Tokong, Alciso bow out at Cloud 9

SIARGAO, Philippines — Filipino wildcards John Mark “Marama” Tokong and Jayuard Alciso gave the home crowd something to cheer about but saw their campaigns come to an end in the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour Philippines Pro at Cloud 9 yesterday.

Tokong bowed to Australian world No. 7 Ethan Ewing, while Alciso suffered a setback against familiar rival Kanoa Igarashi of Japan.

Fresh from a memorable win in his previous heat, the Siargao native known as the “King of Cloud 9” tried to keep his momentum going but found himself up against a tough opponent in Ewing.

Tokong came away with 11.54 points, short of Ewing’s 14.50, as the Australian moved on to the next round of the prestigious event presented by the Philippine Sports Commission, with the support of Surigao del Norte Gov. Robert Lyndon Barbers, General Luna Mayor Johnson Sajulga and Vice Mayor Romina Sajulga.

“I was really happy with my performance in that heat. I felt relaxed and just focused on choosing the right waves. But the conditions yesterday and today were different. The wind picked up, and I tried to stay busy, catch more waves and go for aerials, but unfortunately, I couldn’t land them,” Tokong said.

Alciso came close to making a late charge against Igarashi but ran out of time to turn the heat around. He managed just 4.17 points on his final wave as the 30-minute heat came to a close for 11.84 total, leaving him short of Igarashi’s 12.90 tally.