Olympians Win Vans Jack's Pro In Huntington Beach

Originally posted on SURFER | By Jake Howard | Last updated Apr 7, 2025 11:51 AM ET

Two seems too be a pretty good number for both Peru's Luca Mesinas and Canada's Sanoa Dempfle-Olin. For Mesinas, his win over the weekend at the Vans Jack's Surfboard Pro, was his second straight WSL Qualifying Series. And for Demfple-Olin, her podium-topping performance was the second QS win of her young career. Both Mesinas and Demfple-Olin represented their respective countries at the 2024 Olympic Games last summer in Tahiti, and now here they are again, on the podium in Surf City.

A growing force on the North American QS, Dempfle-Olin was dominant throughout the later rounds of the event, eventually running away with the final against Encinitas's Ella McCaffray in a lopsided affair.

"I was super happy to get a podium to start the year, and then to win feels good. Winning a QS 4,000 going into the Challenger Series helps me feel confident. My biggest win so far was in Pismo so this is amazing," said Dempfle-Olin after the win.

On the men's side, Mesinas had to battle through some stout competition to earn his spot in the final. In the quarters he dispatched journeyman Kolohe Andino. Then in the semis he had to get through Ventura young buck Dimitri Poulos. This set up a nail-biting final against Taro Watanabe, which was ultimately decided by a tenth of a point.

"It feels amazing. That was a really crazy ending there and I was really nervous if that was going to be the score for Taro or not," Mesinas said afterwards. "I had priority in the wave before and even though they could be small they can be good sometimes so when I saw him going on that wave I just thought oh no. I really enjoy the place and I'm really happy to go back-to-back."

With the WSL's Challenger Series on the horizon, the North American QS season hits the pause button until the Virginia Beach Pro at the end of August.

This article first appeared on SURFER and was syndicated with permission.

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