The ChileANs rise to a historical platform

The 8th Pan American Surfing Games will affect both the past and future of Chilean surf history. 
Chile placed second in the final team ranking which clearly speaks to their emerging potential and their demand to compete in the most competitive circuits of the surf scene.  However, it will be extremely important for the Chilean surfers to break out and surf other waves in order to gain more experience and international exposure.

Manuel Selman was perhaps the surfer that experienced the most pressure in participating in the Open and Junior.  With only 40 seconds left in his heat, he lost his grip on the gold medal as the Brazilian Wiggolly Dantas took over. 
But Manuel´s performance was satisfactory considering he was referred to as the best Chilean surfer in the 8th Pan American Surfing games and has demonstrated an amazing level of surfing.

The great Chilean hero of the event was Gabriel Brantes, the local bodyboarder from Iquique that made his presence known and promised to go for the world title next year.  Master of an explosive style, the “Momio” began to complete his promise by placing Chile on the highest platform of the podium.

“I have worked a lot for this, now I want to be World Champion the following year… and now I want to advise my sponsors that I need support in order to be able to complete my objective. ¡Viva Chile!” Brantes exclaimed to the media in euphoria upon exiting the water.

Paloma Freyggang was one of the strongest factors that allowed Chile to gain its historical second place in the 8th Pan American Surfing games.  The excellent Chilean bodyboarder gave a great performance during the entire event. 
Her third place at the end clearly showed her high skill level. When she gains more competition experience, she will be one of the greatest athletes in world of bodyboarding.

The Chileans in numbers

Open
Juan Carlos Lombardi            9
Cristian Tapia                     17
Diego Medina                     17
Manuel Selman                   25

Junior
Manuel Selman                    2
Guillermo Satt                     6
Maximiliano Cross               11
León Vicuña                      11

Women´s
Sofía Borquez                     5
Jéssica Anderson                13

Longboard
Ryan Cabezas                    11
Belko Suarez                     13

Bodyboard masculino
Gabriel Brantes                    1
Eduardo Carpinello                3

Bodyboard femenino
Paloma Freyggang                3

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