It's Official, Kelly Slater Wins 11th World Title
There was no trophy or champagne on the podium, but an even larger showed up to watch Kelly Slater win his 11th world title Sunday at Ocean Beach in San Francisco.
Call him Ke11y. // Photo courtesy of Rip Curl
Slater was mistakenly awarded the title Wednesday after a miscalculation by the Association of Professional, but the title wasn’t official clinched until he won his heat in Round 4 of the Rip Curl Pro surf contest Sunday.
Thousands of people cheered Slater as he surfed against Brazilians Gabriel Medina and Miguel Pupo. An onshore wind made conditions a bit sloppy for the surfers, but Slater somehow managed to treat the crowd with into an extended barrel just seconds after the heat ended.
“I put together what I thought was a pretty good heat today—it wasn’t spectacular but those waves are hard to ride and hard to pick,” Slater said in a release from his publicist.
Slater now moves to the semi-finals of the surf contest, which will likely start at 8am tomorrow.
Kelly Slater before his Round 4 heat // Photo by Matt Crawford
Kelly Slater escaping the large crowd that surrounded him after he won his heat. // Photo by Matt Crawford
The Crowd at Ocean Beach. // Photo by Matt Crawford
Kelly Slater talking to reporters after his heat. // Photo by Matt Crawford
Kelly Slater addressing the crowd of after his victory. // Photo by Matt Crawford
Kelly Slater signing autographs after his win. // Photo by Matt Crawford
