<div><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Taranaki surfer advanced through one round on Wednesday to advance through to the last six surfers in the event and help New Zealand to eighth overall on the team rankings.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It may now be a long wait with the swell expected to be small through until the final day of the event window on Saturday (22nd September) potentially meaning two lay days.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Hareb started her Round 5 heat well but soon found herself in third place facing relegation to the repechage rounds at the hands of Bianca Buitendag (ZAF) and Justine Dupont (FRA). However, she fought back on a small righthander posting a 3.60 which was enough for second place (8.30 out of 20) and the pressure went back on the French surfer who was not able to retaliate.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“I made a mistake with my priority but luckily it didn’t cost me the heat” said Hareb who changed her equipment in light of the small waves on offer.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“The surf changed heaps compared with the day prior and I wasn’t sure whether to change boards to my epoxy or not but I made the switch and it worked out thankfully”.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Despite being one heat away from the final and pressure mounting, Hareb has maintained that a podium finish has always been her goal even prior to the event starting.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“I’m happy with how it’s going so far but yeah every heat gets harder and harder so for now I’m just concentrating on the next heat”.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Hareb faces off against Bianca Buitendag again along with Holly Wawn (AUS) and Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) in the next round with the top two advancing through to the final and third and fourth dropping back to the Repechage Semifinal for one last chance.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Given the potential of two lay days, Hareb expects to take in some of the surrounding Tahara region and relax before Saturday’s action.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Elin Tawharu and Raiha Ensor were also in action on day four looking to advance their cause in the repechage rounds.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Tawharu surfed a stellar heat in Round 4 to advance but in Round 5 came up short thanks to a quiet ocean and she was eliminated by Nadia Erostarbe (ESP) and Philippa Anderson (AUS).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Tawharu finished the event 22nd equal overall.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ensor’s campaign also came to a close thanks to a flat ocean, the young Mount Maunganui surfer unable to find a 4.45 point ride with the ocean going flat for the last few minutes of her heat.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ensor finished the event in 25th place overall.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The ISA UR World Surfing Games is contested over seven days at Tahara Beach with over 200 athletes from 42 nations in attendance.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Please see below for results from day four of the 2018 UR ISA World Surfing Games held at Tahara Beach, Japan (Wednesday 19 September).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Team Points</strong></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">1 USA 3920</div><div style="text-align: justify;">2 Australia 3490</div><div style="text-align: justify;">3 France 3375</div><div style="text-align: justify;">4 Japan 3368</div><div style="text-align: justify;">5 South Africa 2973</div><div style="text-align: justify;">6 Peru 2605</div><div style="text-align: justify;">7 Spain 2528</div><div style="text-align: justify;">8 New Zealand 2415</div><div style="text-align: justify;">9 Argentina 2340</div><div style="text-align: justify;">10 Canada 2248</div><div style="text-align: justify;">11 Portugal 2173</div><div style="text-align: justify;">12 Costa Rica 1890</div><div style="text-align: justify;">13 Great Britain 1850</div><div style="text-align: justify;">14 Indonesia 1819</div><div style="text-align: justify;">15 Chile 1660</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Women’s Round 5</strong></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Heat 1</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bianca Buitendag, RSA, 10.66, 1, Paige Hareb, NZL, 8.3, 2, Justine Dupont, FRA, 7.66, 3</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Women’s </strong><strong>Repechage Round 4</strong></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Heat 3</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Minori Kawai, JPN, 10.9, 1, Eva Woodland, CRC, 9.34, 2, Raiha Ensor, NZL, 8.1, 3, Coral Wiggins, CRC, 6.53, 4</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Heat 4</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Elin Tawharu, NZL, 11.17, 1, Josefina Ane, ARG, 9.47, 2, Nicole Pallet, RSA, 7.14, 3, Shelby Detmers, MEX, 3.23, 4</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Women’s Repechage Round 5</strong></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Heat 3</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Nadia Erostarbe, ESP, 9.27, 1, Philippa Anderson, AUS, 9.23, 2, Eva Woodland, CRC, 7.24, 3, Elin Tawharu, NZL, 5.36, 4</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Olympic qualification process starts with the World Surf League (WSL) where ten males and 8 females on the 2019 World Tour will directly qualify for Tokyo 2020. No more than two athletes per nation can qualify via this process.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">2018 marks the lead-in to Olympic qualification via the International Surfing Association (ISA) World Surfing Games. A good team result in 2018 will set up nations with a good seed for their first qualification attempt at the 2019 World Surfing Games. The top ranked male and female from the Oceania Region at the 2019 event will qualify for Tokyo 2020. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Athletes have a further chance to qualify for the Olympics at the 2020 ISA World Surfing Games where the final four males and six females in each division will be determined by the top placing athletes at that event. The selections will then need to be ratified by the New Zealand Olympic Committee before being confirmed.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">View the full <strong><a href="http://www.isasurf.org/tokyo-2020-qualification/" target="_blank">Olympic qualification system</a></strong>.</div><div><br /></div>