If everything stays as it is, next year there will be a QS 6000 in El Gringo de Arica, a QS 3000 in Iquique and a 1500 in Antofagasta; distributing a total of 10500 historic points for Chile, Latin America and the world. Except for Brazil, never before in history has such a number of points been distributed in the region.

This was reported today to DUKE by Francisco “El Oso” Gana and his partner Guillermo “El Memo” Satt, who concluded another edition of the Latin Pipe Masters, the ninth, and who are looking forward to celebrating the decade with a bigger hit.

“I am 80% sure that we will confirm the event,” Gana told DUKE. “This year we had the support of the government, which is very important, and we are sure that we already have the backing to say that we are 80% sure that the event will have 6000 people.”

According to the promoters representing the Arica Surf Club, 2019 will be a special year for Arica because it will have the launch of a renovated Isla Alacrán (where El Gringo is located). “It will look like a real stadium, there will be galleries, shade, the tower will be high,” said Gana. “Now the issue of the private company is what we are about to close soon and from there we will make the announcement.”

The fact of having a 6000, according to the leader, entails some big differences with respect to the events that have already been carried out: There will be more international judges, a much higher expense, more competitors and therefore, more days of championship will be necessary, because in a break like El Gringo, which breaks mostly in the morning, more event hours are needed.

Asked why he decided to take on the challenge of having a tournament of 6000 people, he explained that they want to help the city's talents and encourage them to reach the level needed to be among the best. "The possibility of having two or three competitors in the CT will be real," said Gana.

And following this principle they raised the stakes: “We are going to have a Triple Crown of surfing in Chile, with a 1500 event in Antofagasta, a 3000 in Iquique and we will finish with a 6000 in Arica. That is the project, and I believe that if it goes as it is going, I think we will have the most important dates of the South Pacific in Chile. We are going to become a Portugal.”

Not far from what happens in Hawaii, even more tubular, the Chilean Triple Crown would have the tubes of La Cúpula, the tubes of Punta 1 or El Colegio and the tubes of El Gringo. Lots of tubes.

“We are going to have a series of championships in very extreme and tough conditions,” added El Oso. “I am working on it. Between now and the end of the year I will be in a position to confirm the dates for Iquique, Antofagasta and Arica, I dare say that there is a 90% probability (that they will become reality).”

Finally, recalling that legendary CT in 2007, he pointed out that the intention is for that to happen: “We have some progress, we want to get there.”

With 10.500 points to be distributed in a few months, plus a women's QS that takes place every year and a CT in the works, everything continues to indicate that surfing in Chile is going very well.