Illan Urkia will be the "Local Hero" of the Red Bull Rivals

The Bizkaino surfer Illan Urkia has proclaimed himself a local championship champion who annually organizes the Mundaka Surf Club in the prestigious Basque left, making it worthy of the title "Local Hero" of Red Bull Rivals, the expected surfer duel that will soon face Spain and Portugal. The young mundakarra, 26, has been imposed with authority this Sunday in a spectacular final disputed in epic conditions of 2 meters offshore waves. With two tubes pointed by the judges with 9.25 and 9.15 points (over 10), Urkia proved to be the most complete surfer of the event, clearly dominating the bizkaina bar.

The competition began on Saturday with a plethora day, where the waves reached 3.5 meters high. "The conditions were very harsh. Very large and powerful, very current, broken and even missing tables... It was a day of breaking arms!" explains Imanol García, president of the Mundaka Surf Club. With this local victory, Illan Urkia confirms his place as "Local Hero" of Team Spain at the Red Bull Rivals. Capitalized by the zarauztarra Arritz Aranburu, the state team will face a fighting team Portugal led by the Lusa star Tiago Pires, a duel that will be fought in two battles, one from one to the other, spread between Ribeira d'Ilhas (Ericeira, Portugal) and Mundaka.

Mundaka was already the stage in 2014 of the inaugural battle between the Canary Islands and the Peninsula in the first edition of the Red Bull Rivals. Two years later, the event returns to its origins. The contrasting quality of Europe's best left, the unconditional support of the City of Mundaka and its dynamic local surf club have been decisive for the competition to return to Basque waters.