...the Pinoy world surfing champ

Surfing: PH’s John Mark Tokong tops world competition in hometown Siargao

Kleeseter Macasero

ABS-CBN News

11 October 2019

GENERAL LUNA, Surigao del Norte—Local surfer John Mark Tokong on Wednesday afternoon won the 25th Siargao Cloud 9 International Surfing Cup in this town's world-renowned Cloud 9 surf break with only 45 seconds remaining in the heat.

John Mark Tokong of the Philippines nails a 360 air reverse after a successful barrel over the renowned Cloud 9 break, keying his win during the finals of the 25th Siargao Cloud 9 International Surfing Cup in General Luna town, Surigao del Norte, on Wednesday. Kleester Macasero, ABS-CBN News

The Siargao competition is part of the World Surfing League (WSL) qualifying series.

Tokong's win is his second after the WSL-Asian Surfing Championship QS 1,500 Siargao International Surfing Cup in 2015, and it enabled him to redeem himself of a 2018 loss.

Tokong, 23, locally known as Marama, thrilled fans in a late comeback during the final heat of the competition, edging out a few points 16.80 to 16.75 against island surfer Noah Beschen from Hawaii, and besting 64 competitors from 13 countries to win. 

“I just had to stay calm and cool amid the pressure, I did not push or rushed, but of course I gave it my best,” Tokong said.

The victory came as a sweet redemption for Tokong after a loss to Skip McCullough of the US in the 2018 finals of the WSL Siargao Cloud 9 International Surfing Cup.

McCullough returned to Siargao, but he and Koby Oberholzer of South Africa were eliminated in Round 3 of the competition sending Tokong and Australian Thomas Cervi to the quarterfinals. 

In the quarterfinals, Tokong beat Indonesia’s Oney Anwar 18.75 to 9.50 points to give the Filipino surfer a lead toward the semifinals.

In the semifinals, Tokong gave his best run with a 9.50, 9.55, 8.60 and capping off with a 8.75 to top Tomas King of Costa Rica 19.05 to 15.30. 

John Mark Tokong of the Philippines nails a 360 air reverse after a successful barrel over the renowned Cloud 9 break, keying his win during the finals of the 25th Siargao Cloud 9 International Surfing Cup in General Luna town, Surigao del Norte, on Wednesday. Kleester Macasero, ABS-CBN News

Spectacular finals

In the finals, even with a few good barrels, Tokong and Beschen began to look more to the air for scores as the classic Cloud 9 tubes became harder to find. The two went toe to toe, with Tokong holding the upper hand a majority of the 40-minute matchup.

Tokong's first two waves initially gave him the lead, 9.00 and 5.75 respectively, but Beschen made a series of quick rides on the wave giving him 8.15 and 6.25 and several more waves than what Tokong was giving.

With only two minutes left, Beschen took off on a set and lined up for a tube that never eventuated, forcing him to launch a massive straight air slob grab. Beschen landed the air smoothly and posted an 8.60 to take the lead and what looked to be his first qualifying series victory.

Then Tokong swung on a set wave with 45 seconds and pulled into a deep tube as the 20-second countdown started, came out and bashed the lip, posting a 7.80 and taking the final by just 0.05 of a point.

"In the end, I almost gave up because there was no time left and then when that wave came I knew exactly what I had to do,” Tokong said.

"Noah is such a crazy surfer, he does so many airs and is so good in these kinds of waves so it was sick to have a final with him. Being from Hawaii he's so good in the barrel and at hitting big sections so I loved surfing with him at Cloud 9.”

On its 25th year, the Cloud 9 competition is part of the WSL Asia sanctioned men’s qualifying series. This year, the WSL Asia has given the event a QS-1,500 category, giving surfers on the circuit a chance to gain additional QS points with a total $15,000 in prize money up for grabs.

“With the QS ranking, surfers are expecting more WQS points, giving competitors a chance to gain higher overall WQS ranking points. Everyone wants a slice of the points, the prize money is more of an added icing on the cake,” event director Gerry Degan said.

The winning surfer will bring home $5,000, while the second spot $3,000 and third spot $1,500.

In the first round kick-off on October 4, surfers from the Philippines, Australia, Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Hawaii, Japan, Indonesia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, the US, and Venezuela advanced to Round 2 of the competition. By the third round, only Tokong was left of the 21 Filipino surfers who competed. 

The WSL plans to make the event bigger next year, as the Philippine Sports Commission promised to help organize and raise funds for the event in 2020. 

...the surfing destination

PH makes waves in world surfing map

Elaine Abonal on surfboard

By Norman Sison,
VERA Files


With over 7,100 islands to choose from, the Philippines is known for its postcard-lovely beaches. Of late, it has been making waves on the world map of surfing.

One Internet site, Wanna Surf (http://www.wannasurf.com/), describes the Philippines as "one of the last surfing frontiers". It lists 35 spots in the country. Fourteen of those are in Siargao Island alone, in the south.

San Juan town in La Union province is the northern Philippines' surfing capital. It is blessed with two surfing seasons — July to October and November to March — when waves spawned by the north swell crest from five to 12 feet.

Singapore-based Anne-Marie Bakker is often in San Juan with her white fiberglass board when she visits her parents' home in San Fernando City, less than half an hour south of San Juan. "Rain or shine, all the time I'm out there," says Bakker, whose cigar company, JB Global, champions Philippine-made cigars abroad and makes custom blends.

If she's not in San Juan, she is out in the water at her beachfront home. "It's hard not to be in the water and the elements when all is so near and tangible," says Bakker, who is half-Filipina and half-Dutch. Her love for surfing gave her an idea to put up a water company, Alon ("wave" in Filipino), also in Singapore.

At Urbiztondo Beach, resorts sport walls decorated with framed photos of big-name surfers and visitors. San Juan Surf Resort, which boasts of several trophies from past international surfing competitions, is home to Filipino-Australian surfer Luke Landrigan, who has flown the Philippine flag in competitions overseas.

"La Union became known abroad because of surfing," says local resident Joy Agustin-Oropesa, who hails from neighboring Bacnotan town, also a surfing spot. "Before surfing became popular, people just went to the beach during the summer. The beach is the province's only tourism attraction."

A Japanese started the surfing trend in La Union in the 1980s. Kazuo Akinaga, who was then working for a surfboard company, read about the Philippines in a magazine. He came, he surfed, he stayed. Today, he lives near the beach in San Juan. His dream: to produce surfboards "made in the Philippines" as most boards are imported and expensive.

Surfing was only what Elaine Abonal calls an "underground sport" when she took up the board 10 years ago. There were hardly any surfing schools and resorts back then, she recalls.

But things have changed. "More surf brands are coming to the Philippines because they know that there is a market here. There are more events and sponsors," says Abonal, who runs Surfista Travels
(http://www.surfistatravels.com/).

Local tourism in La Union is mostly dead during the rainy season. The province is often in the path of typhoons rampaging usually from the Pacific. But typhoons don't scare off everybody. "Surfing addicts are still at it even after a typhoon," says Oropesa. "Most of them are foreigners. The bigger the waves, the better."

This time of the year is for beginners aside from the usual beachgoers escaping the heat, when waves roll in much more gently, just enough to lift swimmers off their feet. But the sea still pounds the off white sand with a crash.

At the north end of Urbiztondo Beach, to avoid ramming swimmers, local tourists — including children — are on surfboards, lined up in the water, taking pointers from local instructors. They wait for that perfect wave and they get a helpful nudge from their instructors. Most wipe out after three seconds. Girls scream in delight as they go down with a big splash.

Aside from targeting surfers abroad, introducing surfing as a fun ride to locals has become a niche market for tour operators. "Surfing takes going to the beach to a whole new and meaningful level because you actually play with the sea or the ocean," says Abonal.

But surfing is not for everybody. It needs a certain skill set, time for travel and money. "Here in the Philippines, surfing is mostly marketed towards the 18-35 age bracket, associating the sport with the easygoing, beach lifestyle so many of us young professionals yearn for," says Cedric Valera, a managing partner at Travel Factor.

Travel Factor (http://www.travelfactor.org/) offers budget weekend tour packages, bringing visitors from Manila for a day of surfing in San Juan. Surfboards and lessons are included. You leave Manila on a Friday midnight in a van. It is a six-hour ride north. You have stopovers in Tarlac and Pangasinan provinces along the way for bathroom breaks and breakfast. You arrive in San Juan between 6 and 7 a.m., and you are on a surfboard by 9 a.m.

There are factors that come into play when selling surfing to local tourists. "A typical Filipino's idea of a beach is one that is safe, calm and suitable for swimming and frolicking around," says Valera. "Filipinos, in general, are scared of the water!"

Also, Filipinos don't like to travel during the monsoon season. However, that is when peak surfing conditions arrive.

As for selling the Philippines to experienced surfers abroad, the main consideration is the inconsistent quality of the waves. Philippine waters are fickle unlike those in Australia, Bali or Hawaii. So, the trick is to know when to visit.

There are things that make up for it, however, such as that world-renowned warm Filipino touch. "Some of our foreigner participants are so delighted with their one-on-one surfing lessons because their instructor is so kind, welcoming and caring compared to the instructors they enlisted in Bali or Australia," says Valera. "The Philippines has world-class surf spots. Couple that with our trademark Filipino hospitality and we've got ourselves something to offer to the world."




surf board sign

...the PH surf capital

World Junior Surfing finals to be held in Siargao Island in September

BEN SERRANO, GMA News

07/18/2011

SURIGAO CITY- Over 200 junior surfers from 40 different countries are expected to join the prestigious World Junior Surfing Competition in General Luna town in Siargao Island in September this year.


             


During the 68th Caraga Regional Development Council meeting, First District Rep. Rep. Francisco Tinio Matugas (Surigao del Norte), Matugas said, "This event will add another honor and will bring local and foreign tourists and surfers for Siargao Island which the country’s surfing capital."

In 2010, the World Junior Surfing Competition was held in Brazil.

Out of the 276 surfers who joined the competition, 171 competed in the intense 48 heats of the "Under 18" and "Under 16" boys divisions.

The competition also has "Under 18" and "Under 16" girls divisions/

The elimination rounds of the World Junior surfing competition will be held in Indonesia, Malaysia and Australia.

The championship rounds will be held at Cloud 9, General Luna in Siargao Island. - VVP, GMA News