Jay-r Esquivel and John Mark Tokong, both highly acclaimed and award-winning Pinoy surfers, dominated in their respective events to conclude an impressive Philippine contingent performance at the La Union International Pro 2024 held on the shores of San Juan, La Union last January 22 to 26, 2024.
Siargaonon John Mark Tokong, also called “Marama,” claimed victory in the Shortboard Qualifying Series (QS) division, beating Swedish surfer Kian Martin in their finals encounter and gaining 3000 points to bolster him up the rankings.
San Juan, La Union local Jay-r Esquivel also took care of business and used his familiarity in his home court as he emerged victorious in the Longboard QS event to get ahead of Japanese surfer and Asia’s #1 longboard athlete Kai Hamase in the final round.
Esquivel’s 2024 victory in the said category marks an extremely impressive back-to-back after securing the championship during the tournament’s 2023 edition.
The women’s division, on the other hand, saw two Japanese surfers bring home victories as Kana Nakashio and Kaede Inoue topscored in the Shortboard and Longboard divisions respectively.
The La Union International Pro was an international surfing tournament sanctioned by the biggest global surfing organization, the World Surf League (WSL). The United Philippine Surfing Association (UPSA) organized the event that drew 113 local and international surfers.
Next up is the WSL Baler International Pro that will run from February 1 to 7, 2024 on the shores of Sabang in Baler, Aurora.