Photo: Brent Bielmann // WSL
It’s official, Marco Mignot has been on a heater of a rookie year. At the still-ongoing Tahiti Pro, the 24-year-old from Sayulita, Mexico (who represents France) has earned the Rookie of the Year title.
Mignot’s accomplishment is all the more impressive for the competition he’s been going up against all season. The stacked rookie class included Joel Vaughan, George Pittar, Edgard Groggia, and Jackson Bunch. However, in the end, it was between Mignot and Al Cleland Jr., who had been having a strong rookie showing, since getting the call up to the Championship Tour after John John Florence dropped out. When Cleland fell to Ethan Ewing in the round of 16 in Tahiti, Mignot clinched the honor.
“Super happy to get Rookie of the Year,” said Mignot to Chris Cote in a sideline interview at the Tahiti Pro. “It was a tough battle between Alan and Joel. We really went big, I mean we had no choice. The level is so high. It was a last-heat battle with Alan. [Whether it had been] me or him, I’m just super happy. [It’s been] a beautiful year, but still a lot of learning to do.”
Photo: Brent Bielmann // WSL
Mignot partly credits the accomplishment to confidence and belief in himself, even in the face of a murderer’s row of fellow rookies. “I think it’s something that I’ve always had, is self-belief,” he told Cote. “I feel like I could beat anybody, in my mind. I felt like this year I was going all in in my heats and it paid off. I’m super happy. Like I said, there’s a lot of levels in this tour, so I had no choice.”
