Fans, friends and surf fans of Gabriel Medina have stormed the online world with thousands of protests against the judgment of the final heat of the Rip Curl Pro Portugal 2012, in Supertubos, Portugal.
The Brazilian wonder boy lost the final against Julian Wilson, in the dying seconds of the Peniche stage, but the surfing community didn't agree with the scores given to both surfers.
More than a difference of opinion, fans and friends of Gabriel Medina were outraged with the punctuation awarded by the panel of surf judges.
"It is the third time that they make mistakes with me", said an emotional Medina, after knowing who had clinched the title, in the sands of Supertubos.
Critics say that Julian Wilson's last wave was overscored and that Gabriel Medina's waves were underscored. Twitter was immediately invaded by thousands of angry tweets, mainly originating from Brazil and Portugal. The word "Medina" reached Twitter's Top 10.
"The ASP (Australian Surfing Protection) is scared with the rise of Brazilian surfing (...) There is no doubts: Medina took the title (...) Surf judges robbed Gabriel Medina (...) Brazil should boycott the ASP World Tour and cancel the Brazilian stage (...) Shame what ASP is doing to surfing", fans wrote in hundreds of Facebook pages.
Several photographs were changed in Photoshop to get Medina elevating the trophy, in Portugal. The Brazilian hardcore surfing fans want drastic changes in the ASP judgment criteria and will keep their protests online.
Renato Hickel, the ASP's head judge, is one of the targets of all Medina supporters and is also under heavy fire. The Brazilian surf fans and media are attacking his silence over the entire judging controversy.
To know more about surf judging, take a look at the complete ASP Rule Book for 2012.