The last time George Pittar competed at the Margaret River Pro, a mainstay stop of the World Surf League, it was a very different story. The Manly-born, Vanuatu-raised surfer arrived in Western Australia in May last year needing a run of wins in the heavy conditions to avoid the championship tour’s dreaded mid-season “cut”. But a round of 32 loss to Brazil’s Miguel Pupo meant that Pittar’s time at surfing’s top table was over halfway through his rookie campaign.
Having trudged up the Margaret River main break steps, a deflated Pittar found a quiet spot in the corner of the athletes’ area. Sitting on a railing amid drying wetsuits, a towel covering his head and face in his hands, Pittar did not move for 15 minutes – disconsolate, a dream over before it really began.
