This super high and tweaked aerial from Morgan helped adding points on the way to the title. | Photos: John Carter / PWA

Victory! Morgan Noireaux won the PWA Aloha Classic 2015 and thus is the first sailor to defend this title in two consecutive years!

After winning the single elimination last week, the reigning Aloha Classic Champion Morgan Noireaux HI-101 had to wait patiently to see who would qualify to be his challenger in the double. And it was his former JP team mate Kauli Seadi who made it to the final – again!

In the final, Morgan sailed very clever and tactical heat catching 2 very big waves. Commentator Jason Polakow saw him winning this final already because of Noireaux’s superior wave selection. Nevertheless, the judges gave it to Seadi with by a 0.14 lead.

In the Super Final, Seadi and Noireaux, took slightly different approaches with Seadi opting to keep busy by working numerous slightly smaller waves on the inside, whilst Noireaux was happy to play the waiting game and patiently wait for the sets without panicking. This saw Seadi race into an early lead, but Noireaux’s patience eventually paid off as he came from behind to completely reverse the tables — with a combination of radical super vert aerials and powerful cutbacks under the lip paying dividends as he was awarded 8.88 points and 7 point wave scores in quick succession. The Hawaiian’s, Brazilian opponent went for broke, but it wasn’t to be for Seadi as Noireaux became the first man to successfully defend PWA Aloha Classic titles with another mightily impressive display.

Morgan Noireaux reacts to winning back-to-back Aloha Classics:“It feels amazing, to be honest I thought I’d got a 1st and a 2nd there for a little bit, so it’s nice to find out I’d won. In the first heat I thought I sailed pretty consistent and then in that second heat I made a few mistakes. I managed to catch a pretty nice set wave to bring it back though. I thought I’d lost when I came in so it’s obviously a relief to find out that I didn’t.”

On being patient in the final Noireaux added:“Yeah, I saw Kauli going for the little insiders, but I didn’t think it was worth it because I had a solid set wave in the bag already, so then I was just trying to find another wave like that opening one. – I just didn’t wanna start going goiters and what not on the inside – I just wanted to get some decent turns. Overall though it didn’t feel like I waited that long, but I’m happy that the bit of patience I showed in waiting for the bigger sets ones paid off.”