Ethan Ewing now has his own Bells Beach trophy to keep next to his bed, right alongside the one his mother won 40 years ago.
The 24-year-old triumphed in an all-Australian final against Ryan Callinan on Tuesday before Tyler Wright claimed back-to-back titles, dominating another local in World Surf League rankings leader Molly Picklum in the women’s decider.
Ewing and Wright became the first dual Australian champions at Bells since Mick Fanning and Sally Fitzgibbons in 2012, while the last time four Australians made the finals was back in 1991.
A trail-blazer for women’s surfing, Ewing’s late mother Helen Lambert won the title in 1983, splitting a 10-year domination by American surfers.
Dying of cancer when he was six, Ewing said he couldn’t remember a time when her trophy wasn’t on his bedside table or a time when he didn’t strive to win his own.
He has only seen photos of her victory and said she had been a huge inspiration.
“I have memories of her taking me surfing and watching her surf, they’re really special memories,” an emotional Ewing told AAP.
“To put my name on the trophy next to hers, it’s really special for my family.”
Growing up on Queensland’s Stradbroke Island, he spent as much time as he could at Bells to try to master the famed break.
Ewing came close last year when he was eliminated in the semi-finals by eventual champion Filipe Toledo, but in the 60th year got to ring the famous trophy bell.
“I’ve had the trophy next to my bed pretty much my whole life and looked at it and dreamt of it,” Ewing said.
“I’ve spent a lot of time down here to work out the waves and learn a lot and to have it pay off is huge.”
Jumping to No.4 on the world rankings on the back of the win, Ewing was rewarded for some smart surfing on a marathon day.
He conserved his energy, going for quality over quantity as he picked out the best waves of each heat as he moved through the rounds.
Ewing went all out in the final, surfing 11 waves with his score of 14.50 trumping Callinan’s two-wave total of 11.00.
“It was definitely worried about fatigue so I tried to pick the eyes out of the waves and not use too much energy,” he said.
“It was such a big day, an amazing day, and now I’m so tired.”
It was his second WSL title after winning at South Africa’s J-Bay last year.
From Newcastle, 30-year-old Callinan’s performance saw him rocket to No.6 in the rankings and secured his place in the top 24 after he missed the mid-season cut last year.
In the women’s showdown Wright set the pace against 20-year-old Picklum, laying down back-to-back scores for a combined tally of 16.00.
Picklum fell short with a two-wave score of 12.00.
Wright had to fight her way through the elimination round and then took down contenders Carissa Moore and Stephanie Gilmore en route to the final.
“I didn’t expect too much this week … last year there was so much emotion in it as it took me 12 years to try and get the first one,” said Wright, who has moved up to world No.2.
“Both wins are incredible and I felt I learnt a lot from last year on how to manage Bells.
“To have Steph and Cariss and Molly in the final, it’s been a really nice journey and it feels really special.”
Picklum will remain rankings leader heading into the next event at Margaret River while Brazil’s Joao Chianca has taken the yellow jersey from Jack Robinson as the men’s No.1.
© AAP 2023
