INTRODUCING THE JUDGES OF THE INAUGURAL E-PRO JAPAN
SURF WEB SERIES - THE ONLINE SURFING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP Surf Web Series is honored to introduce the judging panel for the E-Pro Japan, the fourth stop of the online surfing world championship, kicking off September 14, 2020: Gary Linden (USA @ garylinden ) founded the Big Wave World Tour and helped create the Surf Web Series, with experience running surf events on every corner of the globe. He works as head judge for surfing competitions in waves of all sizes and shapes. Now in his 70’s, the Californian surfboard shaper is still surfing XXL waves and loves getting barreled. Ryosuke Yoshitomi (JAP @ ry_yosuke ) is a professional bodyboarder from Chiba, Japan. He works as a professional judge for the Nippon Surfing Association and level 2 of the ISA. J osé Ramírez Rito (MEX @ joseramirezrito ) is one of the local legends in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca known for his big wave prowess and competitive drive on an international stage. He has done so much for Mexican surfing in addition to event organization and judging. Cyril Nel (ZAF @ cyrilnel ) is from East London, South Africa, and began judging professional surf contest three decades ago. He is currently Surfing South Africa's most experienced senior, in addition to a top-class contest director. The highly anticipated E-Pro Japan introduces the great waves on offer in the Asian archipelago, in addition to the sport’s top talent with 24 professional surfers and 4 ameatur wildcards in the draw. Confirmed athletes going to battle on the internet for the national title include: Takumi Nakamura, Naohisa Ogawa, Taka Inoue, Yuji Mori, and Momoto Tsuzuki. The #EProJapan is made possible by support from our sponsors: YUKIBRAND , CORE N’ CODE , and CUCULE . Surf Web Series is an online surfing world championship, revolutionizing competitive surfing in which athletes compete by entering surf videos from their home country. The digital platform showcases surfers putting in their best performances on the best waves in their local regions. In this way, the SWS is able to impact surf fans directly, in a massive way, anywhere in the world. All they need is a smartphone! Engagement grows from the audience, as fans are encouraged to vote for the winners of each heat via social media commentary on the Surf Web Series ’ Facebook and Instagram pages. The combined tally of fan votes counts as one of five judging panels. The Surf Web Series is gearing up for the Land of the Rising Sun, kicking off Sep. 14th. #EProJapan - Round 1 Official Heat Draw: Heat 1: Ryota Matsushita, Jin Suzuki, Taishi Kume Heat 2: Roy Kanazawa, Haru Morishita, Shohey Kato Heat 3: Keanu Chris Kamiyama, Tenshi Iwami, Taka Inoue Heat 4: Takumi Nakamura, Miyu Furukawa, Kaito Kurokawa Heat 5: Yuji Nishi, Yuto Terai, Kyoshiro Suda, Yuki Ota Heat 6: Yukio Ogawa, Momoto Tsuzuki, Mitsuki Ohta, Keitaro Fujinuma Heat 7: Shuji Nishi, Ryo Miura, Hyusei Fujita, Dan Kakai Heat 8: Naohisa Ogawa, Yuji Mori, Hironoshin Ando, Atsuya Nishizeko
