Hawaiian Keala Kennelly placed second in the final ­ a result which saw her officially qualify for the 2001 elite World Championship Tour's Top 14. Third place today was Melanie Redman (Australia), and fourth was Lynette MacKenzie (Aus).

Beachley, 28, clinched her third consecutive world title just one month ago in Maui, but was disappointed with her overall performance in the Vans G-Shock Triple Crown prior to today. Having been the leading contender for the Vans G-Shock Triple Crown title the past three years, Beachley trod on unfamiliar territory this winter when she found herself out of contention. After lack-luster finishes in the first two events, Beachley wasn't ready to call it a year before redeeming herself in the third and final event today.

"Surfing at Sunset is all the motivation I need," said Beachley. "It's my favorite spot on the tour. I love this wave. To be out of contention for the Vans Triple Crown was a real disappointment to me, so it was like a redemption to win at Sunset today."

The win almost didn't happen after Beachley injured her lower back during the semi-finals. Getting "over-excited" at the site of perfect six-feet conditions under clear skies, she lost concentration and suffered a wipeout that hyper-extended her spine.

"It felt like my feet almost touched the back of my head," Beachley said. "It didn't bother me too much once I was riding the waves. I tried not to let it affect me ­ I'm here to win and that's what I wanted to do."

The final was the slowest heat of the day in terms of quality waves. After a 10 minute lull in swells, the ladies got anxious, scrambling for the small ones and getting cleaned up by the set waves. But they were all in the same position. In the end it was Beachley's experience with the Sunset Beach lineup that gave her the edge she needed for a win.

For Kennelly, second was almost as good as a win today as it got her where she wanted to be: on the WCT tour.

"I've known for a long time what was at stake and it was stressing me out for a long time and then I just let go of it all. The last few days I've been having a good time and a lot of fun surfing and the minute you let go of all that stress it happens for you."

With the conclusion of the women's Vans Triple Crown Series today, two important awards were presented: the Vans G-Shock Triple Crown Champion and the Nose Guard Triple Crown Rookie award. South African Heather Clarke became the first of her nationality to take such honors in Hawai`i, standing tall as the best performing female surfer on the North Shore this winter. Australian Belinda Godfrey was awarded the 2000 Triple Crown Rookie for her inaugural Hawaiian winter performance.

In addition to the women's heats today, the final six heats of round two of the men's Rip Curl Cup were held. Kauai's Andy Irons was the stand-out for the men, reveling in "perfect Sunset Beach conditions".

Conditions are expected to be small with a new swell anticipated for the beginning of the week.

The Vans G-Shock Triple Crown of Surfing is made possible through the proud support of major sponsors Vans, Mountain Dew, G-Shock, Rip Curl, Quiksilver Roxy, Billabong, as well as PlayStation, Ford Ranger, Right Guard Xtreme Sport (Gilette), Rolling Stone, ESPN/ESPN2, Surfrider Foundation, the Hawaii Visitors Bureau, and the ASP.

Check out all the latest on http://www.swell.com ­ offering live stream feeds of the day's events, along with all the scores, results and images of the events.

For further information:
Contact Jodi Young in the Verizon Wireless media center at the event:
Telephone: (808) 637-5081
Email