Ian Gentil and Caity Simmers Are the WSL’s 2023 Rookies of the Year
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Every year the WSL awards Rookie of the Year honors to the first time qualifiers who finish highest in the year end rankings.
For 2023, that's Ian Gentil and Caity Simmers.
For the WSL, choosing the honors this year was easy. Gentil finished 14th, way in front of Rio Waida in 21st, while Maxime Huscenot failed to make the cut. And though Liam O'Brien was also in his first year on the CT, the WSL didn't consider him a rookie, despite the fact he hurt himself warming up at Pipeline in 2022 (before he ever pulled on a jersey) and was forced to sit out for the entire year. While it was a controversial decision, in the end it didn't matter, since O'Brien finished 17th (a few places below Gentil) anyway.
On the women's side, Simmers qualified for the Top 5 at Trestles and finished 4th in the world, while fellow rookie Sophie McCulloch got the chop during the mid-season cut. No dramas there.
While some surfers flash as a rookie and fade down the stretch, we don't see that with Gentil or Simmers.
Simmers established herself as a bonafide world title contender straight off the bat, and while it took Gentil a frustratingly long time to finally qualify, he quickly found his feet on tour. You don't luck into three 9ths, a 5th and a 3rd. Those are some big time results for a rookie.
Now, can someone sponsor Gentil already? What more does a guy need to prove before someone claims that empty white real estate on the end of his shiny white Mayhem?
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