’s best female surfers took to the waves to battle for a piece of the $40,000 purse. Three-time runner-up, Manuel, eventually bested last year’s runner-up, Paige Hareb (New Plymouth, NZ), in the head-to-head finals round to claim the $8,000 top prize.

After three days of competition, the field of 96 competitors was ultimately narrowed to two head-to-head semifinal rounds between Paige Hareb and Alessa Quizon and between Malia Manuel and Pauline Ado; sending Hareb and Manuel to battle for the title.

Manuel led the Ford Supergirl Pro throughout the event’s entirety, owning the top scores of each round while progressing to the final. The Hawaiian’s dominance would continue while securing the major victory, belting a 9.57 and 7.67 with powerful combinations on both her forehand and backhand to earn her first victory of the 2013 season.

Paige Hareb, who finished runner-up at last year’s Ford Supergirl Pro, matched her efforts in Oceanside again this year. The talented Kiwi put in a polished performance throughout the entirety of the event, but was unable to find the scores needed to surpass Manuel in the final.

“Coming off a tough result in the U.S. Open last weekend, I was definitely motivated to do well here,” said Manuel.  “The Supergirl contest is the most prestigious 6-Star event in the world and California is like a second home to me, so it was important for me to be confident and do well.  Luckily my boards were working well, and I had great support. It feels great to finally win! The crowd was bigger and better this year. It was an incredible event. I’m looking forward to coming back again next year.”

FORD SUPERGIRL PRO FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Malia Manuel (HAW) 17.24
2 – Paige Hareb (NZL) 3.37

FORD SUPERGIRL PRO SEMIFINALS RESULTS:
SF 1: Malia Manuel (HAW) 16.33 def. Pauline Ado (FRA) 8.27
SF 2:  Paige Hareb (NZL) 12.00 def. Alessa Quizon (HAW) 7.60

FORD SUPERGIRL PRO QUARTERFINALS RESULTS:
QF 1: Malia Manuel (HAW) 12.50 def. Silvana Lima (BRA) 8.30
QF 2: Pauline Ado (FRA) 12.37 def. Justine Dupont (FRA) 10.16
QF 3: Alessa Quizon (HAW) 13.77 def. Coco Ho (HAW) 10.30
QF 4: Paige Hareb (NZL) 12.63 def. Nikki Van Dijk (AUS) 11.84

FORD SUPERGIRL PRO ROUND OF 12 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Malia Manuel (HAW) 15.03, Pauline Ado (FRA) 13.43, Rebecca Woods (AUS) 5.33
Heat 2: Justine Dupont (FRA) 11.26, Silvana Lima (BRA) 8.47, Anali Gomez (PER) 7.70
Heat 3: Alessa Quizon (HAW) 14.50, Paige Hareb (NZL) 13.57, Bethany Hamilton (HAW) 9.00
Heat 4: Nikki Van Dijk (AUS) 12.60, Coco Ho (HAW) 10.33, Phillipa Anderson (AUS) 8.50

“This has been an amazing contest and we’re thrilled to have Ford on board as our title sponsor,” said Rick Bratman, CEO of ASA Entertainment, the event’s management company and one of the leading producers of action sports event and television programming in the U.S. “The level of talent this year was incredible. We congratulate Malia on her win – she’s been so close to winning for three years, so she definitely earned the Supergirl title today.”

The Ford Supergirl Pro presented by Paul Mitchell is the only ASP 6-Star female event in North America. It’s the second event of the 2013 Supergirl Jam Series, the action sports industry’s largest all-female competition and lifestyle series, featuring more than 150 female pros in surfing, skateboarding and snowboarding. The event will be broadcast on Fox Sports Net (FSN) Friday, Nov. 1 at 5 p.m. and 11 p.m. For more detailed information on the Ford Supergirl Pro, please visit www.SupergirlJam.comor www.asaentertainment.com.

“Once again, the world’s best female surfers showed what being Supergirl is all about,” said Barry Ziehl, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing and Public Relations for Warner Bros. Consumer Products. “Malia Manuel showed us the power of persistence—having come in second place three times in this event in past years, but never giving up to finally take home the coveted Supergirl cape.”

About ASA Entertainment:
Founded in 1994, ASA Entertainment Group, LLC is an action sports event, television and content production agency focused on creating and executing customized, turn-key marketing programs that range in scale from grassroots to global.  ASA’s events, featuring skateboarding, freestyle BMX, inline skating, freestyle motocross, snowboarding, surfing and music, are broadcast domestically on eight networks (including CBS and Fox Sports Net), and distributed to more than 700 million HH globally via 30 international broadcast partners.  ASA’s productions span the spectrum from large, international competitions such as the ASA Action Sports World Tour, the World Championships of Freestyle Motocross, The Supergirl Jam Series and the ASA Big-Air Triples to amateur contests, lifestyle and branded entertainment events, demonstrations, exhibitions, school programs and mobile tours. After 17 years as a leader in action sports, ASA Entertainment regularly connects brands to consumers through its platform of premium action sports and lifestyle content.  For more information, visitASAentertainment.com or ActionSportsTour.com.

About ASP:
The Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) is the governing body of professional surfing. Crowning surfing’s undisputed world champions since 1976, the ASP sanctions the following tours: the ASP World Tour, the ASP Women’s World Tour, the World Qualifying Series (WQS) and the World Longboarding, Junior and Masters Championships. The ASP is dedicated to showcasing the world’s best surfing talent in a variety of progressive formats and has revolutionized the way the world watches surfing via their webcasts. The organization is divided into seven different regions: Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, Hawaii, North America, and South America.

About Ford Motor Company:
Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. With about 175,000 employees and 65 plants worldwide, the company’s automotive brands include Ford and Lincoln. For more information regarding Ford and its products worldwide, please visit http://corporate.ford.com.

About GoBank
GoBank is a brand of Green Dot Bank, Member FDIC. GoBank is the first bank account designed from scratch to be opened and used on a mobile device. With GoBank, members have full access and control of their money from their iPhone, iPod Touch or Android device, and can withdraw cash from more than 42,000 fee-free ATMs in the U.S. For more information about GoBank, visit http://gobank.com. You can also visit http://facebook.com/GoBankUS or http://twitter.com/GoBank.

About Warner Bros. Consumer Products:
Warner Bros. Consumer Products, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, is one of the leading licensing and retail merchandising organizations in the world.

About DC Entertainment:
DC Entertainment, home to iconic brands DC Comics (Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, The Flash), Vertigo (Sandman, Fables) and MAD, is the creative division charged with strategically integrating its content across Warner Bros. Entertainment and Time Warner.  DC Entertainment works in concert with many key Warner Bros. divisions to unleash its stories and characters across all media, including but not limited to film, television, consumer products, home entertainment and interactive games. Publishing thousands of comic books, graphic novels and magazines each year, DC Entertainment is the largest English-language publisher of comics in the world.  In January 2012, DC Entertainment, in collaboration with Warner Bros. and Time Warner divisions, launched We Can Be Heroes—a giving campaign featuring the iconic Justice League super heroes—to raise awareness and funds to fight the hunger crisis in the Horn of Africa.

SUPERGIRL and all related characters and elements are trademarks of and © DC Comics.(s13)

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Media Contacts:
Brendi Rawlin                                                                                     Bobby Shadley
Limelight PR for ASA Entertainment Group, LLC              Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP)
619-549-3066 Mobile                                                                   (949) 290-9135 Mobile
619-546-7488 Main                                                                       (714) 536-3500 Main
brendi@thelimelightpr.com                                                         bobby@aspworldtour.com