<strong>National Surfers:</strong>
Tiago Pires
Nic Von Rupp
Francisco Alves
Alex Botelho
João Guedes

<strong>International Surfers:</strong>
Pedro Scooby
Marco Giorgi
Miguel Tudela
Damien Hobgood
Bruce Irons
Bobby Martinez
Miguel Blanco

<strong>Wildcards:</strong>
Bruno Santos (vencedor edição 2015)
Bruno Grilo (local Wildcard)
Ruben Gonzalez
Koa Rothman

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<strong>Bruce Irons, Bobby Martinez, Nic von Rupp and more to attend barrel competition at Nazaré Final contenders were chosen by surf fans around the world</strong>

<img style="width:100%" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-2638" src="http://2017.capituloperfeito.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/CP_mosaico_CHOSEN-533x1000.jpg" alt="CP_mosaico_CHOSEN" width="533" height="1000" />

The 5th annual Allianz Perfect Chapter powered by Billabong voting period ended yesterday, leading up to the 16 final contenders. With a holding period raging from January 17 th to March 17 th , the original one-day Portuguese surfing contest will take place at the famous Praia do Norte, in Nazaré, gathering some of the best tube riders in the world for a full day of competition in perfect, hollow waves. As in its previous editions, 2016 Allianz Perfect Chapter powered by Billabong final contenders were chosen by the public through online polling, giving surf fans around the world the opportunity to vote for their favorite wave riders under two different categories – Portuguese Surfers and International (non-Portuguese) Surfers –, having the final say at who will actually compete.

The 24 names up for polling have been preselected by the event organizers in association with a Committee of Experts holding a profound knowledge of the world surfing scene. Internationally known for their tube riding skills, Bruce Irons, Pedro Vianna “Scooby”, Miguel Tudela, Marco Giorgi, Damien Hogbood and Bobby Martinez were the most voted surfers under the International Surfers category, and are thus among the 16 men having a shot at becoming the new Allianz Perfect Chapter powered by Billabong champion. Nic von Rupp, Tiago Pires, João Guedes, Francisco Alves, Miguel Blanco and Alex Botelho, the most voted surfers under the Portuguese Surfers category, are also joining the competition alongside with Brazilian surfer Bruno Santos, winner of the previous edition, and local charger Bruno Grilo, who have been assigned with wildcards by the organization. Two last wildcards were being held by the event organizers in order to “rescue” a couple of surfers left out by the public (one per category) and were assigned to Ruben Gonzalez and Koa Rothman, who complete the list of final contenders.

Once the competition is called ON, these 16 men are coming together at Nazaré to ride massive barrels in pursuit of glory and the €10.000 1st place check, plus performance prizes. The event’s waiting period begins today and ends on March 17 th, surfers being notified of the event status within only a 72 hours’ notice. If any of the invitees is to be unavailable, they must withdrawal from the competition and be replaced by the following surfers on polling rankings, regarding the sum of votes per athlete. Thus, according to people’s preferences, Allianz Perfect Chapter powered by Billabong 2016 alternates are Marlon Lipke, José Ferreira, Filipe Jervis, Ivo Cação and João Macedo (under the Portuguese Surfers category); and Alex Gray, Felipe Cesarano, Wade Goodall, Eric Rebiere and Ryan Hipwood (under the International Surfers category). Finally, if for some reason Gonzalez or Rothman fail to confirm their attendance, the organization will be assigning their wildcards to the following surfers on the “rescue list” (per category), namely and by this order, Marlon Lipke, Filipe Jervis, Ivo Cação, José Ferreira and João Macedo (under the Portuguese Surfers category) and Ryan Hipwood, Wade Goodall, Alex Gray, Felipe Cesarano and Eric Rebiere (under the International Surfers category).

With a €20.000 prize money, Allianz Perfect Chapter powered by Billabong will gather surfers from different countries and generations at the best waves the Portuguese coast has to offer. The event is meant to be held in perfect barrels, featuring a several weeks waiting period over which surfing forecast will be closely monitored by experts to make sure the event goes down on the best day of European winter (offering the best barreling conditions).

The Allianz Perfect Chapter powered by Billabong is sponsored by Allianz, Billabong, Nazaré City Council, Kia, MEO and it is associated with the media partners RTP, Fuel TV, Jornal i, Mega Hits, SURFPortugal, Beachcam, Surf Session, Fluir, Waves and Surfing Life.