'My heart hurts so bad' - Heartbreak for Sally Fitzgibbons in Tokyo quarter-final defeat

Brendan Bradford

'My heart hurts so bad' - Heartbreak for Sally Fitzgibbons in Tokyo quarter-final defeat image
Sally Fitzgibbons' dream of a gold medal in surfing's debut at the Olympics is over after a heartbreaking quarter-final defeat to Japan's Amuro Tsuzuki on Tuesday.

After topping her opening heat on Sunday, Fitzgibbons claimed a Round 3 win over France's Pauline Ado on Monday, setting up a last-eight showdown with Tsuzuki. 

The Australian's gold medal aspirations came crashing down in choppy conditions on Tuesday, recording a score of 11.67 to Tsuzuki's 13.27.

The final minutes of the half hour heat left Fitzgibbons desperately searching for a decent wave to claw back the deficit, but it never came. 

Fitzgibbons' raw interview after the loss showed just how devastating the loss was. 

"It hurts so bad. This one is probably the toughest loss of my career," she said. 

"I wanted to do it so bad for my teammates and my country. It didn't happen today, but I had the best time. 

"I had the best time, I fought my hardest and it just wasn't my day.

"It's so hard and my heart's just shattered."

Fitzgibbons said she wanted to get a good score on the board early on, but Tsuzuki had the hometown knowledge. 

"I wanted to mix up the rhythm, but this is her hometown, her home beach," she said. 

"She showed that today and I just couldn't come back at the end."

There had been some consternation around surfing's addition to the Olympic program in the lead-up to Tokyo, but Fitzgibbons said the sport is here to stay.

"I'll always remember being the first surfing Olympians and hopefully it goes from strength to strength," she said. 

"Our sport is here to stay and hopefully I'll see you all in 2024.

"I was so proud to share the experience with Steph Gilmore and all the other Aussie surfers who have paved the way for us to be here.

"I had a blast, but I'll pick myself up and go again.

"I just hope all the young groms can pick up a board for the first time, go out with a smile on their face and just ride waves. It brings me the most joy in life and every day it brings a smile to my face."

The raw emotion as Fitzgibbons stood on the beach and spoke about the result hit home for many on social media. 

Fitzgibbons' loss came a day after countrywoman Steph Gilmore's own devastating defeat in Round 3 on Monday. 

One of the pre-Olympics favourites, Gilmore was knocked out by South Africa's Bianca Buitendag. 

She left her own message on social media on Tuesday. 

"Heartbroken I didn’t do better here in Japan but this has been a weird and wonderful, first time Olympic experience that i’ll never forget!" she wrote. 

"Sorry I couldn’t bring home a gold but so thankful for all the love and support along the way.

"Excited to see who can take home surfing’s first medals today!

"Feeling the tears on the ride back to the hotel I saw this and was reminded that without the rain, there’s no rainbow. Mother Nature always wins! 

 

Brendan Bradford