Highly decorated Barbadian surfer Chelsea Tuach added more silverware to her collection as she produced an impressive performance to secure second position at the inaugural 2024 La Marginal Surfing Pro World Surf League (WSL) 3000 Series in Puerto Rico on Sunday.

Tuach, who locked horns with Costa Rica’s Leilani McGonagle in the final round of comptition, recovered from a slow start to get the better of her opponent in the opening exchanges.

After trading the lead on a number of occasions, Tuach maintained a slight edge over McGonagle, with a score of 5.67, heading into the back half of the final.

However, another massive exchange unfolded in the closing five minutes, as McGonagle unleashed her forehand attack to overtake the lead from Tuach with a heat-best score of 7.83.

Tuach found an opportunity and tried her best to rally, but fell just shy of topping the podium with a total score of 11.04. McGonagle won with a total of 12.76.

It was Tuach’s third podium finish in the 3000 Series in the Caribbean, having won the Martinique Surf Pro in 2019 and the Barbados Surf Pro in 2022. Her second-place finish propelled her up to eighth place on the North American Qualifying Series ranking.

Tuach, who comes from a surfing family and started surfing at age 8, is one of Barbados' Sports Tourism Ambassadors.