Ethan Ewing’s spinal injury “blown out of proportion” and he will surf for historic world title on Finals Day

“He’s playing mind games with the Brazilians.”

Yesterday, the beleaguered World Surf League came under fire for “passive aggressively trolling Ethan Ewing” after it posted a heat draw for September’s one-day grand final.

As y’know, the top five rated men and women will compete at Lower Trestles some time between September 8 and 16 for a one-day shoot-out that’ll decide the world champions.

 

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Ewing, as you also know, busted a couple of vertebrae in his spine while practising for the Tahiti Pro and the early prognosis was a three-month wait for surgery followed by six months out of the water.

Hence no Finals Day or swing at title for Ewing.

So why put him in the draw? Surf fans felt the same and lit up the WSL.

This is starting to feel like you’re just passive aggressively trolling Ethan

there is a WSL obscenity all over the post putting this up.

maybe they could use a nice picture from him in hospital.

So is EE going to compete as a bodyboarder or how is he supposed to surf with a broken back?

The word on the street now, if that’s what you want to call it, is the WSL were right to feature Ewing on their graphics as the world number three-rated surfer’s injury has been “blown out of proportion”, he’s “definitely mobile” and will, likely, compete at Lowers.

Already, half a score of surfers from Ewing’s island home, North Stradbroke, have booked tickets to California to watch their hero bring home the trophy.

Ewing’s own silence on the matter is, according to one observer, his way of “playing mind games with the Brazilians” in particular the reigning champ and small-wave specialist Filipe Toledo who is expected to easily retain his title in the consequence-free waves.

Ewing’s relationship with Brazilian fans has been strained ever since WSL judges preferred his velvet lines over Medina’s bag of tricks at the Surf Ranch Pro a few months back, one even threatening to murder the innocent Australian.

The shift in judging, from rewarding frenetic but unpretty airs to melting over smooth combos, suits Ewing whose surfing is so beautiful it excites the sensitive soul to tears.